Page 76 of Ruthless Kings of Obsession

"I did the one thing," I whisper, "that would hurt him more than any physical pain could."

I study Eva's peaceful expression, wondering not for the first time if I made the right choice. If the price of protection was worth what was lost.

"I made her forget,” I quietly confess. "That was the initial goal anyway," I continue, watching how the rain traces patterns on the dark windows. "Making her forget. But it went wrong. Everything went so terribly wrong."

"What do you mean?" Ren asks, leaning forward in his chair. The playboy facade has completely vanished, replaced by genuine concern.

My reflection shows a grimace as memories surface – sharp and clear despite the years between then and now. "I had invited Eva to the lab to try the serum. A controlled experiment, carefully measured doses." I run a hand through my hair, a nervous habit I've never quite broken. "Something had happened that day to set Domino off. I still don't know what exactly, but he came storming into the lab, absolutely furious."

The bows in my hand feel heavier with each word. "My parents were upstairs in the scanning facility. We were checking if their cancers had truly gone into remission or if they were showing signs of return – we'd started seeing some unusual side effects from the treatment." The medical terminology feels safe, clinical, a shield against the emotional weight of what comes next.

"The scans are intense," I explain, resuming my restless pacing. "The team has to put the patients under complete sedation. So they didn't hear when Domino arrived. Couldn't have known what was about to happen."

I pause near Eva's sleeping form, watching how she unconsciously curls closer to Zander. "I had just administered the trial dose to Eva. We were testing dosage levels, trying to understand the parameters. When Domino burst in..." A bitter laugh escapes me. "She had no idea who he was. None at all."

"It actually worked?" Matteo's eyebrow arches in surprise.

I nod slowly, remembering that moment with perfect clarity. "Temporarily, but yes. Despite all his outrage, his mocking accusations that she was pretending not to recognize him – she genuinely didn't know him. You could see it in her eyes." My voice drops lower. "It was amazing, really. Like all those years of trauma, all that pain and torment he'd inflicted – it was just gone. Wiped clean."

The monitors beep steadily in the background as I continue. "The effects weren't permanent, but seeing it work, even briefly..." I shake my head. "It set Domino off completely. He was disgusted that I was using 'his Iva' as some sort of test subject."

"Looking back now," I admit, "I suppose it did look bad. But I never forced Eva into anything. She wanted to help with the research. She understood what we were trying to achieve – the possibility that for some people, forgetting trauma might bebetter than carrying it forever. No more letting past pain hold you back..."

My reflection shows a twisted smile. "But Domino couldn't handle it. The idea of being erased, even temporarily, from her memory – it drove him into a rage. 'How dare you try to heal wounds you didn't even make,' he said. Called me a traitor for attempting this when I was supposed to be his friend. His right-hand man."

The bows tremble slightly in my grip as I reach the hardest part. "He said my actions would have consequences. That I'd crossed a line that couldn't be uncrossed. And that's when..." I trail off, the memory making my chest tight.

"What happened?" Ares asks softly, but there's something dangerous in his tone – like he already suspects where this story is heading.

The rain falls harder outside, matching the growing tension in the room. Eva shifts slightly in her sleep, as if even unconscious she can sense the weight of these revelations.

"That's when everything changed," I whisper, watching my brothers' reflections in the dark window. "That's when I learned exactly how far Domino would go to maintain his control over her."

"The fire," Zander says quietly from his hospital bed, his hand still rhythmically stroking Eva's hair. "She talks about a fire sometimes. When she thinks no one's paying attention."

"I've noticed how she watches flames," Ares adds, setting aside his tablet completely. "The way she gets transfixed by the fireplace at the manor, or during those bonfires we had at the lake house."

Matteo nods slowly, understanding dawning in his expression. "Even at formal events – she always seems... different around open flames. More alert. Almost hypnotized."

"I asked her about it once," Ren admits, running a hand through his teal-streaked hair. "At some charity gala where they did that lantern ceremony. Everyone had to light matches, and I caught how her hands trembled." He looks down at his own hands, remembering. "Asked if she was afraid of fire. She said no, but..." He trails off, shaking his head. "Her body language told a different story."

They all turn to me expectantly, waiting for the piece of the puzzle that will make sense of their observations. The bows feel impossibly heavy in my hands now, each one carrying the weight of choices made in moments of crisis.

"Domino was smoking during our confrontation," I say finally, my voice harder than intended. "Obviously, it was strictly forbidden – we had 'No Smoking' signs everywhere, even outside the building. But he never gave a shit about rules that didn't suit him."

The rain continues its steady pattern against the windows as I force myself to continue. "He stormed out after seeing the serum's effects on Eva. Just... walked away in disgust, flicking his cigarette onto the floor like it would magically extinguish itself."

My hands clench around the bows, feeling the delicate fabric strain against my grip. "People don't understand why research facilities ban smoking so completely. They think it's excessive, paranoid even. But labs... labs are different. The very air is saturated with chemicals, compounds that are necessary for our work but highly volatile under the wrong conditions."

"Eva said she'd follow him," I continue, the memory sharp enough to cut. "Said she'd make sure he didn't destroy anything in his anger. I let her go – stupid, so fucking stupid – because I was more concerned about monitoring the serum's effects than considering what one carelessly discarded cigarette could do in an environment like that."

I turn to the window, unable to face their expressions as I reach the worst part. "I didn't realize what was happening at first. Was too focused on my notes, on documenting the temporary memory loss, on planning next steps." A bitter laugh escapes me. "Then the fire alarms went off."

The bows twist in my grip as anger surfaces – at myself, at Domino, at the cruel twist of fate that forced an impossible choice. "By the time I understood what was happening, the entire lab was already engulfed. The chemicals... they made the fire spread faster than normal, created toxic fumes that made it hard to think clearly."

I watch their reflections in the dark glass, seeing the moment they grasp what's coming. "I had to make a choice," I say quietly. "My parents were still sedated upstairs, helpless in the scanning facility. And Eva..." My voice catches. "Eva was somewhere in the building, probably still following Domino, probably already trapped."

"Fuck…" Ren whispers, horror evident in his tone.

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