Peyton Griffin's POV

I close the door of my room softly behind me and sigh.

Nothing can ever make sense. I made my bed and now lie on it.

I gave in to the moment and showed Caleb my scars. He kissed every single one of them and held me as I cried.

He plans on helping me overcome my demons, but it's not as simple as it seems. I start making my way through the mansion to one of them.

My grandfather, Sam Griffin.

Danny joins me in one corridor. Quietly we walk towards the end of the mansion.

When we are a corridor away from the meeting point my grandfather chose for us, Danny stops and holds onto my wrist, making me stop alongside him.

"Penny, I want to make a deal."

I don't look at him but nod slightly to show him that I am listening.

"You know that what lies behind that door will change our outlook on what has happened to us thus far. I want us to promise each other that no matter what happens, we remain loyal to each other; till the end."

I look at him and smile fondly.

Never in my life would I have thought that Danny Torent, one of the biggest manwhore I have ever met with an affinity for women with red hair, turned out to be one of the few people I am ready to protect till my last breath.

"Deal," I say and rest my head on his chest.

The mansion crawled with men in black suits who posed as the security detail. They are more in number because the Empire's current ruler is under the same roof as us.

He wraps his hands around my shoulders and leans downs to whisper in my ear.

"You can lie to everyone through your teeth, but I know that you and Caleb didn't have sex."

I fight the blush which furiously takes over my face. I look at him with a murderous glare.

He matches my stare with amusement, and I end up rolling my eyes at his antics.

"I mean, you both are virgins. I thought you guys would have spent a week in your room." He states his reason.

I managed to ask, "What gave it away?"

He hums, "For starters, you had no hickeys on your neck, and he looked completely calm when you both walked in."

I shrug my shoulders at his observation.

He's not wrong. After I showed Caleb my scars, he held me as I cried, and we spent the rest of the day sleeping in my bed. One of the best slumbers I have ever had, knowing that I lay in the arms of someone I could trust and love.

"Now that that bridge is out of the way. Let's keep moving." I nod in agreement with him.

We walk towards the dreaded room that might just change our lives as we know it.

I knock, and the door opens. The sight of our grandfather's back greets us. He stared at the starry night from the big glass windows.

"Children," You can hear the amusement in his voice. "Have your seats."

We walk to the two chairs that are set aside from each other but yet face each other.

Two men in black suits stand by the door we just walked through. Danny and I make our way to the chairs and slump into them.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush. We leave for Britain at noon tomorrow."

Danny and I shot up from our seats and looked at my grandfather as if he escaped the nut house recently.

But when he finally turns to face us, the theory is not too far-fetched with the smile he is sporting.

"Have your seats. No need to be barbaric."

I held my tongue for many reasons. The most important one is that I have no idea what he could do. We are left at his mercy.

Think about it people. He married my mother, his only daughter to Troy. I think that reason speaks loud enough for itself.

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Danny sighs, and we both take our seats once again. I feel slightly agitated as the pin-drop silence engulfs the room.

My grandfather motions for the two other men in the room to leave, but they hesitate while eyeing us. When he sees it, he gives them a glare that makes them cooperate.

"It's simple, really," He shrugs and comes to stand between us but still has full view of us.

"You get onto a plane, and it moves. Doesn't require much logic if you ask me."

I inhale deeply, "Grandfather, Can you tell us what is going on?"

"It seems like my enemies are catching up to me, and I would like to be on mother's soil for us to act."

"Us?" Danny questions with uncertainty.

Grandpapi sighs and turns his back to us. He walks towards the window.

"I see I have to start from the beginning."

I am literally at the edge of my seat now, wondering what story he wants to whip up.

"It was the winter of the year that I was supposed to take over the year of the Empire. My parents got into a fight that split our family apart; mother with daughter against father and son. My father drove away from the Empire, which you could say was his biggest mistake and where all our problems started from.

My mother wanted my sister to take over. It was impossible, I was the firstborn and the first and only son of both of them, but she wasn't having any of it. She and my younger sister Kasie promised that they would bring the Empire to our knees one way or another.

Which brings me to your existence," He directs his gaze from the window and turns around swiftly. His eyes hone in on Danny.

