?Chapter 28: Everything breaks at once

                                        

                                              

Aria's POV

She didn't plan to find everything.
She only wanted a little truth, just enough to stop feeling like a shadow in her own life.
But what she found in the encrypted folder Luca thought he'd hidden inside Dominic's security network changed everything.
Emails. Messages. A private meeting log between Luca and Ivan, dating back months, long before Aria ever fainted in front of Dominic's building.
Her hands were shaking as she read.
Luca had orchestrated the security breach weeks ago. He was Ivan's inside man.
He leaked information. Watched Aria.
He'd even signed off on a coded message that simply read:
"She is the key. Move on Juliette's signal."
And then... one more name appeared.
In a message sent just two weeks ago:
"Ezra is compliant, Use him as pressure."
Ezra.
Her stomach twisted so violently she had to grip the edge of the desk to stay upright.
Ezra hadn't just reappeared by chance.
He was bait.
And Juliette had pulled the string.
⸻
The Confrontation
Dominic was in the kitchen when she found him barefoot, sleeves rolled up, making espresso with the same hands that had once burned down a warehouse for her.
He turned when she entered, brows lifting gently. "You okay?"
"No," Aria whispered. "But I know everything."
The espresso hissed.
Steam coiled through the air.
Silence wrapped around them like a noose.
Dominic's voice was low. "What did you find?"
She stepped forward, shaking, and handed him the tablet.
His eyes scanned the screen.
Then he stopped breathing.
She could see it, that exact moment his world shattered.
He whispered, "Luca..."
"And Juliette. They used Ezra to get to me. They knew where I'd be. They waited until you trusted them both."
She stepped closer, her voice breaking. "They wanted me gone. Not just out of the picture... erased. Nina warned me, I didn't believe her at first. But I triple-checked the logs, She was right." She couldn't believe all these. 
Dominic's hands curled around the edge of the counter.
"Where is Juliette now?" He asked her
"I don't know," Aria said softly. "But whatever she started it's not finished. And Dominic" she swallowed, tears hot in her throat. "I'm scared."
He looked at her then.
Not like the king of an empire.
Not like the cold, calculated man the world feared.
Just a man.
A man who was about to break.
He pulled her in arms crushing, breath harsh. "I will end every single one of them."
"I don't want war," she choked. "I want to feel safe again."
"You will." His voice was deadly soft. "But first, they'll pay."
⸻
Later that night, they curled together on the couch. The fire flickered low. He hadn't let go of her since their talk.
Not when she changed.
Not when she brushed her teeth.
Not even when she slipped her arms around his waist and buried her face in his chest.
Dominic was quiet, deadly focused, too calm, which always meant something violent was brewing beneath the surface.
Aria ran her fingers along his forearm. "What are you thinking?"
"That I failed you. Again." He asked calmly 
She looked up. "You saved me, Dominic. Every time."
He lowered his head, lips brushing her temple. "I didn't keep you safe. I let them get too close. I never should've "
Then it happened.
A sudden, strange cramp.
Her entire body tensed. She sucked in a breath.
"Aria?" Dominic straightened. "What is it?"
She blinked. "I... I don't know. It just—"
Another cramp. Stronger.
She gasped, gripping his shirt. Then she felt it — the warm rush beneath her.
 
"Baby, what is it". He was scared 
Her breath hitched.
"...Dominic," she whispered, wide-eyed. "My water just broke."
⸻
Everything moved fast.
Dominic was on his feet in an instant, shouting for the driver, grabbing her hospital bag, issuing commands to security through his phone with a level of control that should've been comforting.
But Aria was spiraling.
The pain hit fast, rolling through her in waves.
"I thought I had more time," she breathed, leaning against him. "It's too early"
"You're exactly thirty-six weeks," Dominic said firmly, lifting her into his arms. "Not too early. You and the baby will be fine."
"You don't know that"
"I know I won't let anything happen to you." He said firmly. 
He carried her down through the lobby. The driver was already there. Two guards surrounded them. A city of danger moved around them, but Dominic's only focus was her.
⸻
They arrived at the Hospital.
The pain intensified as they reached the emergency entrance.
"Aria Voss," Dominic told the nurse. "Labor. Thirty-six weeks. VIP suite, Dr. Kline is on call."
The nurse looked stunned not just because of the name, but the man behind it.
Dominic didn't blink.
They wheeled her back, Lights, Doors, Blinking monitors.
Inside the room, Dr. Kline was already suiting up. "Early, but not alarming," she said calmly. "The baby's strong. We'll monitor closely."
Aria gripped Dominic's hand.
Her eyes filled again not from pain this time, but from fear and awe and disbelief.
Everything was falling apart around them.
But now, something was beginning, too.