Aria's POV
I can't sleep.
Every time I close my eyes, I see that mannequin. The noose of black roses. The photograph of me and Dante together.
Thirteen days.
Ten days left now.
Ten days before the curse claims its victims.
I pace my room like a caged animal, checking the locks obsessively. Door—locked. Windows—sealed. Balcony—barred.
But it doesn't matter, does it? If a ghost can write messages on mirrors and leave roses in locked rooms, what good are locks?
Around 3 AM, I'm sweating despite the cold. My reflection in the vanity mirror looks haunted—dark circles under my eyes, hair tangled, fear written across every feature.
I need to splash water on my face. Clear my head. Think.
The bathroom feels too small as I lock myself inside. Another barrier. Another useless protection.
I turn on the faucet, let cold water run over my shaking hands. Press wet palms against my burning cheeks.
It's not real, I tell myself. Curses aren't real. Ghosts aren't real.
But six couples are dead. All killed in impossible ways.
I look up at the mirror above the sink.
And scream.
Written in the fogged glass—words that weren't there two seconds ago:
KATERINA SEES ALL
I stumble backward, hitting the wall. The door is locked from the inside. I've been alone this entire time.
No one could have written this.
No one human, a voice whispers in my mind.
I run.
Yank open the bathroom door and sprint into the hallway, not caring that I'm in pajamas, not caring about anything except getting away from that message.
I make it three steps before a figure appears from the shadows.
I scream again.
Aria! Dante's voice. He grabs my shoulders, steadying me. There's a gun in his other hand. What happened? I heard you scream.
The bathroom—there's a message—someone wrote— I can't get the words out fast enough.
Dante's already moving, pulling me back toward my room. He enters the bathroom first, gun raised, scanning for threats.
Nothing.
Just an empty bathroom with a clean mirror.
No fog. No message. No evidence anything was ever there.
It was there, I insist, pushing past him to point at the mirror. Right there. It said 'Katerina sees all.' I saw it!
Dante examines the mirror carefully. Touches the glass. Checks the ventilation, the door, the window.
I believe you, he says quietly.
The mirror's not even fogged anymore. But it was! I just washed my face and when I looked up— My voice cracks. How is this possible?
The curse is activating. Dante's face is grim. He holsters his gun, moving closer. Because of us. Our connection. It's triggering Katerina's ghost.
Then we stay away from each other! Panic claws at my throat. If the curse only activates when step-siblings get too close, we just—we avoid each other completely!
Won't work. His black eyes hold mine. You saved my life three years ago. In my world, that creates a life debt. The connection already exists.
That's insane
That's reality. He steps closer, and I should back away but I'm frozen. I've been protecting you for three years. Watching you. Caring about you. The matriarch knows. She's always known.
So what, we're just doomed? We wait ten days and die?
No. Dante's hand lifts, cups my face with surprising gentleness. His thumb brushes my cheek, and despite everything, heat floods through me. I'll keep you safe. Even from ghosts.
How can you protect me from something that's already dead?
By refusing to let her win. His voice drops, fierce and absolute. Katerina wants fear. Wants us separated. Wants us to destroy ourselves trying to avoid each other. But I won't give her that satisfaction.
Your father will execute us
Only if he catches us. Dante's eyes burn into mine. And right now, I'm more worried about supernatural threats than human ones.
The temperature suddenly drops.
One second we're standing in a warm bathroom. The next, our breath mists in the air. Frost creeps across the mirror.
Dante tenses, pulling me behind him. She's here.
What? Terror spikes through me. The ghost? Right now?
Stay behind me. Don't move. Don't speak.
The lights flicker. Once. Twice.
Then die completely.
We're plunged into darkness so absolute I can't see my hand in front of my face.
But I can hear.
Footsteps. Slow. Deliberate. Coming from inside the bathroom.
Click. Click. Click.
Like heels on marble.
Getting closer.
Dante, I whisper, gripping the back of his shirt.
Shh. His hand finds mine, squeezes. I've got you.
The footsteps stop.
Silence so thick it presses against my eardrums.
Then
A voice. Female. Cold as death itself.
He belongs to this family. You are stealing what is mine.
I can't breathe. Can't move. Can't process that I'm hearing an actual ghost speak.
