Shackled To The Enemy King

Catherine observed her brother carefully.

Just yesterday, he had spoken about building a lab for her as though it were already decided—and today, he was asking about BioQuant.

She could piece it together.

"Did something happen?"

Across from her, Maximilian calmly dropped sugar cubes into his tea, stirring with unhurried precision, as though the conversation had nothing to do with him.

But Catherine knew him well enough to see through that. Just like her, he wasn’t surprised.

"I just found out BioQuant is blocking my permit request—for your lab," Jonathan said.

Catherine’s brows lifted slightly.

Of course, Dorian.

And the absence of surprise from Maximilian only confirmed it further.

She let out a slow breath, steadying herself before she spoke. "It’s better not to fight him. He fights dirty."

Maximilian’s gaze shifted to her then, sharper, searching. Was she really going to step back? Was she going to let this go without even trying?

But Catherine’s expression didn’t waver. This wasn’t hesitation. It was choice. She wasn’t retreating because she was afraid, she was drawing a line, because this wasn’t just about her anymore.

"I don’t want this spilling over to the family," she continued quietly. "This is my problem."

Her fingers curled lightly around her cup, grounding herself.

"I’ll handle it."

There was resolve in her voice, firm enough to leave no room for argument. Whatever Dorian wanted... She would deal with it.

Alone, if she had to.

Jonathan leaned back slightly, studying both of them. His sister might not want to involve them, that didn’t mean they’d let her be.

"What does he have against you?" Jonathan asked, his gaze steady, unwilling to let the matter slide.

He wasn’t asking out of idle curiosity.

He had already stepped back from the daily grind, handing most of the business over to his son while his wife still oversaw operations with her usual precision. Retirement had been on his mind for a while now, but stillness had never suited him. He wasn’t built for quiet exits or uneventful days.

If anything, this... stirred something in him.

A challenge.

A fight.

He could take on BioQuant if he wanted to. He had the time, the resources, and more importantly, the inclination. But he wasn’t reckless. Not anymore. Those reckless days in business had passed him. But he wanted a game.

He needed to understand what he was stepping into before he chose to move. Who he was up against. And why.

His eyes returned to Catherine, sharper now, more deliberate. Because if this was going to turn into a battle...

He intended to win it.

"Dorian Blackwood wants control over my research," Catherine said evenly. "He wants me working under him."

Just then, William returned, freshly showered, slipping into his seat as though he hadn’t missed anything.

"Dorian Blackwood..." he muttered, dragging a hand through his hair. "I told you about him running into me at the golf course. And let’s not forget the scene he caused at the hospital a few days ago."

Maximilian’s hand paused mid-motion, the spoon resting against the rim of his cup as his gaze shifted to Catherine. Jonathan caught it too—the stillness, the attention.

Catherine hesitated for a fraction of a second.

"And..." She wet her lips, steadying herself. "He wants to marry me."

The words landed heavier than anything else she had said.

Jonathan and William both went still. William nodded, as he had already figured out, but the other implications caught up with him and he stayed silent, waiting to see Catherine. Then, almost at the same time, their hands tightened into fists on the table.

Catherine noticed.

That was it.

There would be no stepping back now. Their brothers would not allow any careful distance, and will not leave it at quiet observation.

They had decided. They were involved, fully.

She didn’t fear that. She didn’t even resent it.

But...

A flicker of something darker passed through her mind. A memory she couldn’t quite shake. In another life, she had already seen what happened when powerful men collided, when pride and control turned into something far more destructive.

She didn’t want that again.

She didn’t want to lose the people she loved in the crossfire of something that began with her.

And yet, she wasn’t certain of anything.

She knew one thing with absolute clarity—she did not want to stand at Dorian’s side. That path felt suffocating, inevitable in all the worst ways. But standing beside Maximilian... that frightened her too.

It wasn’t him.

It was what could happen.

Fear.

They said love left no room for it, but her fear had always been born from love. She loved him. Too deeply. In this life, and in the one before it. She had survived his betrayal once, somehow holding herself together long enough to keep moving forward.

But this time...

She didn’t think she would survive it again.

Before the silence at the table could stretch too far, Maximilian’s hand found hers beneath it, his fingers closing around hers with quiet certainty.

A silent promise that he was standing with her.

Catherine looked at him, her gaze lingering, searching for something she couldn’t quite name. She loved him—that wasn’t the question.

But trust...

How much of it did she truly have?

She wanted to give it to him. Wanted to place it in his hands without hesitation.

But she was still afraid. Not of him.

Of fate; of what loving him might cost this time.

What was waiting for them this time?

What if it all led to the same end?

"He’s not a good man," William said, breaking through her thoughts. "Even at first glance, there was something off about him. Something..."

"Obsessive," Maximilian finished calmly.

Jonathan and William both turned to look at him, something contemplative settling into their expressions.

So he knew.

He understood exactly what kind of man Dorian was—what kind of danger Catherine was entangled in.

And still... He stayed.

That, to them, said more than anything else.

A man who saw the storm clearly... and chose not to walk away.

Yes.

That was the kind of man they could accept for their sister.

"Speaking of BioQuant and Dorian," William began, leaning back slightly, his tone shifting into something more thoughtful, "when our stocks fell and BioQuant stepped in... Dorian didn’t have control over the shares at that time."

Catherine’s brows knit together. "It wasn’t Dorian?" she asked, her eyes widening slightly. She had assumed it was him, so naturally that she hadn’t even questioned it.

"I thought so too," William admitted. "But I looked into it because I didn’t want to owe him anything. It wasn’t him."

Catherine’s gaze shifted instinctively... To Maximilian.

Because that day... He had been doing something.

He met her eyes for a brief second, unreadable as ever, then casually picked up his phone and stood. "Excuse me," he said, already stepping away as if answering a call.

Catherine watched him go. She wasn’t even sure the phone had rung.

"Did you find out who it was?" she asked, turning back to William, her voice more intent now. "An individual? An LLC?"

William gave a small nod. "I wouldn’t bring it up if I didn’t."

Something in her chest tightened.

She didn’t know why, but she found herself hoping.

Say Maximilian, Billy...

"It was a strange name," William continued. "Not one I’ve come across before. Sounds almost Greek."

Catherine leaned forward slightly, her fingers tightening against the edge of the table.

"Leon Aureus," William said. "Do you know anyone by that name?"

Her heart stuttered.

Just for a second.

"No," she said, a little too quickly. "I don’t..."

But something stirred deep inside, unsettling her.

That name... It brushed against her memory like a whisper she couldn’t quite catch.

Her heart stuttered, not out of recognition, but of something different.

She felt like she should recognize that name.

Her gaze drifted, almost unconsciously, toward where Maximilian had walked away.

Who... is that?