The sound of stilettos echoed down the marble hallway before Clair even saw her.
Then came the scent, jasmine and expensive sin.
Clair turned just in time to see her.
Isadora walked in like a flame wrapped in silk. Crimson lips. Long black hair that cascaded down her back in waves. Her dress clung to every curve, as if it had been poured on.
She didn't just walk. She glided. Like she owned the air.
And she was heading straight for Austin.
Clair instinctively stepped closer to him. His hand didn't move, but his expression changed, a cold wall rising behind his eyes.
"Isadora."
"I missed that voice," she purred, stopping just a foot away from him. "Though I expected a warmer welcome."
Daniel hovered near the door, tense.
"I told you she was dangerous," he muttered under his breath to Clair.
Clair didn't respond. She was watching Austin's body language, his face. Whatever history they had, he hadn't forgotten it.
"I thought you were dead," Austin said flatly.
"Oh, baby," she laughed. "That's the beauty of resurrection. I only play dead when I'm bored."
Clair narrowed her eyes. "What do you want?"
Isadora turned, as if noticing her for the first time.
"And you must be the nurse," she said smoothly. "I've read so much about you. The girl who made the king soft. Or so they say."
Clair stiffened. "He's not soft. He's human. Something you probably forgot how to be."
Isadora smiled, slow and venomous. "Cute. But he's still mine where it counts. Isn't that right, Austin?"
He didn't answer.
Clair felt the tension twist in her gut. She hated that Isadora had the nerve to show up now, when her entire world was shifting.
When a baby was growing inside her.
When she was still figuring out how to survive in this empire of shadows.
"What do you want?" Austin asked again, voice colder now.
Isadora's smile faded. "To warn you. The people coming for you now aren't playing games anymore. Elias was the beginning. You've stirred something bigger. Government, old blood, allies you abandoned. And I don't want to see you die."
Clair crossed her arms. "You care whether he lives or dies?"
"I care because if he dies, everything we built burns. And I'm not letting that go."
She leaned in closer to Austin. "We used to rule. You and me. We were unstoppable."
Austin didn't flinch. "That was before you tried to have me killed."
Clair's heart skipped.
Isadora didn't deny it.
"You took something that belonged to me," Isadora said softly. "So I took something in return. Call it balance."
She turned to leave, but not before glancing at Clair one more time.
"Pregnancy looks good on you," she said with a wink. "But being his weakness? That's a dangerous position to be in. Take care of yourself. If you live long enough."
Then she disappeared through the door.
In the quiet that followed, Clair felt her stomach twist.
"She tried to kill you?" she finally asked.
Austin rubbed a hand over his face. "She was my partner, long before I met you. We were two wolves in the same jungle. Until I realized she wasn't just dangerous to the world... she was dangerous to me."
"And you… loved her?"
"I thought I did. Before I understood what love really was."
He reached for Clair's hand, but she pulled it away.
"I need some air."
She walked out before he could stop her.
The moment the door shut behind her, Austin slammed his fist into the nearest wall.
Outside, Clair paced the balcony, her breath fogging in the cold night air.
The test result felt like a boulder in her pocket. Her mind wouldn't stop spinning.
What if she couldn't handle this life?
What if she brought a child into a war zone?
What if Isadora was right?
A cold voice cut through her thoughts.
"She won't survive you."
Clair turned. Agent Simone Reeves stood on the opposite end of the balcony, her suit sharp, her arms crossed.
"What are you doing here?"
"Watching. Gathering. And giving you a chance."
"A chance?"
Reeves stepped forward. "Turn him in, Clair. Help us build the case. Protect yourself. Protect that child."
Clair's breath hitched.
"You think I'd betray him?"
"I think you're scared. And I know scared people do desperate things."
Clair squared her shoulders. "You don't know me."
Reeves studied her. "No. But I know men like Austin. They love you until it's inconvenient. Until your blood becomes someone's message."
She pulled a card from her coat.
"When you're ready to talk, call me. Before it's too late."
Then she vanished into the darkness like a phantom.
Clair stood there, heart thundering, wind howling around her. Torn between love and survival. Between fire and reason.
She pressed her hand gently to her stomach.
And whispered, "I have to protect you."