I killed my son for less. Do you think I'll hesitate with you?
She's not real, I whisper. She can't be real.
Oh, I'm real, child. The voice comes from everywhere. Nowhere. And you will learn what happens to thieves who take what belongs to the Castellano bloodline.
The lights flicker back on.
And there—in the mirror behind Dante—I see her.
Katerina Castellano.
Pale skin like paper. Dark hair cascading down her shoulders. Wearing a dress from the 1940s, stained with blood.
But it's her eyes that freeze my heart.
Empty. Black. Filled with rage so pure it burns.
She's staring directly at me.
Her lips curve into a smile that's more threat than greeting.
Then she raises one hand—and points at me.
Thirteen days, little thief. Thirteen days until I take what's mine. Your blood will pay for his betrayal.
I can't look away. Can't scream. Can't do anything but stare at the ghost in the mirror who's promising my death.
Dante spins to look at the mirror.
But the moment he does, Katerina vanishes.
Just... gone.
The mirror shows only our reflections now. Two terrified people in a bathroom that's suddenly warm again.
Did you see her? I choke out.
Dante's face is white. I saw her.
She spoke to me. Threatened me. She said
I heard. His jaw clenches. She's manifesting physically now. Which means the curse is stronger than I thought.
My legs give out. I sink to the floor, shaking so hard my teeth chatter.
This is real. The curse is real. The ghost is real.
And she wants me dead.
Dante crouches beside me, pulling me against his chest. I won't let her touch you.
How can you stop a ghost?
I don't know yet. But I'll figure it out. His arms tighten around me. I'm not losing you. Not to my family's laws and not to some dead woman's jealousy.
I want to believe him. Want to think he can actually protect me.
But how do you fight something that's already dead?
We sit there on the bathroom floor, holding each other, until dawn creeps through the windows.
When enough light filters in that I can see clearly, I notice something on the mirror.
New words. Written in frost that shouldn't exist now that the room is warm.
I pull away from Dante, pointing with a shaking hand.
He turns. Reads. Goes absolutely rigid.
The message is simple. Terrifying.
I KNOW WHAT YOU DID IN THE ALLEY
I KNOW HE LOVES YOU
I KNOW YOU'RE FALLING FOR HIM
TEN DAYS, ARIA BENNETT
THEN YOU'RE MINE
My blood turns to ice.
Because the ghost isn't just threatening me.
She's been watching me for three years.
Just like Dante has.
And she knows every secret. Every feeling. Every truth I've tried to hide.
Even the one I haven't admitted to myself yet.
That somewhere between the fear and the chaos and the impossible situation—
I'm falling for the man who's been obsessed with me since I saved his life.
And that feeling is going to get us both killed.
Dante stares at the message, then at me, and I see the exact moment he realizes the same thing.
She knows, he whispers.
Knows what?
His black eyes meet mine, raw with emotion I've never seen before.
That I'm in love with you. And that you're starting to love me back.
The admission hangs between us.
True. Terrifying. Deadly.
Because loving Dante Castellano violates the Blood Oath.
And Katerina's ghost is watching.
Waiting.
Counting down the days until she can claim her revenge.
My wing is private. Secure. With guards I trust absolutely. Dante's grip tightens. And I can protect you there. Keep you safe.
Or get us both killed! I try to pull away. Didn't you hear Marco? He's already suspicious. Moving me to your private rooms will give them exactly the proof they need!
Let them suspect. I'd rather face my father's execution than find you dead from a curse I could have prevented.
The raw emotion in his voice steals my breath.
Dante...
Please. The word sounds like it costs him. Let me protect you. It's the only thing I know how to do.
I should say no. Should maintain distance. Should survive these ten days by avoiding him completely.
But when he looks at me like that—desperate and determined and terrified—I can't.
Fine, I whisper. But we're being careful. Separate rooms. No touching. Nothing that could be misconstrued.
Relief floods his face. Deal. I'll have Tommy move your things this afternoon. Quietly.
He releases my wrist and disappears down the hallway before anyone can see us together.
I lean against the wall, trying to calm my racing heart.
This is insane. Moving into Dante's wing is asking for trouble.
But staying alone in a room where ghosts write messages and roses appear from nowhere is worse.
I'm choosing the lesser danger.
I hope.