The tension in the room was suffocating.
Lami's presence seemed to fill every corner, his arrogance so thick it felt like the air itself was heavy with it. Agnes stood frozen behind Majek, her mind reeling with the realization of just how far this had gone.
Lami's eyes flicked to her once more, his gaze predatory, as if he were laying claim to her once again. His voice was low, almost coaxing, but there was a sharp edge to it that made her stomach churn.
"Agnes, this whole charade is getting old," Lami said, his words dripping with disdain. "You know where you belong. You know that you're not meant for this… whatever this is." He gestured vaguely to the apartment around them, as if it were beneath him. "Come with me. There's still time to put this behind us. To fix things. Your father will never let you go. Don't make him do something we'll both regret."
Agnes could feel her pulse quicken, the words slicing through her like a knife. She had spent so many years being molded into what her father wanted, but hearing it from Lami—hearing him talk about her like a prize to be won—felt like the final straw.
"I'm not your property, Lami," Agnes spat, her voice steady despite the fury that burned in her chest. "I'm not some thing you can take back to your father. I'm not your toy. I'm not anyone's."
Majek's body tensed in front of her, every muscle ready to spring into action, but he didn't move. Not yet. He knew this confrontation wasn't going to end peacefully. He knew Lami wouldn't walk away without making things worse.
Lami's lips curled into a sneer. "Oh, Agnes. You really think you're in control now? You think that… he"—he nodded to Majek—"can protect you? You're both out of your depth."
Majek's eyes darkened, and in that moment, Agnes could see the wall of restraint he had built around himself. She knew he was doing everything he could not to rush at Lami, to not give in to the primal rage that was so clearly bubbling just beneath the surface.
But Agnes wasn't about to let Lami walk all over them. Not again.
"You don't control me, Lami," she said, her voice filled with a conviction that surprised even her. "Not anymore. I'm not running back to that life. I'm not going back to a cage."
Lami took a step forward, his face tight with frustration. "You're making a mistake," he warned, his voice low and dangerous. "You really think you can fight your father? You think you can outsmart him?"
Agnes stood her ground, but she could feel her heart pounding faster. "I've been outsmarting him my whole life," she said, her voice quieter now. "And this time, I'm not going to let him control me. Not anymore."
The words hung in the air, and for a moment, Lami's expression flickered—just for a fraction of a second, but it was enough.
Majek seized the opportunity. He stepped forward, standing just slightly in front of Agnes, his eyes locking with Lami's. "You need to leave, Lami," Majek said, his voice cold, unwavering. "Now."
Lami smirked, but there was no humor in it. "You're pushing your luck, Majek. You think I'm afraid of you?"
Majek didn't flinch. "No," he said calmly, "but I think you should be afraid of what happens next."
Lami's expression hardened, and Agnes felt the tension crackle in the air like static. This wasn't a verbal battle anymore—it was a standoff. It felt like one wrong move would set everything off. She had seen Lami like this before: dangerous, unpredictable, and with a twisted sense of entitlement that made him think he could always get what he wanted.
And he had no idea who he was dealing with this time.
Suddenly, without warning, Lami lunged forward, his hand reaching for Agnes as if to drag her away from Majek. His grip was tight, but before he could pull her even an inch, Majek was on him, grabbing Lami's wrist and twisting it behind his back with brutal force. Lami yelped, caught off guard by Majek's speed and strength.
"You don't touch her," Majek growled, his voice a low warning.
For a moment, everything seemed to freeze—Lami's face contorted with anger, Majek's muscles tensed as he held the man back. Agnes stood there, heart pounding in her chest, the fear and adrenaline flooding her senses.
Then, with a sudden, sharp motion, Lami wrenched himself free, shoving Majek off of him with surprising strength. He stumbled back, his eyes filled with venom.
"You're going to regret this," Lami spat, his voice seething. "Both of you."
He turned and stormed toward the door, his footsteps heavy, each one echoing like the ticking of a clock counting down to something catastrophic. Agnes and Majek stood motionless as Lami slammed the door behind him, leaving them in the tense silence that followed.
The room was thick with the aftermath of the confrontation—heavy with the unspoken words, the fear, the frustration. But it was also filled with something else: a quiet resolve.
Agnes turned to Majek, her breath still unsteady. "What do we do now?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Majek didn't answer right away. He just stepped forward, his eyes searching hers, as if looking for something—anything—to reassure him that this was still the right choice.
He cupped her face in his hands, his touch gentle despite the storm raging inside him. "Now we get ready for what's coming," he said, his voice low, steady. "We don't run from this. We fight."
The Next Day
The next day, everything changed.
Lami's visit wasn't just a threat—it was the beginning of something much darker. Agnes knew it. Majek knew it. They both felt the storm gathering on the horizon.
And it wasn't just about Lami anymore. It wasn't even about her father's empire or the secrets in the documents. It was about the battle for her freedom—and how far she was willing to go to protect the future she wanted with Majek.
They couldn't fight this battle from the shadows anymore. They needed to be bold. They needed to make their move.
"I've been thinking," Majek said later that day, his voice steady, as if the storm inside him had settled. "We can't just sit here and wait for them to come for us. We need to hit them first."
Agnes raised an eyebrow. "How do we do that?"
"We go public," Majek said, his eyes glinting with a plan. "We expose everything. We make sure the world knows who your father really is. We take the fight to him, in the light, where he can't hide."
Agnes's stomach dropped at the thought. "Are you sure? That could ruin everything."
"It's already ruined, Agnes," Majek said quietly. "But if we do this right, we'll tear down everything they've built. And when your father can't hide behind his money and power anymore, we'll have the freedom we deserve."
The boldness in his words took her breath away. She knew they were walking into dangerous territory—but for the first time in a long time, she felt a sense of clarity. They couldn't keep running. Not anymore. They had to fight.
"We do this together," Agnes said firmly, her voice unwavering. "No turning back."
Majek nodded, a fierce determination in his eyes. "Together."