Episode 14
The silence in the grand foyer stretched thin like a razor's edge.
Celeste Vornetti stood tall, elegant and poised, her presence commanding. Her red designer dress clung to her body like a second skin, and her eyes—sharp, calculating—were locked onto Aria like a predator to its prey.
Aria's breath caught.
She had read about Celeste in the magazines—Lucien's once-rumored fiancée, the woman hailed as his perfect match. Beautiful. Sophisticated. Ruthless.
And now she was standing at Aria's front door like she still belonged here.
Aria found her voice. "Lucien isn't here."
Celeste gave a dismissive smile. "I know. I'm not here to see him." She stepped inside uninvited. "I'm here to see you."
The butler looked at Aria for direction, but she nodded faintly. Let her come. Let's get this over with.
They walked into the drawing room.
Celeste didn't wait to sit. She perched herself on the velvet couch like a queen in her throne, crossing her legs elegantly.
Aria stayed standing.
Celeste studied her for a long moment, as if she were a museum artifact. "You're… different than I expected."
"And you're exactly what I imagined," Aria replied evenly. "Sharp heels, sharper tongue."
Celeste chuckled. "Oh, I like you. That makes things more interesting."
Aria folded her arms. "Why are you really here?"
Celeste leaned forward. "Lucien and I were supposed to be married. Until he disappeared into the shadows after his father died. He never returned my calls. Never gave a reason."
"Maybe that was the reason," Aria said coolly. "You're used to men falling at your feet. Lucien doesn't."
Celeste's smile hardened. "You think you're special? That just because he's parading you around in his mansion and covering your scandals, you're anything more than a placeholder?"
Aria's voice stayed calm. "I never claimed to be anything."
Celeste stood, stepping closer. "He will get bored of you. You're a charity case wrapped in secrets. When the novelty wears off, he'll realize you're not worth the effort."
Aria took a breath, her heart pounding—but she didn't flinch. "Then let him. But until then, you're standing in my house, insulting his wife."
For the first time, Celeste's mask cracked.
"Touché," she said with a slow clap. "But remember this—power always finds its way home. And I am the one who belongs in Lucien Blackwood's world. Not you."
And with that, she swept out of the room like a storm cloud—leaving the scent of expensive perfume and warning in her wake.
—
Hours later, Lucien returned.
Aria was in the garden when she heard the helicopter land. She met him halfway across the stone pathway, her arms folded tightly across her chest.
"We had a visitor," she said.
Lucien gave her a quick once-over. "You look like you're about to kill someone. Should I be concerned?"
"Celeste was here."
Lucien froze mid-step.
"She said she's here to take back what's hers."
Lucien's jaw tightened. "She has a knack for dramatics."
"You didn't think to tell me she was in the city?"
"I didn't think it was relevant."
Aria's laugh was bitter. "Your glamorous ex-fiancée shows up at our doorstep and that's not relevant?"
"She means nothing to me."
"She didn't act like it."
Lucien closed the distance between them. "What did she say to you?"
"That I'm temporary. That you'll get bored of me. That she belongs in your world."
Lucien's expression darkened. "She's wrong."
"Is she?" Aria's voice trembled despite her effort to stay composed. "You won't even tell me why you married me. Or why you brought me here."
Lucien stepped back, running a hand through his hair. "This isn't the time—"
"No," Aria snapped. "This is exactly the time. I'm tired of playing the part of the obedient wife while everyone else treats me like a mistake you refuse to admit."
Lucien stared at her for a long moment.
Then finally, he spoke.
"I married you to save you."
Aria blinked. "What?"
He looked away, toward the skyline. "Your accident. The coma. The hospital. I got a call from someone I owed a debt to. Said you were in trouble. That your life was being bought and sold behind your back. They asked me to intervene. So I did."
Aria's lips parted. "Who called you?"
He didn't answer.
"Lucien—"
"I married you to gain legal rights over your treatment. To pull you out before the wrong people could get their hands on you. It was supposed to be a name on paper. Temporary. Convenient."
Her throat tightened. "And now?"
He turned back to her slowly.
"Now… I don't know."
That admission struck harder than anything else.
"I don't do feelings, Aria. I don't do chaos. But you—" he stepped closer— "you bring both. And I can't seem to walk away."
Tears prickled at her eyes. "So what am I to you now?"
Lucien reached out, brushing his fingers along her jaw.
"You're the question I don't know how to answer."
And then, unexpectedly, he kissed her.
There was nothing gentle about it.
It was fire and fury and frustration—all the emotions he tried to hide, now crashing into her like a storm. Aria clutched his shirt, kissing him back, heart hammering.
For a moment, there was no Celeste.
No secrets.
No past.
Just the two of them—tangled in something far too dangerous to name.
—
Later that night, Lucien sat in his study alone, staring at a file on his desk.
A photograph slid halfway out—a blurry image of Aria standing in a hospital hallway with a man whose face was blacked out.
A name was scrawled underneath.
Subject Zero: Aria Vale
Dominic walked in quietly. "We confirmed the report. Celeste wasn't bluffing. She's working with the Vornetti board to reclaim leverage over Blackwood Industries."
Lucien's eyes didn't leave the photo. "And Aria?"
Dominic hesitated. "Still no full records on her past. Her guardian died in the same car accident. The driver's identity remains… classified."
Lucien's grip tightened on the file.
"Keep digging."