“You paid me, Marielle.”

The sterile, concrete walls of the holding cell felt miles away from the gilded ceilings of the mansion above. Marielle stared up at Elias, the absolute certainty of her impending doom finally breaking through her aristocratic arrogance.

"It was just a mistake, Elias!" Marielle shrieked, grasping at the hem of his tailored trousers. "I just wanted to be with you! I didn't want her to die, I just wanted her out of the way! I needed to be your wife!"

"Do you expect me to believe you were innocent when you actively paid to have the mother of my child killed?" Elias asked, stepping back to avoid her touch as if she were diseased. "Did you not orchestrate her murder to secure your own position as my queen?"

"I loved you!" Marielle sobbed, real tears of panic finally spilling over her cheeks. "I wanted us to rule together! I couldn't let some weak woman ruin our future!"

"Is my family a minor obstacle to you, or did you plan to kill me next when I proved inconvenient?" Elias asked, his voice a low, terrifying rumble that vibrated through the concrete.

He didn't wait for her to answer. He turned his broad shoulders, looking at Marcus, who was standing like a shadow just outside the cell door.

"Will you ensure she is transported to the council holding facility immediately?" Elias asked quietly. "Shall we let the commission deal with the woman who nearly brought down the eastern seaboard over a lie?"

"With pleasure, Boss," Marcus growled, stepping into the cell and grabbing Marielle roughly by the arms, hauling her to her feet.

"No! Elias, please! They will kill me!" Marielle screamed as Marcus dragged her toward the door. "You can't do this!"

"Do you truly believe you will find mercy among the wolves you fed?" Elias asked, turning his back on her completely.

Marielle’s panicked shrieks echoed down the long, concrete hallway until the heavy doors slammed shut, sealing her fate in the subterranean dark of the criminal underworld.

Elias stood in the quiet cell for a long moment, the tension slowly bleeding out of his muscular frame. He took a deep breath, the exhaustion of the night finally showing in the lines of his angular face. He turned his head, looking at Vera, who was still standing near the wall, her hands trembling.

"Are you harmed by the truth, Vera?" Elias asked gently, stepping closer to her.

"I... I always knew this world was dangerous," Vera whispered, looking up into his perceptive eyes. "But I never understood the depths of the cruelty until I saw what she did."

"Do you understand why I had to burn the alliance to the ground to keep my house clean?" Elias inquired, his tattooed hand gently cupping the side of her face. His thumb brushed lightly over her delicate cheekbone, wiping away a smear of dirt.

"You risked everything," Vera said, her voice cracking.

"Did you think I would allow the woman who saved the truth to serve drinks in my home?" Elias asked, a flicker of profound, protective warmth entering his cold eyes. "Are you ready to leave this uniform behind?"

Vera looked down at her black maid dress, the white apron stained and ruined from the siege. She looked back up at the towering, terrifying man who was offering her a place in his dangerous, blood-soaked world.