Chapter 98 Change of Plans
Anna's POV
Serena looked up immediately. "Who's calling?"
I swallowed hard, my fingers tightening around the phone. "It's Xavier."
The color drained from Serena's face.
Beside her, the young man who had posed as Xavier's associate looked equally alarmed.
"You have to answer," Serena whispered.
I looked at her. "What if he already knows?"
"Then pretending you didn't see the call will only make things worse."
The young man nodded nervously. "She's right."
"You need to hear what he wants before you leave."
I took a slow breath.
My heartbeat was pounding so loudly I could barely hear myself think.
Finally, I pressed the green button. "Hello?"
Xavier's familiar voice came through, smooth and playful. "Hello there."
Despite the distance, his tone carried the same confidence it always did.
I forced myself to sound relaxed. "Nice of you to call at this point."
"I would've loved your call sooner."
A quiet chuckle came from the other end. For a moment he said nothing. Then he spoke again. "Switch to video call."
I blinked. "What?"
"Switch to video, baby."
I glanced at Serena. She immediately understood. "Do it," she mouthed.
"All right," I said into the phone. "I'm switching to video."
The instant the screen went dark, Serena spun toward the young man. "Bathroom now!"
He didn't waste a second.
He hurried across the room and disappeared into the bathroom, closing the door softly behind him.
I sat back on the couch, steadied my breathing, and accepted the video request.
Xavier appeared on the screen almost immediately.
He was seated behind a large desk, rubbing his temples with one hand while wearing that irritatingly confident smile that somehow managed to make him look both dangerous and charming.
His eyes lifted to meet mine. Then they slowly scanned the room behind me.
My pulse skipped. He looked around carefully before speaking. "You're not in the mansion."
I smiled. "Yes, I am not. And I'm sure you already know that."
He laughed. "Of course I do." Then ask, "Where are you?"
"I'm sure you already know that also."
He nodded. "Yes I do, but what is life without a little drama?"
Despite myself, I smiled. "You always have an answer."
"I try."
I quickly changed the subject. "You look happy."
"I am." He leaned back comfortably. "I'm happy for two reasons."
I waited. "My business here is going better than expected. I'll probably be home sooner than I planned."
Something tightened in my chest.
Sooner? That wasn't part of my plan. "And the second reason?"
He smiled wider. "I'm happy I decided to marry you. I could've auctioned you somewhere else. You turned out to be a better bargain than I thought."
I rolled my eyes. "So you're happy because you made me your slave?"
He laughed again. "I don't marry slaves. So you're not one."
"At least...Not until we divorce."
I swallowed.
There was something about the way he said it that made it impossible to tell whether he was joking.
He tilted his head. "Although that's unlikely, but not impossible."
For a brief second, neither of us spoke.
Then his expression became just a little more serious. "Anyway... be careful. You don't want to chew more than you can bite."
Before I could ask what he meant— The screen went black. The call ended.
I stared at my reflection for several seconds.
Serena finally broke the silence. "I told you this was a terrible idea."
I looked up. "Nothing has changed. The plan continues."
Serena stared at me in disbelief. "Are you out of your mind? Everything has changed. If Xavier knows you're outside... He's going to call the associate you claimed you were meeting. He'll verify your story."
I thought for a moment. "Then we'll actually meet the associate afterward."
She shook her head. "No, we meet him here."
I frowned. "How? I don't even have his number. I can't exactly walk outside and ask Lilly to call him after telling her we are here to meet him."
Serena smiled. "I came prepared."
She reached into her handbag and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "I looked up his number this morning."
"In case something went wrong." She handed it to me. "I guess I was right."
I couldn't help smiling. "You're incredible."
"I know."
I dialed the number. The line rang twice. Then a man answered. "Hello?"
"Good evening."
"My name is Anna." There was a brief silence.
"The Don's wife?"
"Yes."
"How may I help you?"
"I've been waiting to meet you sir."
"It appears there was a misunderstanding, I had to idea you wanted to see me."
"Well, it appears my assistant forgot to reach out to you," I lied smoothly. "But it doesn't matter, I need you at my current location within fifteen minutes."
The man sounded genuinely distressed. "I'm terribly sorry. Please send me the address. I'll leave immediately."
"Thank you." I hung up and immediately texted him the address. Relief washed over me. One problem solved.
I turned toward Serena. "Can I go now?"
She nodded before calling softly, "You can come out."
The bathroom door opened and the young man stepped back into the room. "Did it go from bad to worse?" he asked.
"Almost," Serena replied. "But the plan has changed. You're no longer needed here."
She pointed toward the rear exit. "Escort Anna through the back. Take her to the third house. After that... You disappear."
He nodded. "Understood boss."
Serena looked at me one last time. "You have fifteen minutes, not sixteen. If you're late... We're all in trouble."
"I'll be back by then. I mean it."
"I know."
The young man quietly opened the back door.
Cool afternoon air rushed inside. I followed him into the narrow alley behind the building.
The route was even shorter than Serena had promised.
Within moments we reached the third house. He stopped walking. "That's it."
I nodded. "Thank you."
Without another word he turned around and disappeared back the way we had come.
Now I was alone. I faced the familiar apartment.
Lucas was somewhere inside.
Taking one steadying breath, I climbed the short staircase and knocked.
There was no response, no footsteps or voices.
I raised my hand to knock again.
Suddenly— The door flew open.
A powerful hand grabbed my wrist.
Before I could react, I was yanked violently inside.
I gasped.