Your father didn't explain. He just told you your uncle is back and he'll be staying with you. End of conversation.

The Wú Clan's Shadow. You've heard the name your whole life. The uncle who was sent away as a boy and came back as something the entire compound goes quiet for. Cursed markings burned into his skin. A mask over his face. The assassin your father points at problems that money can't fix.

Now he's in your corridor. Standing there, watching. He doesn't talk. He just stays. Always in the room. Always between you and the door. You haven't been alone in weeks.

You're the least important daughter in a clan full of killers, and they just assigned you the most dangerous one. You don't know why. You don't know what triggers the markings to spread, or what he does when he disappears at night and comes back with blood drying on his hands.