Chapter 125 Setting the trap

Chapter 125 Setting the trap
Chapter 125

RAVENNA

"Die! Just die, you monster!" I screamed, my hands wrapped around someone's throat.

I slapped and hit blindly, my eyes still squeezed shut. The nightmare was still so vivid. Those men. Their hands on Samantha. The way they had tried to hurt us.

"Ravenna, stop!" A voice broke through the fog. "Wake up! You are going to hurt Darius!"

Darius?

I froze. My eyes flew open.

Below me, on the floor, Darius lay gasping for air. His face was bright red. His eyes were wide with shock and what looked like genuine fear.

I looked up and found Dorian standing beside us, his hands on my shoulders.

"What—" I started.

"What's wrong with you?" Dorian asked quickly.

Horror washed over me. I scrambled backwards off of Darius. "I am so sorry. I did not mean to... I was having a nightmare and when I felt someone grab my hand, I just attacked blindly. I thought—"

Darius croaked, sitting up and rubbing his throat. "Just give a man some warning next time before you try to strangle him."

I looked around properly for the first time and realised I was in their room. In Darius's room specifically, judging by the bed I had just been lying in.

I stood up quickly. "What is going on? How did I get here?"

"What do you mean what is going on here? I should be asking you that question," Darius fired back, still massaging his neck. "Attacking people whilst you're sleep is not normal behaviour."

I sighed and sat back down on the edge of the bed. My whole body ached. Every movement sent pain shooting through my muscles.

Dorian moved closer, his expression gentle. "Are you alright, Ravenna? Really?"

"Yes," I managed. "I think so."

Then a thought struck me like lightning. "Where is Samantha?"

"She is right there," Dorian pointed across the room.

I followed his gesture and saw Samantha lying on Dorian's bed, still unconscious but looking peaceful.

I rushed over to her as fast as my injured body would allow and grabbed her hand. I cupped her face gently, checking for signs that she was waking up.

"She is still unconscious," Dorian came to stand beside me. "But she will be waking up soon. Her wounds are healing already. She just needs rest."

I nodded, relief flooding through me.

"How did you find us?" I turned to look at Darius, who had finally stood up from the floor.

They exchanged a quick glance, then Darius explained. "We were at the party. I felt... something was wrong. We went looking for you and found you both collapsed at the bottom of the stairs. We brought you back here and treated your wounds."

"The men who attacked us—"

"We found them," Darius cut me off, his voice cold.

Rage flooded through me at the memory. Those bastards. What they had tried to do to Samantha. What they would have done to both of us if I had not fought back.

I started towards the door. "I need to—"

The world tilted sideways suddenly. My legs gave out completely.

Strong arms caught me before I hit the floor.

"Oh my goodness, I just realized I am your knight in shining armour," Darius sing-songed, a hint of his usual arrogance creeping back into his voice.

I scoffed and pushed out of his arms. "I do not need a knight."

I stood up again, determined to make it to the door this time. I took one step. Two steps.

Then I fell again.

And Darius caught me again.

I groaned in frustration.

"Where exactly are you trying to go?" Dorian asked, moving to help support me from the other side.

"To deal with those motherfuckers who attacked us."

"We already told you," Darius replied. "We found and dealt with them. They are not going to be walking properly for weeks."

I looked between them, confusion mixing with the anger and pain. "Why did you save us? Why did you treat our wounds and deal with those men? Why go through all this trouble?"

Darius and Dorian exchanged another glance. This one lasted longer. Some unspoken conversation seemed to pass between them.

But neither of them answered my question.

"Why?" I pressed. "What is going on—"

A groan interrupted me.

"Raven?"

I spun around. "Sam!"

Samantha was sitting up in bed, looking confused and disoriented but awake. I rushed over to her and threw my arms around her carefully, mindful of her injuries.

"You are awake," I breathed. "Thank God you are awake."

"What happened?" Samantha looked around the room and spotted Darius and Dorian. "Did you two save us?"

"Yes," Dorian answered quietly.

Samantha groaned and leaned back against the headboard. "Great. Now I am going to be indebted to you both."

Despite everything, both boys chuckled.

"Consider it a favour between friends," Dorian offered.

"We are friends now?" Samantha raised an eyebrow.

"We aren't."

The boys insisted on making breakfast for us. They refused to let either of us move from the beds.

"You both need to rest," Darius ordered, pointing at me when I tried to get up. "Sit down and stay there."

