CHAPTER 280: CHAPTER 280: FORGOTTEN LIFE

Benedict’s voice trailed into silence, but his eyes did not leave Christian’s broken form at his feet. The sight of him, trembling, too stubborn to weep, pulled something far older than the moment to the surface.

Memory struck like a shard of glass.

Another life. Another ending.

Christian had ruined everything then, too. Benedict remembered it with vicious clarity: Lucas, already thin and worn, paraded like an asset while Christian calculated debts and leverage with cold precision. The omega’s body had been forced into heat again and again, milked for profit, until nothing remained but a shell.

And then, death. Alone. Forgotten. Lucas had been left to collapse into silence while Christian clawed at the scraps of money he had recovered. By the time Benedict had reached him, there had been no one left to save. No warm breath. No bright eyes. Only the echo of what might have been his.

His.

Rage coiled tighter, though his expression remained coldly composed. He tilted Christian’s chin higher, forcing him to look into the depth of his eyes.

"And this time," Benedict said, his voice dropping into a hiss, "you drove him right to Trevor." His thumb pressed cruelly against the line of Christian’s jaw. "The only man in this wretched empire who can shield him from me."

He laughed then, low and hollow, a sound that scraped like steel dragged over stone. "Again."

Christian’s breath hitched, silver eyes darting with something between shame and defiance. But Benedict could smell it, the sour stench of fear clinging beneath his pheromones, sharp and unrefined. It only deepened Benedict’s disdain.

"You repeat yourself like a curse," Benedict went on, his tone suddenly almost thoughtful, as if dissecting a pattern in a ledger. "In one life, you killed him with neglect. In this, you’ve delivered him into the arms of my enemy. Tell me, Christian, " His smile curved, too precise, too polished. "what should I carve from you to make sure you never ruin him a third time?"

His grip released all at once, letting Christian’s head slam back against the fractured wall. The alpha slid down in a broken heap, coughing, his chest heaving for air. Benedict straightened slowly, brushing an invisible crease from his lapel. The white fabric caught the dim light, immaculate, untouchable.

Above him, Benedict’s shadow stretched long across the cracked plaster, lean and elegant. His eyes burned, not with anger anymore, but with the quiet certainty of a vow unspoken.

"This time," he murmured, so softly it was almost tender, "he will not slip away from me."

—

Trevor felt his chest tighten, just a fraction, with the truth he wasn’t ready to face. Did Lucas remember everything? Did he know what Trevor had hidden?

His hand on Lucas’s shoulder pressed harder than he intended, a fraction too tight. He loosened it at once, his face still unreadable, though inside, relief teetered against dread like a blade on its edge.

Then Lucas tilted his head, lips curving slowly, and said it:

"The ring, Trevor."

The breath Trevor had been holding slipped out before he realized. Relief struck hard and quiet, washing through him with the precision of an executioner’s blade missing its mark. The ring. Not Alan’s words. Not another life. Just the gift Benjamin had been commissioned to craft.

For the first time in three days, Trevor let himself exhale fully.

"The ring," he echoed, his voice steady again, controlled as if the silence had never broken him. His violet eyes softened as he regarded Lucas, sharp and amused on the couch. "So you found out."

Lucas’s smirk curved sharper. "Benjamin isn’t as discreet as you thought. He practically bragged about rushing your commission. I can only assume it was for me. Unless you’re collecting rings now?"

Trevor chuckled, his hand rising to Lucas’s face, thumb brushing along his jaw. "Hmm... tempting, but no. It’s the one meant to replace this one." With his other hand, he tapped lightly against the band already on Lucas’s finger, the alexandrite catching faint light, shifting from green to violet as though echoing both of them. "You said you wanted a new one, and I wanted something mine this time."

Lucas tilted his head, green eyes glinting with sly amusement. "You are getting more possessive by the day."

Trevor’s violet gaze held steady with a faint smile. "Not more. Just honest about it." He leaned in slightly, voice lowering. "Do you object?"

Lucas hummed, a low, pleased sound that carried both challenge and invitation. "Depends on whether the new one is prettier than this."

Trevor’s chuckle deepened, the sound quiet and certain, his fingers still framing Lucas’s face. "Prettier, no. Stronger, yes."

That earned him a sharp grin from Lucas, equal parts entertained and intrigued. "Stronger, hm? You’ll have to prove that when I see it."

Trevor’s hand lingered, the weight of his touch both grounding and claiming. "I intend to."

Lucas hummed, the sound low in his throat, his grin curling against Trevor’s touch. "I’ll be the judge of that when you finally hand it over. Stronger or not, if it doesn’t look good on me, I’m sending it back to Benjamin with notes."

Trevor chuckled, thumb brushing slowly across his jawline. "He’d deserve it for bragging."

"Mm, he would," Lucas agreed, leaning into the hand as though it were his rightful place. "Still... I like that you wanted something yours. Though you could have just told me, instead of scheming behind my back."

Trevor’s violet eyes softened, the sharp edges of war and ledgers falling away until only the man remained. "I liked the thought of surprising you."

Lucas smirked, eyes half-lidded. "You don’t strike me as the type for surprises."

"I’m not," Trevor admitted. His hand slid from Lucas’s jaw to rest against his neck, the faint pulse steady beneath his fingers. "Except with you."

That stole the clever retort from Lucas’s tongue, just for a heartbeat. His smirk softened into something smaller, almost private. "Careful, Duke. If you keep talking like that, I might start thinking you’re sentimental."

Trevor bent, pressing his lips briefly to Lucas’s temple, then lingering just long enough to let the warmth sink in. "Only with you."

Lucas exhaled, amused, his hand lifting to cover Trevor’s at his throat. "Possessive and sentimental. Dangerous combination."

Trevor’s mouth curved faintly against his skin. "Only dangerous to anyone who thinks they can take you from me."