The heavy doors shut behind them with a soft thud, sealing Kael inside a world that felt nothing like his own. The house smelled faintly of smoke and leather, every wall too dark, every corner holding shadows like secrets.
On the grand couch in the middle of the living room sat Leo's brother—broad-shouldered, dressed in black, his head tilted back against the cushions, eyes closed as though the chaos from earlier had never happened. A glass of whiskey dangled lazily from his fingers, catching the low light. He looked terrifyingly calm, the kind of calm that only men used to blood could carry.
Leo slipped his hands into his pockets and spoke, voice casual, almost forced.
"Yo, hii."
No answer. Not even a twitch. The older man didn't bother to acknowledge his presence.
Leo clicked his tongue and muttered under his breath before turning toward Kael. "Tch… whatever. Let's go. I just need to grab some clothes."
But just as he reached out to tug Kael along, the man on the couch moved. His head straightened slowly, his lashes lifting.
Cold, piercing eyes snapped open.
They weren't just eyes—they were predatory, sharp and glinting like a wolf catching scent of prey. The glass in his hand didn't even tremble as his gaze slid, not to Leo—but straight to Kael.
Kael froze mid-step. His body reacted before his mind did, a chill rushing up his spine. Those eyes held him like a trap—measuring him, stripping away his skin layer by layer, as if deciding whether he was worth tearing apart or letting go.
Kael swallowed hard, the echo of the earlier gunshot flashing in his mind again. His throat went dry.
Leo noticed, his own jaw clenching as he stepped subtly in front of Kael, blocking half that piercing gaze. His voice dropped lower, edged with annoyance.
"…Don't."
The older brother's lips tugged into something between a smirk and a sneer. His wolfish stare didn't waver, lingering on Kael like a warning, like a silent what the hell is he doing here?
Kael's hands curled into fists at his sides, his heartbeat thrumming in his ears. He hated how small he felt in that moment, how different this world was from his own. But more than that, he hated how those eyes made him feel like prey in a den of predators.
Leo pressed a hand against Kael's lower back, steady but firm. "Ignore him," he muttered, voice tight. "Just stick with me."
Kael exhaled shakily and nodded, though his gaze still flickered back toward the man on the couch. Those wolf-like eyes followed him even as Leo guided him toward the stairs—silent, predatory, and full of questions unspoken.
Kael had barely taken two steps toward the stairs when a voice cut through the silence.
Deep. Calm. Yet sharp enough to pierce bone.
"Leo."
Leo stopped, shoulders stiffening. He didn't turn around, but Kael felt the air shift instantly—the same way the air changes before a storm breaks.
Leo's brother leaned forward on the couch, resting his elbows on his knees, the whiskey glass abandoned on the table. His wolfish eyes hadn't moved from Kael.
"Since when do you bring… outsiders into house?"
Kael blinked, caught in that gaze, his stomach twisting uncomfortably. He wanted to say something, anything—but his throat refused to form words.
Leo turned halfway, his hand still resting against Kael's back, protective, stubborn.
"He's with me."
The man chuckled, low and humorless, like gravel scraping together. His eyes narrowed, scanning Kael as though dissecting him piece by piece.
"With you?" he repeated, mocking, almost tasting the words. "That's not enough of an answer."
Kael clenched his jaw, the humiliation of standing there under such scrutiny boiling inside him. His fear mixed with irritation—he wasn't used to being treated like a… thing.
Sensing it, Leo squeezed his side gently, grounding him, though his own tone darkened.
"I don't owe you explanations."
The older man tilted his head, a dangerous smirk ghosting across his lips. His wolf-like stare softened into something crueler—amusement.
"Careful, little brother. You're not the only Cassano with teeth."
Kael's heart hammered painfully in his chest. For a second, it felt like the room shrank, like the world existed only between those two brothers locking eyes—Leo standing stubbornly tall, his brother radiating effortless dominance.
Kael couldn't take it anymore. He found his voice, though shaky.
"I'm not an outsider," he blurted suddenly, glaring despite the tremor in his chest. "If you've got a problem, say it directly. Don't look at me like I'm prey."
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Leo's brother raised an eyebrow, then—unexpectedly—laughed. Low, throaty, sharp. The sound of a wolf humored by the audacity of a cub.
"…Bold," he murmured. "I see why you're keeping him around."
Leo didn't smile. His hand slid lower on Kael's back, gently nudging him toward the stairs.
"Enough. We're done here."
And with that, he pulled Kael away, not sparing another glance at his brother, though Kael could feel those wolfish eyes following him all the way up the stairs—burning, amused, and far from finished.
The heavy silence cracked when Luca's sharp voice cut through the air.
"Leo… did you forget your manners, or have you lost them entirely?"
Leo rolled his eyes, clearly used to this tone, and muttered, "Sorry. But Kael has nothing to do with any of this."
He shifted like he was ready to drag Kael out before things got worse, but Luca's piercing stare pinned them in place.
"Then let me hear it," Luca demanded, his tone more of an order than a question. "Who are you?"
Kael, heart still pounding from what he'd seen earlier, straightened his shoulders anyway. His lips curled into that reckless little smirk of his, and he tossed his answer out without hesitation.
"I'm Kael Winslow."
The name came out with a spark of defiance, almost like Kael was daring this wolf-eyed man to push him further.
For a moment, silence. Then Luca leaned back slowly, studying him with unsettling calm before his lips parted.
"Luca Cassano," he said, his voice low and deliberate, the kind of introduction that carried weight.
A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he added, "And unlike my brother, I don't entertain people who walk in without knowing whose house they've entered."
The room felt colder after those words, but Luca's eyes never left Kael—watching, testing, like a predator amused by the prey's spark.