Chapter 65 SIGH

Chapter 65 SIGH
Aria's POV

My hand clamped over my belly when my baby kicked hard.

“Shh… please,” I mouthed silently, eyes squeezing shut.

My heart slammed so hard I was sure they could hear it.

The guard stepped closer.

Closer.

Then—

A loud alarm blared through the building.

Everyone froze.

“What the hell—?” one of the guards muttered.

“Perimeter breach,” another voice crackled over the comms.

Thorne cursed under his breath. “Of course it is.” He turned sharply. “All of you, with me. Now.”

“But the archives—”

“I said now,” Thorne snapped. “If someone’s down here, they’re not getting far.”

Their footsteps retreated fast, boots pounding up the stairs. The flashlight beams disappeared, leaving the basement in darkness again.

I didn’t move.

Not yet.

I counted silently. One… two… three…

Ten.

Twenty.

Thirty.

Only when the silence stayed did I finally suck in a shaky breath and push myself up. My legs trembled, and my back ached from crouching, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t.

“Okay… okay, we move,” I whispered, gripping my belly as another small kick rolled through me. “We’re getting out.”

I slipped out from behind the cabinet and moved as fast as I could toward the stairs. I kept expecting someone to grab me, to drag me back, to end this right there.

But no one came.

I reached the stairs and started climbing. Each step burned. My breathing turned uneven, but adrenaline pushed me forward.

“Just a little more,” I muttered.

By the time I reached the top, my legs felt like they might give out, but the hallway was empty. Completely empty. The alarm still echoed faintly, pulling everyone toward the perimeter.

Good.

That was my chance.

I moved through the corridors, one hand braced on the wall for balance, the other protectively on my belly. My heart still hadn’t slowed. Every corner I turned, I expected to run into Thorne.

Or worse—Marcus.

I quickened my pace as much as I could. My room was just ahead. Just a few more steps.

Almost there.

“Aria?”

I froze.

My breath caught as I slowly turned.

Caden stood a few feet away, stepping out from the side corridor. His eyes swept over me in one sharp glance, taking in everything—my dusty clothes, my uneven breathing, the tension in my body.

His expression darkened instantly.

“What were you doing?” he asked, voice low.

My mind scrambled. “I… I was just walking. I couldn’t sleep.”

His jaw tightened. He took a step closer, eyes narrowing. “Walking?” he repeated, almost flat. “In the middle of a perimeter breach?”

“I didn’t know about the breach,” I shot back quickly, forcing my voice steady. “I just needed air.”

He didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he stepped closer again, stopping right in front of me. I could feel the heat of him, the intensity in his stare.

“You were in the restricted areas,” he said quietly.

My stomach dropped. “No, I—”

“I can smell it,” he cut in, voice sharper now. “Archive dust. Old paper. Mold. It’s all over you.”

Damn it.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself not to back away yet. “I got lost.”

“Lost?” he echoed, disbelief clear in his tone. “You expect me to believe that?”

“It’s a big packhouse,” I snapped, trying to sound annoyed instead of terrified. 

His eyes searched mine, intense and unyielding. “You’re lying.”

My pulse spiked.

“You’re always lying to me,” he added, voice dropping even lower. “What are you hiding?”

I didn’t answer.

I couldn’t.

Because if I said anything wrong, if I slipped even a little, everything would fall apart.

His gaze flicked down briefly, and I saw it—the moment he noticed the way I held my coat slightly tighter.

His hand moved.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

Toward my pocket.

My breath hitched. I stepped back instinctively until my back hit the wall.

“Don’t,” I said, sharper than I intended.

He stilled, eyes snapping back to mine. “Then give me one good reason not to search you right now.”

The air between us went tight.

Heavy.

Dangerous.

My heart pounded so hard it hurt. My mind raced, scrambling for something—anything—that would stop him without exposing the truth.

Because if he found the evidence… if he saw what I had… I didn’t know what he would do.

And I couldn’t risk it.

“Because if you do,” I said, forcing each word out carefully, “your father wins.”

That made him pause.

Just a fraction.

But I saw it.

Confusion flickered across his face, followed by something darker. Something uncertain.

I pushed, stepping forward just enough to hold his gaze. “And deep down, you don’t want him to win. Do you?”

Silence.

His hand hovered mid-air, fingers tense.

For a second, I thought he would ignore me. That he would push past whatever doubt was in his head and search me anyway.

But then…

Slowly…

He lowered his hand.

The tension didn’t disappear, but something shifted. Something fragile.

His jaw clenched as he looked at me, like he was trying to see through me, trying to understand something he couldn’t quite grasp.

“Go to your room,” he said finally, voice tight.

I didn’t argue.

Didn’t hesitate.

I turned and walked—fast, as fast as I could manage without breaking into a run. My heart was still racing, my palms sweating, my whole body on edge.

I didn’t stop until I reached my door.

I slipped inside and locked it behind me, leaning back against the wood as I finally let out a shaky breath.

My hand moved to my belly instinctively.“We’re okay,” I whispered, even though my voice trembled. “We’re okay.”

But I knew that wasn’t true.

Not even close.