The rain hadn't stopped for hours. It lashed against the windows of the manor like a beast begging to be let in. Nora stood by the tall, cracked glass, arms folded, her maid uniform damp and clinging to her skin from the earlier storm she'd been caught in. The corridors behind her echoed with silence, too quiet for a house this large.
She wasn't supposed to be here.
Not in his wing.
Not in his presence.
But Zayan had summoned her.
And when Zayan summoned, you obeyed—or you vanished.
He stood by the fireplace, a glass of dark wine in his hand, flames dancing shadows over his sharp jawline. His eyes lifted when she entered, slow and unreadable, like a predator assessing prey.
"You're late," he said, voice calm, but lined with something sharper.
"I was cleaning the east wing, as instructed," Nora replied, head bowed, voice steady despite the way her heart beat like a war drum.
Zayan didn't speak right away. He took a sip of his wine, his eyes never leaving her.
"Do you know why I called you here?" he asked.
"No, sir."
His smile was cold, almost cruel. "Lie better."
Nora looked up, meeting his gaze. The fire in his eyes was unmistakable—he knew. Knew she had seen what she wasn't supposed to. Knew she had entered the forbidden library when he'd been away. Knew she had read that cursed name carved into the wood: Lilith.
"You've been trespassing," he said quietly. "Curious little thing, aren't you?"
"I wasn't—"
"Don't insult me, Nora," Zayan interrupted, setting his glass down with a thud. "If I wanted you gone, I could snap my fingers and no one would ever find your body."
She flinched, just slightly. But then her chin lifted. "Then do it."
Zayan's brows lifted. Surprise flickered in his eyes—but so did something else. Interest.
"You have no idea what you're saying," he muttered, stepping closer. "You think you're brave? Or just tired of living?"
"Maybe both," she whispered.
They were close now. Too close. She could smell the spice of his cologne and the danger in his breath. Zayan reached out, brushing a strand of wet hair from her cheek, fingers cold as death.
"You're not like the others," he said. "They run. You stare into the abyss and dare it to blink."
"I've lived with monsters all my life," she replied, voice trembling. "You don't scare me."
He leaned in, lips close to her ear. "Then maybe I haven't tried hard enough."
And just like that, he stepped back, the tension snapping like a whip. "Clean this room. And next time you go where you don't belong… remember that I let you walk out of here. This time."
Nora nodded, but her eyes didn't drop. She watched him as he left—watched the devil in a suit walk away like a storm with legs.
She didn't know what she'd started.
But she knew something had changed.
And there was no turning back.