Page 114 of His Fury

She smiled, her eyelashes fluttering innocently. “Little old me?” Her eyes were as sharp as razors. “What about you? I thought you only existed in myths these days.”

I looked over the people at the bar, seeing who she was with. “Myths don’t run payroll.”

She laughed again, tilting her head. “Still charming.” She reached out, her finger trailing down the buttons of my shirt, the skull design on her fingernail served as a fitting warningfor anyone who believed that just because she appeared fragile that she actually was. “Tell me, have you beentamed?”

“He’s still not interested,” Rye muttered behind me, loud enough to be heard.

Sabrina ignored him, her attention fully focused on me as I stepped out of her reach. “You don’t look soft,” she remarked. “But I’ve heard some intriguing whispers.”

My smile was as wide and fake as hers. “You always enjoyed the sound of your own voice.”

Sabrina leaned forward on her elbows, revealing a glimmer of a diamond-crusted dagger nestled between her breasts. “And you always liked women who didn’tneedyou.”

I didn’t answer.

She smirked. “So...is she the reason you’ve been missing on the floor of your clubs?”

My jaw flexed.

Sabrina leaned back in her seat, her dress stretching desperately over her tits, drawing the eye if you were stupid enough to look as she revealed more flesh than needed. “You have a new shadow, Zayn.” She cocked her head. “Julian Turner’s girl, right?”

My silence was her answer.

“Interesting,” she said softly, assessing me and receiving no response. “He used to talk about her as if she were made of glass. Is she…breakable?”

My voice was flat. “Gossip? You know better, Rina.”

“Not gossip, no,” she said, her smile fading. “I’m here to tell you that Ferraro’s eyes aren’t just on your clubs. They’re on your house.”

I stepped closer, noticing her eyes widen slightly as I invaded her space. “Are you threatening me, Rina?”

She didn’t back down, but her eyes flicked to Rye behind me. “I would never,” she said with a blank smile. “I’mwarningyou. If they think she’s a weakness, she becomes your exit wound.”

My hand itched for the weight of my gun, but I didn’t move.

She stood, smooth and controlled, her body brushing against mine. “You used to be colder,” she whispered into my ear. “Cleaner.”

“I used to be alone.”

That shut her up. I noticed the flash of hurt she failed to hide before she assessed me one last time. She shot Rye a quick glare and slid between us, disappearing into the shadows of the club as if she had never existed at all.

But her presence and her warning stayed with me. Because for all the moves I made to stay in control, there was one truth I couldn’t outrun now.

Everyone who mattered knew who Isla was and were waiting to see what I would do to protect her.

Sabrina’s presence in my club confirmed they wereallwatching.

By the time Rye and I went downstairs, the lights were dimmed to their regular late-night low, and Elixir’s lower level had morphed into something quieter, meaner.

It matched my mood.

I moved through the rooms slowly, not inspecting anything but just reminding them who the fuck I was.

I belonged here. This was mine.

A couple of my regulars were already in one of the booths, their drinks untouched, the way they always were before business was handled.

Angelo was leaning back, his mouth in a thin line. The guy across from him was grinning. He was always grinning, always pretending the teeth didn’t hide something sharper. I’d gone two rounds with him in the ring when I wasyounger. Oleg Svechkov was a beast, and I hadn’t had to fake the dive when I fought him.

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