Trial By Blood
Valenticias POV~
Every headline, every boardroom glare degraded me, but Stefan — Stefan stood beside me. We had been hanging out, working late-night strategy sessions at Clawford, his hand brushing mine over coffee, his teasing grins easing my fears. Yesterday, as I left an auction, my phone pinged with his text: Run away with me tomorrow. My lakeside cabin, just us. My heart had jumped at the thought of a night away a salve to my shredded nerves. “Yes,” I'd answered, my voice shaking with relief and the need for him, his warmth, his strength.
Now driving through Wyllbron’s rolling hills, the city had vanished in the rearview mirror. Stefan’s Bentley buzzed, his profile intense against the twilight, his casual knit a pale foil to his usual suits. The cabin came into view,
