The morning after felt unreal, Elena sat in her studio, brush poised above a half- finished canvas, but her thoughts were elsewhere.
Adrian.
The name pulsed in her mind like a forbidden song. She had barely slept— her dreams haunted by storm-gray eyes, by the press of his body against hers in the darkness, by the urgency in his voice when he told her to run. Every rational part of her screamed that she should forget him, that nothing good could come from strangers who arrived in the night with books, that others would kill for.
And yet...
She lowered her brush with a frustrated sigh. The canvas blurred before her, no colours, no strokes could capture the turmoil inside her chest.
"Elena?"
The familiar voice startled her, she turned to find Giulia, her best friend and assistant at the gallery, leaning against the studio door. A mischievous smile, curved her lips.
"You look like you haven't slept, don't tell me you were out again last night?"
Elena hesitated, heat rising in her cheeks. She couldn't tell Giulia the truth—not yet. "Something like that" she muttered.
Giulia smirked knowingly, "Mmmm...don't tell me it involves a man."
Elena opened her mouth, then shut it again. What would she even say? That a mysterious stranger had dragged her into an alley after being chased by men with flash lights? That she couldn't stop thinking about him even though she barely knew his name.
Giulia tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "You're blushing. Elena, you do have a secret."
"Giulia, its nothing," Elena protested, forcing a smile. "Just...a strange night. That's all."
Her friend raised a skeptical brow, but let it go for now.
By evening, Elena found herself drawn back to the gallery, despite every instinct, urging her to stay away. Something about the shadows of the previous night, clung to her whispering that, if she returned, she might find answers or perhaps simply hoped to see him again. The gallery was quiet, the paintings bathed in soft golden light. She walked slowly between them, her fingers brushing against cool marbles pedestals, her heart oddly restless.
"Elena."
She froze... the voice was unmistakable, turning she saw him.
Adrian stepped from the shadows as though he belonged there, his dark coat brushing against his knees, his expression unreadable, his presence filled the rooms steady and commanding, as though the air itself bent towards him.
Her heart lunched "You..."
He inclined his head slightly, as if acknowledging her disbelief, "I had to be sure you were unharmed,"
Elena's pulse raced
"Unharmed? You nearly got me killed last night!"
His jaw tightened, regret flickering in his eyes "And yet, you're here."
The retort died on her lips. He was right, she was here....despite fear, despite reason, some part of her had wanted to see him again.
"You owe me an answers," she said, finding her voice.
Adrian studied her for a long moment, than sighed softly, as though weary of a battle he could never win, he stepped closer... each movement deliberate. Elena held her ground, though her breath caught as he neared.
"What I owe you is.... the truth" he said quietly, "but the truth is dangerous...once you know it, there is no turning back."
Elaina swallowed hard, "then start with something small."
A faint smile tucked at his lips, humourless "Something small....." he glanced down at the book in his hand— the same leather bound volume, which the rose embossed on its cover. He ran a thumb over it, almost absently.
"This" he said, "this is why they want me dead. And now, because of last night, they will watch you too."
Elaina shivered "What is it?"
Adrian hesitated as though weighing whether to tell her "A key" he said at last. "To something hidden...something powerful, too powerful for the wrong hands".
"And you are what? it's guardian?" His eyes lifted to hers, storm-gray and unreadable "something like that".
The silence stretched, charged. Elena felt the weight of his gaze, the intensity of it. She should be terrified but instead she felt drawn in, like a moth to flame.
Finally, she said softly, "And what am I supposed to do? Hide? Pretend none of this is happening?"
Adrian's jaw clenched, he stepped closer until he was only a breath away. "No, you stay alive, that's all that matters."
Elena's breath caught, his nearness was intoxicating, overwhelming. The scent of him, the heat radiating from his body, the depth of his eyes, all of it, pulled her in.
She wanted to ask more, to demand the truth. But the words died as his gaze dropped briefly to her lips. For a heartbeat, the world narrowed to the space between them, the possibility of something reckless and inevitable.
And then— the crash of glass shattered the moment.
Elena jumped, spinning towards the sound. At the far end of the gallery, a window had splintered inward. Shadows moved against the glow of the street lamps outside.
Adrian swore under his breath. In an instant, his hand closed around herself, warm and firm "Stay with me."
Before she could respond, the intruders were inside 3 men and dark clothing.Their movements swift, practiced. One carried a blade that gleamed in dim light.
Elena's heart slammed against her ribs.
Adrian moved with startling speed, positioning himself between her and the attackers. His posture shifted, lethal and precisely, like a man who had been forged for violence.
The first man lunged. Adrian met him with a sharp, fluid motion, twisting his arm and sending the blade clattering across the marble floor. He shoved the attacker back, only to face the second.
Elena stumbled against a pedestals, fear clawing at her throat. She had never seen anyone move like Adrian—every strike was calculated, efficient, merciless. He wasn't just defending himself. He was protecting her.
The third man advanced on her directly. Elena froze, panic locking her limbs.
"Elena!" Adrian's voice cut through the chaos. "Duck!"
She dropped just as Adrian's hand shot past her, striking the man hard across the temple. The intruder collapsed on the floor with a thud.
