Chapter 54
Aria pov
“Damien.” I stopped him. “Thank you, for all of this. For not pushing. For respecting my boundaries while still… still being here p>
“I meant what I said at the press conference,” he replied, his eyes intense. “I’ll spend the rest of my life making this up to you, to Noah. However long that takes p>
A scream from Noah’s room had us both running.
But it wasn’t fear—it was delight. Noah had discovered the toy chest and was now buried in stuffed dinosaurs, laughing as they “attacked” him.
“Mama! Daddy! Come play p>
Damien looked at me, asking permission.
“Go ahead,” I said. “I’ll be there in a minute p>
I watched from the doorway as Damien sat on the floor, letting Noah pile dinosaurs on him, roaring and growling and making my son laugh. Really laugh, not the scared whimpers from the warehouse, but genuine joy.
This was what I’d wanted years ago. A family. A father for my son. Love and safety and belonging.
I’d just never imagined it could happen with Damien.
My phone buzzed with a news alert.
BREAKING: Billionaire CEO Damien Blackwood Transfers Empire to Brother in Exchange for Son’s Safety – Son Found Safe, Marcus Blackwood Still at Large
The press conference was everywhere. Our confessions, our tears, our desperate pleas—all of it dissected and analyzed by millions.
But Noah was safe, that was all that mattered.
Another buzz. This time, a text from an unknown number.
My blood ran cold.
Well played, brother. You gave me everything I wanted and still got your son back. But don’t celebrate yet. This isn’t over. Blackwood always pays his debts, and you still owe me blood.
I deleted the text immediately but didn’t show Damien.
Not tonight. Tonight, we were just a family having McDonald’s and playing with dinosaurs.
The threats could wait until tomorrow.
“Mama!” Noah called. “You have to be the mama triceratops! She’s brave and she protects everyone p>
I joined them on the floor, letting Noah assign me a role in his dinosaur game, letting the nightmare of the last two days fade—just for a moment—into the background.
Damien caught my eye over Noah’s head, and mouthed two words: Thank you.
I nodded, for Noah’s sake.
Damien POV
Noah was finally asleep.
It had taken three stories, two lullabies (both from Aria—my voice had made him cry again), and an hour of lying beside him in the race car bed before his eyes finally stayed closed.
I stood in the doorway now, just watching him breathe. Making sure he was really here and safe.
“He’s okay.” Aria’s voice came from behind me. She’d changed into pajamas—soft cotton that made her look younger, more vulnerable. “You can stop watching him like he’ll disappear p>
“Can I?” I didn’t look away from Noah. “Marcus is still out there. Still threatening, how do I sleep knowing that p>
“The same way I have for years.” She moved beside me, looking at our son. “One day at a time, one breath at a time. Trusting that you’re strong enough to protect him when it matters p>
“I failed him once p>
“You were there when he needed you most.” She looked at me then, her expression softer than I’d seen in years. “At the press conference. You gave up everything without hesitation, that matters p>
“It doesn’t make up for three years p>
“No,” she agreed. “But it’s a start p>
We stood in silence, watching Noah sleep.
“I meant what I said,” I told her quietly. “No expectations. No pressure. You can leave tomorrow if you want and I won’t fight you p>
“I know.” She wrapped her arms around herself. “That’s why I’m not leaving at least not yet. Noah needs stability, he needs to know his father isn’t going away p>
“And you p>
She didn’t answer right away. When she did, her voice was barely a whisper.
“I don’t know what I need years ago, I needed to hate you to survive. Now She shook her head. “Now I just need my son to be safe. Everything else is secondary p>
“Fair enough p>
I pulled Noah’s door mostly closed, leaving it cracked so we could hear if he woke. Aria and I walked together down the hall toward the guest room.
“Damien?” She stopped at her door. “Tomorrow, when Agent Sarah comes for statements… Noah is going to have to talk about what happened p>
“I know p>
“He’ll need both of us there with a united front p>
“United front,” i agreed.
