The Mercenary Queen Strikes Back (Lily Hastings) novel Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Nova could distinctly sense Damien’s body suddenly tense up. His chest was rock hard. Nova threw herself straight into Damien’s arms–quick, clean, without hesitation.

As the top mercenary, she always relied on her badass solo skills to crush her enemies.

With that kind of strength, Nova would never lower herself like those women, trading their bodies just to survive or get ahead.

It was literally Nova’s first time getting this up close and personal with a guy.

Seriously, she’d never pulled a stunt like this before.

But every bit of it, she reminded herself, was just her way out. Nothing more.

While Damien was still stiff, Nova jerked up her knee and smashed it into his gut with all her strength.

It barely made a sound, but she managed to land the blow.

For Damien, though, it was like an egg cracking against solid rock–he barely noticed.

Still, it was enough to make him finally let go of his hold on her.

Nova slipped free without a hitch.

She didn’t waste a second–with a couple of swift, nimble moves, she put a good ten meters between herself and Damien.

In the blink of an eye, she vanished into the dense forest.

This time, Damien didn’t chase after her.

His unfathomable eyes watched Nova’s fading silhouette, cold and emotionless–no one could tell what he was thinking.

“Sir, she’s gone. Should we chase her?” Damien’s man asked.

His name was Aiden Cross, the one who’d stayed behind to take care of Scarlet’s body.

Now that he’d finished, he arrived just in time to witness Nova using Damien as a distraction to make her

escape.

Thus, Aiden stepped forward, asking for Damien’s instructions.

“No. Let’s go.” Damien’s voice was icy and absolute.

The chill in his words made it clear–Damien wasn’t suggesting; he was commanding.

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13:54 Sat, Jun 6

Chapter 15

To be honest, when Aiden saw Nova launch herself right into Damien’s arms, he was downright floored, like he was hallucinating. It was the last thing he expected.

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And now, seeing Nova make a clean getaway while Damien just coolly ordered them not to give chase, Aiden was so shocked that his heart was pounding out of his chest.

There wasn’t a soul in the underworld who didn’t know about Damien’s brutal reputation.

He might not have been obsessed with cleanliness, but from his earliest days, the bloodbath he brought sent shockwaves across the globe.

At one point, he’d even topped the charts as the most terrifying, ruthless monster alive.

Aiden had been Damien’s right–hand for over ten years, and in all those years, he’d never seen a woman dare come close enough to touch him–physically or emotionally.

Most women who got within a ten–foot radius of Damien ended up butchered, just like that.

There wasn’t a reason. Damien never bothered to explain himself–he was just that cold–blooded.

Aiden still remembered a female assassin who once tried to sleep with Damien. She didn’t even get a chance to graze his sleeve before he tore her to pieces in the most gruesome way imaginable.

Her limbs and mangled remains are still strung up at the doors of the Shadow Sanctum as a grim warning to anyone else crazy enough to try.

But just now, Damien–who’s notorious for treating women like they’re radioactive–actually let a girl with enough guts to launch herself into his arms walk away.

‘Is this the freaking apocalypse or what?‘ Aiden thought, his mind blown and borderline panicking.

*****

Nova raced out of the forest, adrenaline still surging through her veins.

It wasn’t until she reached a busy city park and melted into the buzzing crowd that she finally slowed down, breathing out in relief.

Even now, Nova couldn’t help feeling rattled by what had just gone down with Damien.

She’d thrown herself into his arms with one goal: make him drop his guard, sucker punch him, and get the hell out while she had the chance.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

Every reckless move was like taunting death right at the muzzle of a gun, and she was fully aware of it.

Damien was the undisputed boss of the Shadow Sanctum–the kind of man no one could outrun or escape, no matter how slick their moves. Even if one managed to land a sneak attack, he’d close the gap in a blink.

Truth was, the only reason Nova got away in one piece was because he chose to let her go.

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Chapter 15

Now, Nova was thinking about one thing.

Damien, once crowned the most savage man alive, wasn’t just her enemy. She was his deadliest liability, the one most likely to take him down someday.

If she made it out alive, then next time, it could be his life on the line.

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Given the deadly game they were playing, Nova was the biggest threat to Damien’s life, and he knew it better than anyone.

She’d just stumbled right into his kill zone, completely exposed. Taking her out right there would’ve been the move–even a rookie assassin wouldn’t have hesitated.

Damien wasn’t clueless. But in the end, instead of killing her, he just let her go. She didn’t know why he would do that.

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AD

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