Chapter 31 – A Storm Beneath the Silk
Chapter 31 – A Storm Beneath the Silk
The message stared back at him like a challenge.
That voicemail? Just the beginning. Check your files. You’re not the only one with secrets.
Damon paced the length of his office, the Milan skyline casting elongated shadows across the polished floor. His jaw tensed as he tapped into the encrypted drive—one few even knew existed. Layers of security peeled away beneath his fingertips.
Then it hit him.
His personal folder was lighter than it should be. Files were missing.
Specifically—videos. Voicemails. Letters never sent. Things he’d buried in silence.
Gone.
His voice was ice when he called in his assistant. “I want to know who accessed my system and when. If you don’t find out, I’ll assume it was you.”
Her eyes widened, but she said nothing. Fear, he noted, made people honest.
As she rushed out, Damon leaned against the edge of his desk, muscles coiled like springs.
Someone was orchestrating this.
And they weren’t finished.
---
Back at her suite, Aurora closed the windows against the sudden chill. Milan rarely felt this cold in June, yet the air pressed in heavy, as if holding its breath.
Luca arrived an hour later with a bottle of Valpolicella and a crooked smile.
“I thought you might want to drown your thoughts in something Italian and red.”
She smiled faintly. “Isn’t that what I already have?”
He set the wine down and watched her carefully. “I saw the headlines. Now they’re calling it ‘The Voicemail That Shook Milan.’ You’re front-page drama.”
“Lucky me,” she said dryly, pouring herself a glass.
Luca lowered himself into the armchair beside her. “I meant what I said, you know. About not waiting forever.”
She looked up.
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “But I’ll wait a little longer. Not for Damon. For you—to figure out what you really want.”
Aurora’s voice softened. “You’re too good to me.”
“I’m selfish,” he replied. “I want you to choose me.”
For a moment, silence stretched between them like a fine silk thread—taut, unbroken, and trembling.
Then her phone buzzed.
Unknown number. One attachment. No message.
She opened it.
A video began to play.
It was Damon. Shirtless, bruised, speaking to someone off camera.
“If anyone ever finds out what happened that night… it’s over. For all of us.”
Luca saw her face pale. “What is it?”
She handed him the phone. As he watched, his brows furrowed. “That doesn’t look recent. The timestamp says… two years ago?”
Aurora took the phone back. “What night is he talking about?”
Luca straightened. “That’s the question, isn’t it?”
---
Damon slammed the door to the penthouse server room. His breath came fast, not from exertion—but from rage.
Whoever this person was, they weren’t just leaking love confessions. They were digging.
Weaponizing the past.
He returned to his office, only to find Celeste waiting.
“I thought you left,” he said coolly.
“I did,” she replied. “But something told me I should come back.”
Her eyes flicked to the screen behind him.
“You’ve been hacked.”
He narrowed his gaze. “You always were quick.”
“I saw your security team downstairs. Half of them look like they’re sweating bullets. I’m guessing someone accessed something sensitive?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he asked, “Did you have anything to do with it?”
Celeste let the accusation hang in the air. Then, very calmly, she said, “No. But I think I know who might.”
Damon turned slowly. “Go on.”
She walked over to the desk and dropped a small black envelope onto it.
It was sealed with a wax emblem—three crossed roses, one bleeding.
“I’ve only ever seen that symbol once,” she said. “My father used to work with people who dealt in secrets. Blackmail, extortion, digital threats. He said they were like ghosts—no trace, no pattern. But when they leave a mark…”
Damon studied the seal.
“...it means they’re just getting started.”
---
Later that night, Aurora stood on the terrace, wind tugging at her silk robe. Her mind buzzed.
Who would leak a voicemail—and then a confession video?
It couldn’t be Damon. The pain in his voice had been too real. The man in the video wasn’t posing. He was hiding something. Something dark.
Her phone buzzed again.
Another message.
You think you know him. But there’s more. Follow the trail.
Attached: a link to a private folder titled “Venice Archives.”
Her stomach turned.
Luca came to stand beside her. “What now?”
She looked at him. “Now… I find out the truth. Whether I want to or not.”
---
Cliffhanger Ending:
At the very end of the chapter, across the city, a shadowed figure sat at a sleek desk, screens flickering with files stolen from both Damon and Aurora.
A smirk tugged at their lips.
“Let the games begin.”