Chapter 190
Chapter 190:
The silence inside the Maybach was heavier than the river water that had filled my lungs only hours ago.
Dallas sat on the far side of the black leather seat, staring out at the passing city lights. He radiated a coldness that had nothing to do with the air conditioning. Every few minutes, a harsh, wet cough would rack his frame — but he refused to acknowledge it, just as he refused to look at me.
When the elevator doors finally slid open to the penthouse, the scent hit me first — expensive whiskey and the sharp, ozone tang of a storm barely contained.
I stepped out and gasped.
The living room looked like a war zone. The pristine marble floor was slick with amber liquid and littered with thousands of glass shards. A heavy crystal decanter lay shattered near the sofa, and the leather cushions were torn as if by claws.
Romance and passion on.com
“Careful where you step,” Dallas rasped, his voice devoid of emotion. He didn’t apologize for the destruction. He didn’t even glance at it. He simply walked through the wreckage as though it were a natural part of his landscape.
He didn’t lead me to the master bedroom. Instead, he stopped in front of a guest room down the hall and pushed the door open, revealing a space that was perfectly clean, perfectly white, and perfectly cold.
“Rest,” he commanded. Not a suggestion — an Alpha’s order. “Duncan will bring you food p>
“Dallas—” I started, reaching for his arm.
He pulled away before I could make contact, flinching as though my touch burned. “Stay in the room, Adella.” Then he turned and walked away, leaving me standing in the doorway of my gilded cage.
I couldn’t stay in that room. The silence was suffocating, and the image of Dallas’s fever-bright eyes refused to leave me.
An hour later, I crept down the hallway. The penthouse was dark save for a faint blue glow spilling from the study. I pushed the door open.
Dallas sat behind his massive desk, surrounded by monitors. The cold light cast harsh shadows across his face, sharpening the dark circles beneath his eyes and the sheen of sweat on his forehead. He looked exhausted — a king ruling over a kingdom of ash.
He didn’t look up as I entered. “I told you to rest p>
“I couldn’t,” I said softly, stepping further into the room. My hands trembled slightly, but I held my ground. “I needed to thank you p>
His fingers stilled over the keyboard.
“For jumping in,” I continued, my voice steadying. “For saving me. The doctors said I was dead. You brought me back p>
Dallas turned his chair slowly to face me. His expression was a mask of stone, his eyes dark voids that refused to let me in.
“Saving you wasn’t a choice, Adella,” he said, his voice low and dangerously calm. “It was my duty as the Alpha. A duty I am bound to until our contract is fulfilled p>