Chapter 54 Shattered Illusions
ANGELICA'S POV
Dread spread in my veins as I looked at his blue eyes.
It was amazing how the same blue eyes comforted me when I looked into Dylan's eyes.
“You have been hiding for quite some time. Don't you think it's time you return?” Jarvin asked me before he grabbed my hand, making my pupils dilate.
My mind finally snapped back, and the survival instinct returned in full flow as my body resisted his touch, more like repulsing his presence.
“Let go of me!” I screamed as loud as I could.
I prepared for this. I had trained for this, but even after all that training, I felt helpless when faced with this one man. It was as if he had some kind of leverage over my heart, which disgusted me.
He held me effortlessly while I tried to yank my hand free from his grip.
“I said, let me go!” I shouted again before taking the support of the wall and kicking backward, making both of us fall to the ground.
I twisted my body to free my hand, holding his neck in a chokehold under my elbow while his hand still gripped mine.
His men stepped forward, their hands resting on their weapons. I knew this was a bad move, but I felt it was the only way I could make a run of it.
I pulled my hand from his grip before pulling out my gun from the pocket and pointing at his throat.
“One wrong move from your men, and I will blow your brains out, Jarvin. If you know me so well, you should know I can do it,” I threatened.
Jarvin released my hand and motioned for his people to drop their weapons.
I looked around and ensured no one was threatening me anymore.
With my gun still pointed at Jarvin’s neck, I walked out of the alley, taking him all the while until we reached a clearing near a crowded space.
I gulped.
This was risky. I knew if Jarvin's men reacted, they wouldn't take a second to put me down, no matter the crowd. Rather than pushing it, I needed to run again.
“If I were you, I would stop following a girl who two dangerous men protect,” I said to Jarvin, who had a calm expression.
His expression looked like it held mockery, and I felt a creep up my neck.
“If I were you, I would warn those men because I, Jarvin Morocco, am obsessed with you, Angelica, and if I have to walk over a few dead bodies to get you….” Jarvin smirked as he leaned forward to look into my eyes.
“I'll do it. All for you,” he said every syllable, his voice like a carving etching into my soul. I stepped back, his dark gaze making me shudder.
“Run, little mouse. Run, because if I catch you this time, your little stunt won't help you,” he said, and I turned around.
“Boss, should we catch her?”
“Na, let her go. I will catch her again. This is thrilling. I'll let her run one last time,”
I heard Jarvin's loud voice as I ran toward the pack borders.
I know he said those words loudly so that I would hear and understand that no matter how much I ran or where I ran, I would end up with him.
Tears welled in my eyes as I kept running, my legs screaming for relaxation, but it was as if my heart couldn't allow my body to stop, not until we found those men who I knew would protect me.
Harris rushed to me as I reached the pack borders, panting heavily.
“Luna, what's wrong? Tiara called me and said you were nowhere to be found. You… Why do you look like this?” He asked me, concerned.
I shook my head, barely breathing, as I grabbed his hand to take support and protect my body from stumbling back.
“Alpha… I need to meet your alphas. Where are they? Please, this is urgent. He is coming for me. He will kill me this time. Please,” I nearly fell on my knees, but Harris held me in time.
Harris immediately ordered a few men to check the forests to ensure no one was following me.
“Luna, calm down. No one will harm you here. The alphas have already left and will be available in their office soon. You can wait–”
I didn't stop to hear the rest of his words.
I dashed straight to the office building of these alphas.
I needed their scent to calm me. I don't know if it was a mate thing that these wolves called it, but I needed to relax into their embrace. Only they could calm my heart.
I dialed my stepdad’s number as I reached the office.
The people in the office bowed to me, showing me the alphas' main cabin, and I nodded at them gratefully.
“Hey, pumpkin,” My stepdad called as soon as he picked up, and I gulped.
“D-dad,” I whispered, taking a deep breath.
“What happened?” His tone immediately turned serious, and I felt I was breaking down.
“H-he found me, Dad. He came here. When I was shopping inside the mall, it almost got me. I had the gun with me and made a run, but he said he would come for me again, and this time, he wouldn't let me run. I am scared, Dad,” I said.
I talked to my stepfather while pacing around the room, waiting for the alphas to return and looking at things to calm my mind.
I heard Ronaldo take a deep, shaky breath.
“Listen to me, baby. Nothing will happen to you. Not this time. You are under good care. I don't know much about your bosses, but they are good at protecting their people. Don't worry about anything –”
The rest of my stepfather's words were shunned in the background when I saw a file on the table with his name on it.
Yes. There was a file on Dylan and Ericson's table that had my father's complete name.
Ronaldo Foyer.
I opened the file, intrigued about what it was, my hand freezing in its place when I saw pictures of my stepfather, his business, and even some scribblings on the side, the scribblings that said how much the alphas hated my stepfather.
It was almost as if someone poured a bucket of cold water on me, making breathing even harder.
Everything blurred around me, and my entire focus was on the file now.
I remember Ericson asking me in the interview what kind of relationship I had with my stepfather and what type of business he ran.
My stepfather had always been intrigued by my bosses and was happy I worked for them.
But the way the alphas described him in the file, it seemed they harbored a deep hatred for my stepfather and …
I turned the pages quickly, my hand freezing on a particular photo. It was my photo with a red circle around it and an arrow pointing to me that said, “prime target to destroy Ronaldo.”
The ground seemed to slip from underneath my foot, and I fell to my knees.
“Dad…” I stopped Ronaldo from saying anything about Jarvin.
“Why do Dylan and Ericson hate you so much?” I asked.
Judging from the sharp inhale of breath from the other side, it was clear that my stepfather knew about what was happening, too.
“Listen, Angelica. You don't know the–”
I ended the call before turning my phone off.
My head buzzed with all the thoughts. What was true or false anymore? Their affection, care, love, and all that mate stuff, was it a cooked-up lie to keep me here and use me as bait to target my stepfather?
My heart drummed against my chest, and I stood to see if I could find a clue—a clue that this was in the past and just a joke or a plot. But my heart thumped at the last image I saw.
“That bastard Ronaldo killed Felicia. I will avenge it,”
It was Dylan's handwriting.
His smile suddenly looked fake, and I stumbled back.
Who was this Felicia?
Could it be that they wanted to kill me to avenge that? They kept mentioning a ritual that they couldn't tell me about either.
I walked back before exiting the office, my heart pounding in my ears as I passed by all the concerned voices and faces.
Should I wait for them to explain everything? But what if that triggers their intentions, and they attack me? I need to get out of here.
Everything was an illusion. These people wouldn't protect me; rather, they wanted to hurt me, too.
Before shaking my head, I looked at all the people who laughed at me and supported me earlier. Everything was fake—it had always been bogus.
Everything was a lie.