Page 7 of Blood Heir

She rises.

Slowly.

Her gaze sweeps across the mansion’s arched windows, the limestone façade, and the massive black-iron crest above the entry. The smell of cold rain and steel fills the air.

She swallows hard.

Her voice is small. “Who did you say you were again?”

I glance at her. “Serevin Aurelio Accardi. Head of the Accardi Syndicata.”

She takes a full step back. “Like, the Mafia? The bad guys?” she gasps.

She really doesn’t remember.

“Listen, sir,” she says quickly, breath shallow. “You…you don’t want me. I don’t even know who I am. I just—”

Her voice cracks. She turns in place, searching the property, eyes wide and wild.

She clutches her chest. Her hand trembles around the empty water bottle. Her gaze darts between the guards, the gates, and the mansion’s high walls. Her chest rises too fast. Her hand grips the base of her throat like she’s choking on silence.

I step in front of her, lower myself just enough, and cup her chin gently with one hand, tilting her face to mine.

Our foreheads meet. Her skin is cold, damp with fear.

“Breathe,” I whisper.

Her lashes flutter. “I—I can’t.”

“You can,” I say. My voice stays low. “Trust me.”

I press my hand against the center of her back and draw her slightly closer. “In through your nose. Right now. Do it with me.”

I breathe.

She tries.

“Again,” I murmur. “Deeper. Good. Now out. Slow.”

Her shoulders drop with the exhale. A small one, but it's progress. Another breath. Then another.

Her body steadies against mine. Her heartbeat, once chaotic, begins to slow beneath my palm.

I wait one more beat before I pull back. Not far—just enough to look her in the eye.

“I promise,” I say, “you’ll understand everything. Soon.”

She doesn’t nod right away. But eventually…she does.

And then—together—we walk.

The mansion looms ahead. The guards along the front path stand at attention, heads bowed as we pass.

Then the moment breaks.

“Where have you been?” Emilia bursts from the main doors and runs straight for me, launching herself into my chest like she belongs there.

I barely register her weight before Fioretta moves.

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