And this time… he read.
---
Guests List
Quinn Family
Ezekiel Quinn (Host)
Levi Quinn
Alexander Quinn
Banks Family
George Banks
Lila Banks
Hailey Banks
Sterling Family
Sebastian Sterling
Romano Sterling
Raeven Sterling
Others
Kiel Wisconsin
William Blake
Clara Lucian
Lucy Arlet
Kristan Higgins
Clark Lake
…and many others.
---
The silence that followed was heavier than before.
This wasn't just a gathering anymore.
This was a convergence.
Powerful families. Influential names. Dangerous people—each one with something to protect… or something to hide.
Ezekiel's eyes moved slowly down the list, absorbing it, dissecting it.
When he reached the Sterling family, his finger paused—just briefly.
"Sebastian Sterling…" he murmured under his breath, almost amused.
Gabriel noticed—but said nothing.
Then Ezekiel continued.
By the time he reached the final section, his expression had gone completely still. No smile. No flicker of emotion.
Just cold understanding.
He closed the list.
Softly.
"Quite the collection," he said.
Gabriel clasped his hands behind his back. "The most influential figures within reach. As you requested."
Ezekiel stood again, descending the steps with slow, deliberate grace.
"Influence," he repeated, voice low. "Power. Reputation."
He walked past Gabriel, the sound of his footsteps echoing like a countdown.
"They all believe they hold it."
He stopped near the center of the hall.
Then turned.
"But …" his eyes darkened slightly, " l will remind them where they truly belong."
Gabriel's gaze remained steady. "Everything is in place."
Ezekiel tilted his head, studying him.
"I know," he said simply.
A pause.
Then—
"And the unexpected variables?"
Gabriel didn't hesitate. "Contained… for now."
That was enough to earn a faint, dangerous smile.
Ezekiel walked back toward his throne, but didn't sit this time. Instead, he rested one hand against it, fingers curling slightly over the carved wood.
"Good."
His voice dropped—quieter now, but far more lethal.
"Because when that room fills…"
His gaze drifted to the towering doors, as if he could already see them arriving.
"…I don't want control."
A beat.
"I want revelation."
The chandelier light flickered again, casting sharp shadows across his face.
"And if anyone came here thinking they're untouchable…" he added softly,
"They're about to be corrected."
Gabriel gave a slight nod.
The plan was set.
The players were chosen.
And well it-
had already begun.
___
ALEXANDER'S POV,
I sat on the chair which was next to her bed and l sat there calmly watching her sleep safe and sound. I don't know but there has always been something about her that l don't get well. And l want to understand but it's really hard.
Maybe even our meeting wasn't just an accident but fate all along. But it all doesn't matter now,l feel like l want to keep getting to know her more and more and be by her side.
And l want to keep holding her soft hands or those soft red cheeks of hers.
And I have been feeling all these weird and wild emotions,which are all mixed and bottled up inside me but l don't want them to leave even though they are all strange to me .
Those lovely deep emerald eyes, whenever l look at them, it's like they are controlling me,and there are so mesmerizing that l want to keep looking at them and never look away.
This makes me feel somehow afraid to los her. What am l even talking about, my father would probably lose it if he heard l am thinking of any other woman besides Lila. He wants to marry with people around us,with the same family routes.
And if not to use all the women because Love is not in his language and he feels it is the worst thing that could even happen to someone.
Why am l even thinking about this when l don't even know what to call it yet. And it's about to get at that to time of the year. Next week it's already time.
And other than that,the business is going smooth nowadays and nothing bad us happening, right now everything is in place and that makes life easier for me.
That l don't have to get my hands dirty with all of that blood of people it's makes it suffocating for me whenever I start to feel a glimpse of happiness.
___
The scent hit me first—iron, copper, and the musky, wild aroma of the forest after a storm. It was overwhelming, thick in the air, but it didn't smell like fear. It smelled like us.
I opened my eyes, or maybe I didn't. In the dream, sight was irrelevant. I felt the rough texture of cold concrete against my back, a stark contrast to the burning heat holding me down. Alexander was over me, his chest heaving against mine, trapping me between his powerful frame and the ground.
We were wrecked.
I looked down at myself, or rather, where I could see through the dark haze of the dreamscape. My white slip dress, once delicate, was now a tattered mess, shredded at the hem and torn along the bodice. The fabric was heavy, saturated, turning a vibrant, slick crimson. It wasn't all mine. I couldn't tell where my blood ended and his began. It was a mosaic of ruin, staining the lace and clinging to my skin like a second, tighter layer.
Alexander's clothes were just as ravaged. His leather jacket was ripped across the shoulder, showing a deep, purple-black bruise underneath that was sluggishly oozing, his dark shirt clinging to him in wet patches. He looked like he had just walked through hell—and I was right there with him.
"Evie," he groaned. It wasn't a word; it was a plea.
He held me so closely I could feel the sharp pounding of his heart against my ribs, matching mine in a frantic, terrifying rhythm. His arms were wrapped around me, his hands anchoring me to him, his grip almost bruising. It was the grip of a man terrified that if he loosened his hold, even for a second, I would dissolve into the grey fog surrounding us.
He buried his face in the crook of my neck, his breath hot and ragged against my skin. He was trembling. Alexander, who was always so composed, so fiercely in control, was shaking, and the sheer possessiveness in his grip told me he was holding on for dear life.
"You're here," he whispered into my skin, the words vibrating through me. "Stay. Don't go."