But Ahrick wasn't Declan.
Declan had never bled for me. Had never put himself between me and danger. Had never looked at me with anything but calculation behind his eyes—what he could take, how he could use me, what I was worth to his operation.
Ahrick looked at me like I was worth dying for.
And that was more terrifying than anything else that had happened in this nightmare.
I should have argued. Should have told him he was being stupid, that his life was worth more than protecting someonehe'd just met. Should have pushed him away and built walls between us like I'd built with everyone else since Declan.
But I couldn't.
Because when he looked at me like that I felt something warm and sweet open in my chest. Something I'd thought Declan had destroyed.
"You're an idiot," I said, but my voice came out soft. Almost tender.
"Probably." The corner of his mouth lifted. Just barely.
I pulled my wrist free—and this time he let me go. The loss of contact felt like cold water on burned skin. Relief and loss tangled together until I couldn't tell which was which.
I went back to cleaning his wounds, but my hands were gentler now. More careful. Like I was handling something precious. I traced the edges of cuts and bruises, feeling the heat of his skin beneath my fingers, cataloging the way his muscles tensed and released under my touch.
Noticing the way his breathing changed when I touched certain spots.
Not from pain.
From something else.
Something that made my own breath catch. Made heat pool low in my belly even though I didn't want it to. Made me hyper-aware of every point of contact between us—my fingers on his skin, the warmth radiating from his body, the way the air seemed to thicken with each passing second.
I glanced up and found him watching me. Really watching me. The intensity in his gaze made my stomach flip.
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing." But he didn't look away.
I focused on threading the needle, trying to ignore the way my heart was hammering. "This is going to hurt."
"I know."
I made the first stitch and he didn't make a sound. Just kept watching me with that look that made me feel seen in a way I hadn't been in years.
"Tell me about Hewes," he said quietly.
My hands stilled. "What?"
"Tell me what happened. Why the Prime put you in such danger. Why you want to kill him."
I didn't want to. Didn't want to drag that poison into this room, into this strange fragile thing between us. But maybe he deserved to know. Maybe I needed to say it out loud.
"I went to work for him straight out of college," I said, making another stitch. "Executive assistant. Project manager. He was charming. Successful. Everything I thought I wanted."
Ahrick's jaw tightened but he stayed quiet.
"We had an affair." The words tasted bitter. "I thought I was in love with him. Thought he felt the same way. Then I found out what he really was."
"The slavery operation."
"Yes." I tied off the stitch and started another. "I was going to go to the authorities. Turn him in. But before I could, he kidnapped my sister and brother. Ana and Sebastian. He held them hostage."
