Chapter 13 Chapter 13
The alley was suffocating, the air thick with fear and tension. The masked gunmen edged closer, their weapons gleaming under the dull streetlight. My heart hammered so loudly I thought they could hear it. Claudia stood in front of me, her pistol aimed, her shoulders squared. But I could see her hand trembling ever so slightly.
“Stay behind me,” she muttered again, her voice low but strained.
The lead gunman tilted his head, his finger hovering over the trigger. “You’re outnumbered,” he said, his voice carrying a cruel edge. “Hand over the necklace, and we’ll let you walk away.”
Claudia huffed a bitter laugh, her pistol never wavering. “You expect me to believe that?”
The man didn’t respond. Instead, he took a step forward, and I saw his finger start to tighten on the trigger.
And then it happened—an explosion of sound. A car screeched into the alley, its headlights flooding the narrow space. The gunmen turned, momentarily blinded, and before they could react, the first shot rang out.
Damien.
He moved like a shadow, stepping out of the car with his gun raised, his face a mask of fury. Marcus was right behind him, firing with lethal precision. The gunmen scattered, shouting orders and returning fire, but they didn’t stand a chance. Damien’s men were relentless, their bullets cutting through the night like fire.
Claudia grabbed my arm, pulling me to the ground as the chaos erupted around us. I pressed myself against the cold pavement, my hands over my ears, my body trembling with every echoing shot.
It felt like an eternity before the alley fell silent again, the only sounds remaining were the faint hum of the car engine and my own ragged breaths.
“Lisa!” Damien’s voice cut through the haze, sharp and commanding.
I lifted my head to see him standing a few feet away, his gun still in hand, his eyes blazing with anger. He looked at Claudia first, his jaw tightening, then his gaze shifted to me.
“What the hell were you thinking?” he demanded, his voice low but furious.
Back at the mansion, the tension was unbearable. The drive had been silent, save for the occasional glance Damien had shot in my direction—a mix of anger, frustration, and something else I couldn’t quite place.
Claudia was dragged from the car the moment we arrived, Marcus and the other men escorting her to one of the locked rooms in the east wing. She didn’t fight them, didn’t say a word. She just looked at me, her expression unreadable, before disappearing into the shadows.
Damien didn’t say anything to me until we were alone in his office. The door clicked shut behind him, and I felt the weight of his anger settle over the room like a storm cloud.
“What were you thinking?” he repeated, his voice low but sharp, like the calm before the thunder.
I stood near the desk, my arms wrapped around myself as I tried to find the right words. “I was trying to help,” I said finally, my voice small.
“Help?” Damien’s laugh was bitter, cold. “You call putting yourself in danger ‘helping?’ Do you have any idea what could have happened to you?”
“I couldn’t just stand by and do nothing!” I shot back, my voice trembling. “You were in trouble, Damien. Claudia was in trouble. I couldn’t just sit here and wait!”
His eyes narrowed, his jaw tightening. “You don’t get it, do you?” he said, stepping closer. “This isn’t a game, Lisa. These people don’t play by the rules. You could’ve been killed.”
“And what about Claudia?” I countered, my voice rising. “She was out there trying to protect both of us! She doesn’t deserve to be locked up like some criminal!”
Damien’s expression darkened, his hands curling into fists at his sides. “She stole from me,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “She lied to me. Do you honestly think I’m going to let that slide?”
“Maybe she had a reason,” I said, my voice trembling but firm. “Maybe you should start asking yourself why the people closest to you feel the need to lie.”
The words hung in the air like a blade, sharp and unyielding. For a moment, I thought he might yell, might lash out. But instead, his shoulders slumped ever so slightly, and I saw something flicker in his eyes—a vulnerability I hadn’t seen before.
“You think I don’t ask myself that every day?” he said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper.
The shift in his tone caught me off guard. I stared at him, unsure of what to say, as he turned away and ran a hand through his hair.
“This life,” he said, his back to me, “it doesn’t leave room for trust. Not really. Everyone’s playing a game, and everyone has an angle. Even the people you think you can count on.”
His words were heavy, laced with a sadness that made my chest ache. For the first time, I saw the cracks in the armor he wore so carefully, the weight of the world he carried on his shoulders.
“You don’t have to do it alone,” I said softly.
He turned to face me, his eyes searching mine. For a moment, I thought he might let me in, might let me see the man behind the mask.
But then the moment passed, and the walls went back up. “This conversation is over,” he said, his voice firm. “Go to your room. Stay there.”
I didn’t move right away, my mind racing as I tried to make sense of what had just happened. But then the sharp ring of a phone shattered the silence, pulling us both back to the present.
Damien crossed the room, picking up the device from his desk. I saw his expression darken as he read the message on the screen, his jaw tightening.
“What is it?” I asked, my voice hesitant.
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he stared at the screen for a long moment, his grip on the phone so tight I thought it might shatter.
Finally, he looked up at me, his eyes filled with a mixture of anger and something else—something I couldn’t quite place.
“It’s from Victor,” he said, his voice cold.
I felt my stomach drop, dread pooling in my chest. “What does it say?”
Damien hesitated, his jaw clenching before he spoke.
“He’s demanding that I release Claudia,” he said. “In exchange for your safety.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut, my breath catching in my throat.
“What?” I whispered, my voice barely audible.
Damien’s gaze locked on mine, his expression unreadable. “He has people watching you,” he said. “If I don’t give him what he wants…”
He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to. The weight of his words was enough.
I felt the world tilt beneath me, the room spinning as the reality of the situation sank in.
Victor had me in his sights. And Damien—despite everything—was the only one who could protect me.