"I am fine—"

"Sit. Down."

I sat.

They brought us plates of toast, eggs, and bacon. When we tried to feed ourselves, they took the forks away.

"We will feed you," Dorian announced.

"That is ridiculous," Samantha protested. "We can feed ourselves."

"Clearly you cannot," Darius replied, holding a forkful of eggs up to my mouth. "You can barely sit up straight. Now open."

I glared at him but opened my mouth.

We ate in awkward silence, being fed like children by two Alpha heirs who refused to take no for an answer. Except one was just the Alpha heir.

When we finally finished, I pushed the plate away. "Thank you for saving us and treating our wounds and dealing with those men."

"And for feeding us like babies," Samantha added with a small smile.

"Any time," Dorian replied seriously.

Samantha and I stood up slowly, testing our legs. Everything hurt, but we could walk.

We made our way to the door. I had my hand on the handle when Darius's voice stopped me.

"You are forgetting something."

I turned around. "What?"

He held up my phone. "You left this at the club."

Relief washed over me. I had thought it was lost forever. I walked back and took it from him. "Thank you."

Our fingers brushed as I grabbed the phone. Something sparked between us. Something I did not want to acknowledge.

I pulled my hand away quickly and headed for the door again.

Back in our own room, I helped Samantha into bed and made sure she was comfortable.

"Get some sleep," I told her. "You need to heal."

"Where are you going?" she asked, already looking drowsy.

"I have something I need to do. I will be back soon."

She was asleep before I even left the room.

I pulled out my phone and checked my messages. Several were from Caleb. I hissed out loud and ignored them all.

Where had he been last night when we needed him? When Samantha was being dragged away and I was fighting for both our lives, where was my supposed boyfriend?

But that was not important right now. I had other things to focus on.

I opened Selene's account to find a new message.

Royal Gardens Hotel. Room 614. Tomorrow at 8 PM. Can't wait to see you, my love.

Tomorrow. That meant today now, since it was already morning.

I had less than twelve hours to prepare.

First stop was an electronics shop near campus. I walked in and headed straight to the camera section.

"Can I help you?" A sales assistant approached me.

"I need a small camera," I replied. "Something that can record for several hours. It should be wireless and with a phone connection."

"We have several models that might work." He led me to a display. "This one is popular. It connects to your phone via an app and can record for up to six hours on a single charge."

"Perfect. I will take it."

I paid quickly and left, the camera safely tucked in my bag.

Next stop was the Royal Gardens Hotel.

The hotel was exactly as expensive-looking as the name suggested. It has marble floors, crystal chandeliers and staff in crisp uniforms.

I walked in trying to look confident and like I belonged there. I found a seat in the restaurant area and ordered a sandwich and tea.

Whilst I waited, I studied the layout from a map at the hotel entry. The lifts were in clear view of the front desk. The stairs were marked with exit signs. Security cameras covered most of the main areas.

Getting to the sixth floor without being noticed was going to be tricky.

My food arrived and I ate slowly, planning my approach.

I finished eating and stood up. "I need to use the toilet," I told a passing waiter.

He pointed me in the right direction.

I walked towards the toilets but veered off at the last second and slipped through an emergency exit door instead.

I saw a stairwell next. Perfect.

I pulled my hoodie up over my head and started climbing. My body protested every step, still sore from last night's fight, but I pushed through the pain.

I climbed through fourth floor but found nothing. Next was fifth floor. And then I headed to ixth floor.

I pushed open the door carefully and peeked out. The corridor was empty.

I stepped out and started walking, keeping my head down and my hood up. I passed doors numbered 601, 603, 605.

There. Room 614.

I pulled out my lock-picking kit.

It took me less than thirty seconds to unlock the door.

I slipped inside and closed it behind me quickly.

The room was nice. Not extravagant, but comfortable. A large bed dominated the space. A small sitting area with two chairs. A bathroom through a door to the left.

I pulled out the camera and studied the room, looking for the best hiding spot.

The bedside table had a vase with fake flowers in it. Perfect.

I carefully positioned the camera amongst the flowers, angling it towards the bed. Then I connected it to my phone through the app and tested it.

The image was clear. The angle was good. It would capture everything that happened on that bed.

I set the camera to standby mode. Tomorrow, when Selene and her mystery boyfriend arrived, I would activate it remotely from my phone. It would record everything.

And then I would decide exactly what to do with that recording.