Seduction's Shadow

Chapter 80: A Deadly Alliance

The engine roared as Theo's car tore through the streets, the night air thick with tension. Aari's blood seeped through Nikol's fingers, staining his hands, but all he could focus on was her face—pale, lifeless, and slipping away with each second.

Theo's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, his face a mask of cold indifference. "You really fucked this up, brother," he drawled, his voice laced with a dark amusement. "She's bleeding out because you couldn't control yourself."

Nikol's head snapped up, his eyes blazing with fury. "Control myself? You're the one who pulled the trigger, you psychotic bastard! If she dies—"

Theo cut him off with a sneer, his tone icy and condescending. "If she dies, it's because you couldn't keep her in check. You had one job, Nikol—to keep her away from me. But look where we are. You think you can protect her from me? How quaint."

Nikol's grip on Aari tightened, his knuckles turning white. "You're not getting away with this, Theo. I won't let you destroy her."

Theo's laugh was sharp and biting, like shards of glass. "Destroy her? Oh, Nikol, you're so naive. I'm not destroying her—I'm shaping her. Molding her into something beautiful. Something that belongs to me."

Nikol's anger flared, his voice shaking with barely contained rage. "She's not some fucking toy for you to play with! She's a person, with a life, with—"

"With a future that involves me," Theo interrupted, his voice low and menacing. "You've always been so weak, Nikol. Always trying to save the damsel in distress. But here's a little secret—she doesn't want to be saved. Not by you."

Nikol's fists clenched as he glared at Theo's reflection in the mirror, his voice dripping with contempt. "You think she'll ever forgive you for this? For everything you've done to her?"

Theo's lips twisted into a cruel smile. "Forgive me? Who said anything about forgiveness? She'll come back to me because she has no choice. I'm the only one who truly understands her, who can give her what she really needs."

Nikol's jaw tightened, his teeth grinding together. "You're fucking delusional. She hates you. She'll never be yours."

Theo's eyes gleamed with something dark and twisted, a reflection of the monster inside him. "Hate is just another form of passion, brother. And passion is all I need to keep her close. You can't protect her from me because, deep down, she doesn't want to be protected."

Nikol felt a surge of rage like wildfire, burning through his veins. "You're insane," he hissed. "She's nothing like you. And neither am I."

Theo's smile widened, his voice dripping with mockery. "Aren't you, though? Look at you, Nikol—covered in her blood, desperate to save her, but still wanting to claim her for yourself. You're just like me, but you're too much of a coward to admit it."

Nikol's vision blurred with anger as he leaned forward, his voice a dangerous growl. "I'm nothing like you. I love her. I would never hurt her the way you have."

Theo's laugh was cold and heartless. "Love? Is that what you call this pathetic display? Love is just another word for control, Nikol. You want to own her just as much as I do. The only difference is that I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make her mine."

Nikol was on the verge of losing it, every word out of Theo's mouth driving him closer to the edge. "You don't know the first thing about love, Theo. All you know is how to break people, how to twist them until there's nothing left. But not her. I won't let you hurt her."

Theo's eyes narrowed, his voice dropping to a chilling whisper. "You think you have a choice? You think you can stop me? She's already mine, Nikol. You're just too blind to see it."

The hospital came into view, its harsh lights slicing through the darkness. Theo pulled into the emergency lane, the car screeching to a halt. Nikol was out before the car had fully stopped, cradling Aari in his arms as he rushed toward the entrance.

Theo followed at a slower pace, his expression unreadable but his eyes cold and calculating. "Move it," he snapped at the medical staff as they rushed to meet them. "She needs a doctor, now."

Nikol laid Aari down on the gurney, his heart racing as he watched the doctors work frantically to stabilize her. His hands were covered in her blood, the reality of what had just happened crashing down on him like a wave.

The hospital was eerily silent as Aari was wheeled into surgery, leaving Nikol and Theo alone in the waiting room. The harsh fluorescent lights flickered, casting long shadows on the walls. The tension between the two brothers was thick, palpable, and ready to explode.

Nikol's mind was a storm of emotions—guilt, fear, anger—but it was Theo's calm indifference that pushed him over the edge. He could barely stand to look at him, the man who had just shot the woman he loved. The brother who had always reveled in torment.