Page 82 of Seeking Shadows

CHAPTER 16

MIA

The mansionwas silent as I finished getting dressed. I was supposed to meet Laura today to reassure her that I was okay, but the rain outside changed my plans. So instead of going anywhere, I’d be staying in—with a cozy bed, a bowl of popcorn, and a lineup of rom-coms to keep me company.

Zane had gone out to take care of something, and I was getting ready to go for a walk. The one good thing about people knowing I was back was the ability to go outside without hiding or worrying about running into anyone.

The black hoodie slipped over my skin like a whisper, and my fingers trembled slightly as I adjusted the fabric. I wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was the uneasiness growing inside me, the nagging feeling that something was wrong. I tugged at the hem of my flannel shorts, but the discomfort wasn’t in the clothes—it was in me.

And then I felt it.

The presence.

Cold. Imposing.

I turned around slowly, and my stomach sank.

Nico Riviera stood in the bedroom doorway as if the world belonged to him.

I didn’t scream. I didn’t move. It wouldn’t have done any good.

He closed the door with a soft click, and every cell in my body stiffened.

“Time passes,” he murmured, his eyes darting around the room before locking onto me. “But you're still the same.”

My mouth went dry. “What do you want?”

“I want to talk.”

“We have nothing to talk about.”

He smiled, a thin, calculated smile. “I disagree.”

I instinctively took a step back, but there was nowhere to go.

His lips curled into something that wasn’t quite a smile. "Interesting answer, considering one of my most skilled spies turned up dead. Along with several other men. All of whom, coincidentally, had a hand in your… care, once upon a time."

A chill ran down my spine.

"I had nothing to do with that," I forced out, my voice barely above a whisper.

Nico exhaled a slow stream of smoke, his sharp eyes dissecting me, peeling me apart like I was nothing more than a puzzle he’d long since solved. Then he stepped closer, his presence a suffocating weight.

"You think I’m stupid, little girl?" His voice was soft—too soft. "You think I don’t know how vengeance seeps into the bones, how it festers, how it calls for blood?"

I swallowed hard, my throat tight.

His fingers ghosted over my cheek, deceptively gentle before gripping my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. "If I find out you had anything to do with this, Mia…" He leaned in, his breath hot against my skin, laced with smoke and something far worse. "I won’t kill you. That would be too kind."

My stomach twisted violently.

"I’ll make sure you live long enough to regret it."

"I told you, I'm not involved," I said, keeping my voice steady, though my hands were curled into fists at my sides.

Nico exhaled slowly, the ember of his cigarette burning between his fingers. "No voy a tolerar que mi hija me mienta."

The wordhijalanded like a stone in my stomach. He almost never acknowledged me as his, and now that he had, it tasted bitter. Not something to be proud of—just another weapon in his arsenal.

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