She reached for the door handle, then paused. “You were good with him tonight. Natural. I wasn’t expecting that p>
“I’ve had years to imagine it.” I smiled, but it hurt. “Three years of missing every milestone. First steps, first words. First, everything. I’ve got a lot of catching up to do p>
“Yeah.” She opened the door. “You do p>
She started to go inside, then turned back. Before I could process what was happening, she hugged me. Brief, tight, then pulling away.
“Thank you,” she said. “For today. For not letting him see how terrified you were, for being what he needed p>
Then she was gone, the door closing softly between us.
I stood there for a long moment, my arms still raised from the phantom embrace, my heart doing strange things in my chest.
Hope. I felt hope. For the first time in years, I let myself hope that maybe—maybe—I could earn my way back into their lives.
Not as the man I was. But as the man I was becoming.
My phone buzzed. I pulled it out, expecting Marcus. Instead, it was a voicemail. From Marcus, left during the press conference.
Against my better judgment, I listened.
“Well done, brother. You almost sounded sincere up there. But we both know the truth—you’ll never change. Blackwoods don’t change. Father proved that. I proved that. And eventually, you’ll prove it too p>
A pause. Then, quieter:
“Enjoy your family while you can. Because I’m coming back. And next time, I won’t leave witnesses p>
The line went dead.
I deleted the voicemail Instead, I walked down to my office and made three phone calls.
First, to a private security firm. “I need 24/7 protection for two people and a child. Best team you have, of course money is no object p>
Second, to my lawyer. “I don’t care that I transferred the company to Marcus. Find a way to freeze the assets until he’s caught. He doesn’t get to terrorize my family and profit from it p>
Third, to a contact I hadn’t spoken to in years. A man who specialized in finding people who didn’t want to be found.
“It’s Damien Blackwood,” I said when he answered. “I need you to find my brother. And when you do… I need to know everything p>
“This is personal,” the man observed.
“Very.” I looked out the window toward the third floor, where my son slept and the woman I loved tried to trust me again. “He threatened my family. And Blackwood or not, I will end anyone who threatens my family p>
I hung up and poured myself a drink. Tomorrow, we’d deal with statements and therapy and the media circus.
But tonight, for the first time in three years, my son slept under my roof. And I’d burn the world down before I let anyone take that away from me again.
Aria POV – 2:47 AM
I couldn’t sleep.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Marcus holding Noah over that ledge. I heard my baby’s screams. Felt that soul-crushing terror all over again.
The guest room was beautiful but unfamiliar. Too quiet and a bit far from Noah.
I needed to see him. To make sure he was really there, really safe.
I slipped out of bed, padding barefoot down the hall to Noah’s room. The door was still cracked open like we’d left it.
But I wasn’t the only one checking on him.
Damien stood in the doorway, his silhouette backlit by the hallway light. He wore only pajama pants, his chest bare, his hand braced against the doorframe like he needed the support.
“Can’t sleep either?” I whispered.
He turned, and I saw the exhaustion in his face. The fear that hadn’t quite left. “Every time I close my eyes, I see him falling. Even though I know he’s safe, I can’t stop seeing it p>
“Me too p>
We stood there together, watching Noah sleep. His little chest rising and falling. The stuffed rabbit clutched in his arms. So peaceful, like the nightmare had never happened.
“He’s going to have nightmares,” I said quietly. “The physician warned me. It might take months before he sleeps through the night p>
“Then we’ll be there. Every nightmare, every bad dream.” Damien’s voice was fierce. “He’ll never wake up alone again p>
“You can’t promise that, you have the company” I stopped, remembering. “Or you did. What happens now that you’ve given it to Marcus p>
“My lawyers are working on freezing the transfer until Marcus is caught. It might not hold up in court, but it buys time.” He looked at me. “But honestly? Even if I lose Blackwood Enterprises completely, I don’t care. I have my son. That’s worth more than any empire p>
The sincerity in his voice did something to my chest. Made it hard to breathe.
“Years ago, you would never have said that,” I observed.