Willing? Really?

Adeline responded, "Revenge."

"I need to make them pay. I've lost...everything."

Caesar stopped what he was doing with the glass and put it back on the table. "Why me?"

Why…you? Adeline thoughtfully stared at him, and drew a deep breath. 

"Because you are the only one that can help me. I don't have any family or even anyone that I could call a friend, so you are the only option left. You also gave me your card."

"Hmm..." Caesar suddenly smiled, narrowing his gaze on her. "You know who I am, right, Adeline?"

"Caesar Romanovich Kutznetsov, yes, I do!" Adeline peered at him obstinately.

"And you still want me to help you." Caesar didn't seem convinced. "Do you know what that might cost you? You are one of the Petrovs, and we are enemies. Aren't you afraid that I might just use-"

Adeline stubbornly shook her head at him. "I don't care if you use me or not! Whatever it may cost, I'll be willing to pay, so long as you will help me." She looked desperate.

Caesar took out the metal lighter in his pocket and began to flick it open and close. He stared at her in deep thought and abruptly scooted his chair back roughly, getting up. "You are too emotional right now. Don't force me to take advantage of it." 

"I'm not interested in putting you in a tight position right when you are mourning someone dear to you. Go home for now and-"

"No!" Adeline sprang to her feet and walked over to stand in front of him, her arms spreading out to keep him from taking any further steps. "My emotions are in check, and I am aware of the risk I'm taking by asking you for help. I'll give you whatever you may ask for! I'm serious, please!"

Caesar looked at her with a frown. "Go home, Adeline."

"I can't!" Adeline shook her head at him, her eyes flickering with desperation. "You're the one who gave your card to me. You said I would need it, remember?"

"Well, here I am now. Please..."

"Adeline." Caesar grabbed her arms and moved her out of the way.

He opened the door, but before he left, he glanced at her from over his shoulder, saying, "We'll meet again in a week's time. But, I'll have you know that when you willingly get involved with me, you will not be able to leave as easily. So, think carefully about it." 

Adeline gripped his arm, her pleading eyes boring into his. "It doesn't matter, Caesar, please. You don't understand." She shook her head at him. "I don't know how much time I have left. I'm…I'm dying, and I need-"

"What?" Caesar raised a single brow, uncomprehending. "What do you mean you're dying?"

Adeline averted her gaze to the floor, the tightness of her hold on his arm lessening. She bit her lower lip, unsure of how to explain.

"Adeline?" Caesar lowered his head to get a look at her face. He was perplexed, a frown settling in between his brows. "Answer me. What did you mean?"

"I don't know what it is. I can't explain," Adeline finally answered, lifting her head to meet his gaze. "I'm just sick, and I think it's killing me slowly."

Caesar stood, staring at her for what seemed like long agonizing silent seconds. He grabbed her arm all of a sudden and yanked her onto him.

Before Adeline could even register what he was about to do, he pulled back the collar of her white shirt, taking a good look at the nape of her neck.

His eyes momentarily blew wide at the sight of the scar at the back of her neck, and he drew his head back to look at her face.

"When did you get this scar?" he asked.

Adeline blinked, startled for a second. How did he know she had a scar on the back of her neck?

Regardless, she responded, "Last year."

"Before or after you married Dimitri?" Caesar further probed.

"After." Adeline gazed at him, thrown into confusion. "Caesar, what is going on? Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing. You're fine." Caesar let go of her, taking a step back.

Adeline frowned but didn't ask anymore. She rather stood, peering at him, and waiting for an answer from him. "Will you help me? I said I would do anything you want."

"If you end up against the idea, don't call me, but if you still choose to seek my help, I'll come for you. I will do the arrangement myself," Caesar said, turning around to leave the steak house.

Adeline watched as he got into his car and drove off. Her hands clenched into fists, and she painfully bit into her lower lip, her body trembling.

There was frustration burning up within her, and she could not seem to suppress it at that moment.

It felt like it was eating her up.

She screamed at herself and staggered back into a nearby chair, her hands clutching onto her hair in agitation.

"Think about it?" Her lips were slightly parted, soft breaths fleeing her mouth. 

Her phone beeped, and she looked at the screen to see that it was another message from Dimitri—a photo of him and his hookups in a pool.

The man looked completely drunk and wasted. It appeared as if that night was the best night of his life and he really was having so much fun. 

Adeline's grip on the phone tightened, the urge to smash it into the ground overwhelming her.

But, she didn't. Rather, she turned the screen off, drawing a deep breath. She stood up from the chair and left the steak house to head home. 

….

As the car sped to the estate, Yuri, who was seated next to Caesar in the back seat, pinched between his brows and exhaled tiredly.

"Supreme Alpha."

"What?" Caesar asked, his tone clipped.

"You know what you are about to do is..." A long pause. "…I don't like what you are about to do."

Caesar averted his gaze to him. "And why is that?"

"She is one of the Petrovs, sir. As your consigliere, I'm telling you that this is a bad idea," Yuri responded, looking slightly miffed.

Caesar grinned, flatly saying, "I know what I'm doing. To destroy someone, using their enemy isn't always a bad idea."

Yuri narrowed his eyes, his forehead wrinkling into a frown. "This is too risky and it doesn't make any sense to me!"

"You know we can handle the Petrovs on our own. Why her? Why do you need her? What if they are using her to get-"

Caesar snorted. "If she was being used, I would have known from a mere glance and the words that she spoke. Her eyes were enough for me to tell." 

"But what if she betrays you midway?" Yuri asked, tilting his head.

The amused expression on Caesar's face vanished in an instant, and his eyes darkened. He sighed heavily, responding, "I'll deal with her. Betrayal is one thing I hate more than my father."

"And that is exactly why you should dismiss this idea!" Yuri snapped at him.

"Dismiss?" Caesar shook his head in disagreement. "I gave her a week to think about it. If, after a week, she still decides to seek me out, then I have no reason to say no. After all, she would be willing, no?"

"Willing? Really?" Yuri rolled his eyes. "You knew what would possibly happen and gave your card to her. You led her to you, knowing fully well she would come, and here you are talking about willingness. You're an asshole."

"I don't know, but my hand feels a bit itchy, Yuri," Caesar mused, massaging his right hand. "I might mistakenly blow your jaw off if you don't keep your words in check."

He smiled at him. "So what if I gave her my card? She could have ignored it. It's not as if I pointed a gun at her throat and forced her to call me."

"Point of correction, I only gave my personal card to her so she could call me if she ever decided to run again. You're getting this whole thing wrong."

Everywhere went silent as Yuri didn't know how to counter his words. He was right, but still...

"She is your mate…isn't she?" he asked, throwing the question out of the blue. "That's why you gave your personal card to her with open arms, right?"