Ariella's POV
The blade trembled in my hand as the rogue leader barked the order for his men to stand down. For a fleeting moment, I dared to believe it was over, that the nightmare had ended. But as the tension in the room shifted, I knew better. He was strong—too strong—and I was only delaying the inevitable. My grip tightened on the dagger, but it wasn’t enough. I could feel his muscles coiling beneath my hold, the suppressed fury vibrating through his frame.
The dagger… Archibald had given it to me as a means of protection, something small but sharp enough to fend off attackers if I ever found myself in danger. He would never have imagined it being used like this, against a powerful rogue, in a life-or-death standoff. The irony wasn’t lost on me, but I had no time to dwell on it. My
