Damien leaned against the doorframe, his shadow stretching across the room as if it could consume them all. His sharp gaze flicked from Clara to Lucas, lingering a second too long on the boy.
"You need to leave," Clara said, her voice steady this time, though her insides churned with fear.
Damien didn't move. "We've done this dance before, Clara. The difference is now, I have questions you can't keep dodging."
Lucas shifted uncomfortably, tugging at Clara's sleeve. "Mommy, who is he?"
Before she could respond, Damien spoke. "Lucas, right?" His voice softened, but it didn't lose the weight of authority. "I'm someone who cares about your mom."
Lucas blinked up at him, curiosity etched into his small features. "Why are you mad at her?"
"I'm not mad," Damien said, his jaw tightening. "I just don't like being kept in the dark."
Clara moved in front of her son, shielding him like a lioness guarding her cub. "Damien, we're not doing this here. Whatever you think you know, it changes nothing."
He stepped inside, uninvited, the storm outside slamming the door shut behind him. His presence was overwhelming, as if the very air bent to his will. Clara's breath hitched, but she held her ground.
"Who else knows?" he asked, his voice low and sharp.
Her throat tightened. "Knows what?"
"Don't play dumb with me, Clara. Does anyone else know about him?"
Lucas clutched his stuffed wolf tighter, sensing the tension but too young to understand the depth of it. Clara's heart ached for him, for the innocence she'd fought so hard to protect.
"No one," she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper. "No one knows."
Damien studied her, his dark eyes probing for any sign of a lie. When he spoke, his voice was a mix of disbelief and something she couldn't place. "You've been hiding my son from me for five years."
The words hung heavy in the air, louder than the howling wind outside. Lucas's wide eyes darted between them, confusion etched across his face.
"What's he talking about, Mommy?"
Clara's knees nearly buckled under the weight of the moment. She crouched down to Lucas's level, cupping his face in her hands. "Sweetheart, go to your room. I'll come get you in a little bit, okay?"
Lucas hesitated, his gaze flitting to Damien. "But—"
"Now, Lucas." Her voice was gentle but firm.
Reluctantly, he nodded and padded down the hallway, his small feet barely making a sound. The moment he disappeared into his room, Clara turned back to Damien, her eyes blazing.
"How dare you?" she hissed, her voice shaking with suppressed rage.
"How dare *I*?" Damien shot back, his calm demeanor cracking. "You've been lying to me for years, Clara. Years! You had no right to keep him from me."
"I had every right," she countered, stepping closer until they were toe-to-toe. "You don't know what it's like, Damien. You don't know what I had to do to keep him safe."
"Safe from what? Me?" His voice dropped, filled with a mix of anger and hurt.
Clara hesitated, the truth clawing at her throat. "From your world," she said finally. "From the dangers that come with your name, your life. Lucas deserved better than that."
"You don't get to decide that for me," Damien snapped. "He's my son, Clara. I had a right to know."
"And what would you have done?" she challenged. "Raised him in a penthouse surrounded by armed guards? Turned him into another piece in your game?"
Damien's jaw tightened, but he didn't respond.
"I gave him a chance at a normal life," Clara continued, her voice cracking. "A chance to be a kid, without all the weight and darkness that comes with being your son."
For a moment, Damien said nothing. When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter, but no less intense. "You think I would've let anything happen to him? To you?"
Clara's laugh was bitter. "You couldn't even protect me back then. What makes you think you could've protected us now?"
The words hit their mark, and Damien flinched as if she'd slapped him. For the first time, he looked unsure, vulnerable.
"That's not fair," he said quietly.
"No," she agreed, her voice softening just a fraction. "It's not. But it's the truth."
The silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating.
Finally, Damien broke it. "I need to know him, Clara. I need to be part of his life."
Clara shook her head, tears brimming in her eyes. "It's not that simple."
"It is for me," Damien said firmly. "I'm not leaving without him."
Her heart stopped. "What?"
"You heard me. I've already missed five years. I won't lose any more time."
Clara's fists clenched at her sides. "You can't just walk in here and decide that. Lucas isn't some possession you can claim."
"I'm not trying to take him from you," Damien said, his tone softening just enough to make her pause. "But I can't stay away anymore."
The vulnerability in his voice was disarming, but Clara couldn't let herself trust it.
"I don't know if that's a choice you get to make," she said finally, her voice barely above a whisper.
Before Damien could respond, the sound of breaking glass shattered the tense moment. Both of them turned toward the noise, their instincts kicking in.
"Lucas!" Clara bolted toward the hallway, Damien right behind her.
They found Lucas standing in the middle of his room, his wide eyes fixed on the shattered window. The wind whipped through the broken glass, carrying with it the scent of rain and something metallic.
"Mommy," Lucas whispered, his voice trembling. "There was a man. He was watching me."
Clara's blood ran cold.
Damien didn't wait for an explanation. He stepped in front of Lucas, his body a shield. "Get him out of here," he barked at Clara, his voice brooking no argument.
"But—"
"Now!"
Clara scooped Lucas into her arms and ran, her heart pounding in her chest. She barely made it to the living room before the sound of heavy footsteps echoed behind her.
Damien emerged, his expression grim. "We're not safe here."
"What are you talking about?" Clara demanded, clutching Lucas tightly.
"Someone knows," Damien said, his voice low and urgent. "Someone knows about him. And they're coming."
As Clara and Damien face the reality of the danger surrounding Lucas, their fragile trust is tested. The arrival of an unknown threat forces them to decide: will they stand together to protect Lucas, or will their unresolved past tear them apart?