Chapter 240

Grayson’s POV

Deathly silence filled the room, broken only by the lingering echo of Damien’s voice—a taunt clinging to us like a suffocating shroud. My muscles tensed, my mind racing through potential scenarios.

I refocused on Ava. Seated rigidly on the floor, her gaze was sharp, guarded. She scanned the room, her assessment deliberate, before her voice sliced through the stillness. “I’ve never met anyone more hypocritical. You’ve spent this time hiding, causing chaos, and now you’re still a coward, trapping us and hiding behind a wall? You’re pathetic, Damien, not a mastermind.”

Silence. The tension thickened. Then, a slow creaking sound—a hidden doorway shifting within the seemingly solid wall. Shadows deepened as a corridor was revealed, and Damien emerged.

A barrier remained between us. His gaze settled on Ava, a slow, serpentine smile playing on his lips. “I know your parents were insufferable, Little Dove,” he mused, his voice smooth yet venomous. “But perhaps you should recall their lessons on respect. Or perhaps I should remind you myself.”

Ava remained unmoved, rising gracefully to meet his gaze. “I’ve told you to stop calling me that,” she said, her tone glacial.

His smile didn’t waver, but a flicker of annoyance, or amusement, crossed his features. He inhaled deeply, then his eyes swept the room, finally settling on me. “You’re awfully quiet, Your Highness,” Damien drawled. “I expected more. Threats, defiance? No?”

I met his gaze impassively. “Everyone else has better things to do. Skip the theatrics and get to the part where you kill us.”

His smirk widened. “Oh, I intend to.”

He snapped his fingers. Heavy footsteps echoed from the corridor. Moments later, a bound, bruised, and battered figure was dragged into view—Raina. Her hair was tangled, her lip split, her wrists bound tightly. Yet, her eyes still held a defiant spark as they met Ava’s.

Evelyn gasped. Damien chuckled. “You see,” he said, gesturing toward Raina, “I considered killing her. She was… difficult. Stubborn. Annoyingly so. And impossible to find until your meeting with her.”

Silence. Damien’s smirk broadened. “Nothing to say? No outrage? No dramatic pronouncements? Not even a little?”

Evelyn rose. “What do you want?”

Damien barely glanced at her, his eyes fixed on Ava. “I want Ava.”

The words chilled me. Instinctively, I moved in front of Ava, hearing her sharp intake of breath but keeping my eyes locked on Damien. “You’re delusional if you think that’s happening,” I said, my voice low and deadly.

Damien chuckled. “Oh, but I think it is.”

Isabella interrupted. “Can everyone hold their dramatic dialogues? This is selfish, but everyone deserves to speak for themselves. And am I the only one wondering who that old woman is?”

Elaine sighed. “I have a headache, but yes. Also,” she turned to Damien, “do evil psychopaths have access to water? Dehydration is terrible for my skin. Could I have some?”

Isabella nodded. “Being kidnapped sucks. I’ll take a glass too.”

Maria added, “Make mine stronger. Actually, the whole bottle…”

Ava and Evelyn shook their heads. Damien’s patience snapped.

“Shut up!” he roared, his voice thundering, his eyes flashing with rage. His jaw clenched.

Ava whispered, “I thought he wanted us to talk.”

I suppressed a smile. Silence fell. Then Isabella whispered to Maria, “So… no drinks?”

Elaine snorted. Maria stifled a laugh. Damien rubbed his temples. “If one more person—”

He took a deep breath, then a cruel smile spread across his face. “You know what? Let’s get to it. I enjoy moving you all around my chessboard. This time, I have front-row seats. Split into teams.”

Ava blinked. “What?”

Confusion rippled through the room. Damien sighed, shaking his head. Then, with a swift, cruel movement, he did something that made Raina scream.

I saw the satisfaction in Damien’s expression. “If you don’t comply immediately,” he said calmly, “she suffers.”

Evelyn gasped. Isabella snapped, “We don’t even know her.”

Damien smiled. “Ah, almost forgot the introduction. Little Dove, this is the High Priestess your mother and the love of your life sought. But Evelyn forgot to mention… she is your grandmother.”

Ava stiffened, her gaze snapping to Evelyn, a war of disbelief and betrayal raging in her expression. Evelyn looked torn between fury at Damien and worry for her mother.

Damien let the silence fester. “Now. Split up. Teams of two. Or else.”

Ava turned to me, her jaw clenched, but calculation in her eyes. “I pick my mother,” she said, looking at Evelyn.

Evelyn’s eyes widened. Isabella gasped dramatically. Everyone, except Rickon, glared at her. Isabella crossed her arms. “It’s a free world, and I’ll express my emotions. Especially if he keeps saying ‘we’ and ‘kill us’ in the same sentence.”

I glanced at Maria and Elaine. Elaine spoke first. “I pick the witch.”

Maria raised an eyebrow. “My name is Maria.”

Elaine rolled her eyes. I looked at Isabella. She hesitated, then nodded. “I pick Grayson.”

Rickon’s head snapped up. “What?”

Isabella folded her arms. “Oh, so you’re aware I exist.”

Rickon scoffed. “Fine. Whatever.” He turned to Damien. “There’s no one left. Luther is unconscious.”

I saw the hurt flash across Isabella’s face before she masked it with anger. She stomped toward me.

Damien tilted his head. “Then you’ll be first.”

A shot rang out. Rickon fell.