Silence followed, heavy and breathless. Two of the men groaned, scrambling to retreat through the shatered window. The third lay unconscious at Adrian's feet.
Elena's chest heaved. She stared at him wide-eyed, adrenaline thrumming through her veins, "What— what are you?"
Adrian and turned to her, his face shadowed, his chest rising and falling with controlled breath, for a long moment he said nothing. Then quietly:
"Someone you shouldn't trust and yet...." his gaze softened "Someone who will not let you die."
Elena swallowed, her heart hammering.
Outside, sirens wailed in the distance, the 2 men who had fled were gone.The gallery lay in ruins, broken glass glittering like spilled stars across the marbles.
Adrian reached for her hand again, gentler this time, his touch sent a shiver down her spine "We can't stay here... they will come back."
Elena hesitated, torn between fear and the strange magnetic pull she felt toward him finally, she nodded.
"Where are we going?" she whispered.
Adrian's lips curved, faintly into something almost like a smile "Somewhere safe...at least for tonight."
And with that, he led her out into the night once more—two strangers bound by secrets, danger, and the first fragile threads of something neither of them yet dared to name.
The streets of Verona blurred past in streaks of gold and shadow as Adrian guided Elena through the night. His grip on her hand was firm but not harsh, protective rather than possessive. She barely had time to catch her breath, to ask where they were going, before he stopped at an unassuming wooden door tucked between two shuttered shops.
Adrian tapped twice in a peculiar rhythm. After a pause, the lock clicked open, and he ushered her inside.
Elena blinked as the door shut behind them, cutting off the city's noise. They stood in a dimly lit room, filled with the scent of old paper and ink books lined the walls from floor to ceiling, ancient tombs, leather bound manuscripts scrolls sealed with wax. It wasn't a home, it was a sanctuary of secrets. Adrian finally released her hand you are safe here for now.
Elena's pulse still raced from the chase, from the flight, from the memory of his body shielding hers. She looked around her eyes wide. "Safe? Safe from who exactly? and why are they after you? after us?
Adrian studied her, as though deciding how much truth she could bear. Then he crossed the room and placed the leather-bound book on a heavy oak table.
"It's time you understood," he said.
Elena stepped closer, unable to tear her gaze from the book. The rose on the cover seemed almost alive in the flickering candle light, its petals etched with unnerving detail.
"You said it was a key," she murmured.
Adrian nodded "The Codex Rosarum...The Book of the Rose. For centuries, it's been sought by scholars, thieves and killers alike. It contains a map, encrypted within its pages, that leads to something far older than any of us. Something people would kill to possess."
Elena's throat tightened "What kind of something?"
Adrian's storm-gray eyes locked onto hers "Power, knowledge, a legacy hidden for centuries, they call it the Midnight Rose."
The words hung in the air heavy with mystery.
Elena shivered "And you have it?"
His jaw tightened "I have the book, the Rose itself remains hidden, but if the Order of the Rose gets to it first, they will wield it to reshape the world and not for the better."
"The Order of the Rose?" Elena echoed.
"A brotherhood" Adrian said "ancient ruthless, their symbol is the rose, their creed is power. For generation, they have haunted this Codex, and now they know I have it, his gaze darkened, they also know you were with me."
Elena pressed a hand to her chest her heart thudding "but I don't have anything to do with this. I am just—"
"—an artist" Adrian finished for her, almost gently... "But now your are also a witness and their eyes that makes you leverage."
Elena swallowed hard. Her life— her quite ordinary life— felt as though it had been ripped away in an instant and standing in its place was the Storm of danger, of secrets, of a man who both terrified and fascinated her.
She should leave. She should walk out of this hidden room and never look back. But when she looked at Adrian, she felt the pull again —stronger now, undeniable.
"Why me?" she whispered "why tell me all this?"
Adrians expression softened, his voice dropping to something almost tender, "Because you deserve to know what you're caught in and because..." he hesitated as though fighting words he wasn't ready to speak, "because I couldn't let them take you."
Her breath caught. The air between them thickened charged, the same way it had in the alley the night before, his nearness was a gravitational force, pulling her closure despite every reason to resist, but before the moment could break, Adrian turned away as though wrestling his own restraint.
He opened the book flipping carefully through its fragile pages.The parchment crackled under his touch, covered in elegant ancient script and delicate ink illustrations.
Elena leaned closer, her artist's eyes, catching the details immediately—the precision of the lines, the way the rose motif repeated throughout in one illustration, a rose entwind around a sword, and another rose blossomed from a pool of dark ink that looked unnervingly like blood.
"It's beautiful" she breathed.
Adrian glanced at her, a faint flicker of surprise in his gaze "Most people see only danger in it".
"I see both" she said softly.
Their eyes met and something spoken passed between them. An acknowledgement, a thread tightening Adrian's lips parted as though he might say something more, but the sound of footsteps above them shattered the moment, he snapped the book shut, his movements. Swift, "We have been followed".
Elena's stomach dropped.
Adrian extinguished the candles with a sweep of his hand, plunging them into shadows. He grasped her wrist, guiding her silently toward a narrow staircase at the back of the room.The air was heavy with dust and the scent of wood and parchment as they ascended.