"Kasie couldn't have a kid, so she adopted. The unlucky child was your father, Joey. She couldn't stand the fact that we were related and I had the one thing she wanted. She changed her last name to Torent. She went off the grid the day when Troy and Joey decided to tie the knot."

"Wow," I say, trying to process the information that I was being given.

"Wow indeed, but that's not where the madness stops. You see, Danny's mother left Joey because he slept with Valentía. Valentía was or rather is a nurse, the same nurse in the labour room with my daughter the day that she was to give birth."

I feel my heart stop breathing. If she was the nurse, does that mean...

"Valentía is Caleb's blood mother, but she was a pawn in my sister's plan to take me down. I'm not sure what actually happened in that room because the footage was deleted before I could get my hands on it, and that was the last time that Valentía was ever seen."

My mother may have been killed by the mother of the man that I am falling in love with, just great.

Does anybody want some popcorn? Because I sure do.

"So what now?" Danny asks.

"I want you two to help me with taking them both down. Kasie was last spotted somewhere in Mexico where she is hiding, or so my source says. Then as for Valentía, I want her here for questioning, and if she so happened to have been the sole reason my baby girl died, then I would like her head on a stake."

He clenches his hands into a fist, and the most feared man in the whole Empire decides to make an appearance.

His grey eyes take a new intensity as they look at the door with a heated glance, already picturing the head without a body.

"I'm just going to go on a hunch and say," I begin eyeing him in caution. "Your sister is a crazy bitch who wants to rule the Empire while Joey's lover may have a hand in my mother's death." I summarize the points of this story of his.

He nods. "Then what exactly has that got to do with us?" I motion to Danny and me.

"Silly girl, if my sister wishes, she could come after you, him and everything else I have worked for or care about." He says in a discerning tone.

"Wait a minute, why would you care about me?" My grandfather turns his head to look at Danny.

"Because child, believe it or not. You are my grand nephew, which makes both of you second cousins. You're a Griffin logically, even though your father was adopted by my sister."

We look at each other in shock, "Regardless, my enemies and that of Troy's are now yours," He points at me. "And yours." He points at Danny.

"They will come after you both in different ways and forms. Try to take you both off guard and get to you through the people and things you love the most and when you're at your weakest. They will strike till you finally meet your downfall."

It never gets easier, does it?

"On unrelated news, I am set to retire, and Peyton will reign after me,"

I narrowed my eyes at him, "And why on earth would I want to be the leader of a bunch of narcissist asses who don't know when to get the sticks stuck up their asses out."

He chuckles dryly, "You don't have a choice. If I die now, my will is read to not only the people of the Empire but the government. You would be hunted down and be forced to take over to prevent the terror that roams the streets."

I huff out a shaky breath. No matter how much I try to fight it. This Empire, the British Empire, just comes back to me with a force like no other. Forcing its way into my life and giving me a burden I never asked for.

He continues as if he did not just drop a bomb on Danny and me.

"Or they could get Lola if you prove stubborn, but I'm pretty sure you do not want that to happen." He smirks because he knows he has me where he wants me.

It must be a family trait, trying to prove who is more stubborn.

"As for you," He motions to Danny. "Your mother may be out of the picture, but I wouldn't say the same for your stepmom. I can bet all of my money that she is feasting on anger. She gave away her son while you lived with your family for some time. If I was her and couldn't come after the man that threw me into this mess, I would go after the next best thing. Which would be?"

Danny sinks into his chair, "Me or the people I care about."

"As you can see, we are in a difficult position, but since we are family, I'm going to speak the language that we both are fluent with. I have a deal to make."

Danny and I both sit up in our seats simultaneously.

My grandfather chuckles at our enthusiasm.

"One year. One year to set things right. Danny gets my sister and his stepmother for me. I mentor Peyton to handle the Empire, and if things go according to plan and the year ends. I get my revenge. I'll let you two off the hook. I'll find a new successor, and you two get to walk away from the Empire, unscathed.

Do we have a deal?" He looks at us expectantly.

Not gonna lie. I did not know that was going to be the outcome of tonight. But at the promise of freedom and a way to fully redeem myself to the people I hold dear to my heart.

I know what I have to do.

Danny and I looked sideways, keeping eye contact before we looked back at our grandfather.

We shared a knowing look because we both knew we would go down either way.

"Deal."