Stuck

Stuck

TRISTA’S POV

The adage “the city never truly sleeps” is kind of ridiculous . Even now, in the dead of
night, the distant hum of traffic and the occasional blaring of horns filled the air. But
nothing mattered to me at this moment. Not loud the noise of cars blaring, not the
freezing cold. Not even the way Chad’s presence still lingered, his words echoing in my
head.
I needed a plan.
I needed to stay ahead of Leonard.
And most importantly—I needed to win.
I kept on repeating it like some kind of occultic mantra.

I was still quite deep in thought when my phone vibrated in my purse, snapping me back
to reality. My fingers clenched around it, frustration from my earlier altercation with chad
painting my face as I glanced at the screen. It was an Unknown number.
A familiar unease curled in my stomach.
The first thing that came to my mind was “don’t pick”
. Then, against my better judgment,
I swiped to answer.
“You should be more careful, Trista.”

, that was the first sentence I heard, no Hi or hello.
Who the hell took everyone’s courtesy?
My breath hitched primarly The voice on the other end was smooth, calculated and
because I can’t seem to place a face to the voice.
Cold.
“You’ve got too many eyes on you already. Leonard isn’t the only one who got his eyes
on you.
My heart stopped beating for a minute, Who the hell was this?
Who is this? I demanded strictly, my voice sharp despite the way my throat had suddenly
gone dry from maybe fear?
The caller chuckled—a low, amused sound that made I could suddenly feel chills break
out in my skin.

“Does it matter? He said then the line went dead.
Something ran down my spine, unmistakably fear.
What the heaven’s name was that?
I turned around quickly, trying to scan my surroundings. The street was mostly empty,
only the occasional cars passing by. But still I couldn’t shake the eerie feeling creeping
up my spine.

I was being watched, and this wasn’t funny anymore.
I needed to get home. Now.
I practically bolted to my car, locking the doors the second I was inside. My mind was
racing wildly, my heart pounding against my chest. Was this Leonard’s doing? The
Leonard I lnew can’t be this petty Or was it someone else entirely?
Today is probably the worst day ever!
I had to leave here now.
I had barely driven two blocks when my phone rang again—but this time, it was a familiar
name flashing on the screen.

Chad.
I considered ignoring it due to the fact that I am trying to put myself together and also
figure out who called me moments ago,but something told me not to.
“What?” I snapped, gripping the wheel so tightly the leather kept on making tiny
squeaks.
I found someone who could help, he said.
At least he went straight to the point.
I frowned. Help with what exactly chad!
Keeping Leonard off your back. He replied.
Goodness.
I took a deep breath , forcing myself to focus on the road.
help, Chad. why won’t you listen? I had a very tiring day already.

“Well, you’re getting it anyway. I set up a meeting. Tomorrow morning. Be there”. He said
not paying any heed to what I was saying.
I hated how he always assumed control, as if he had any say in my life, I hated it so much
But a part of me—the part that feared Leonard uncovering the truth—which was infact
the bigger part knew I couldn’t afford to ignore this.
“Fine,
” I muttered. Where is the location?
“I’ll text you the details.” He said.
Then ended the call abruptly. Rude self conceited prick.
My phone buzzed, it was a message from Chad. The address.
I sighed deeply. Whatever the hell this was, I had a feeling I wouldn’t like it one bit

THE NEXT DAY

I arrived at the café we were supposed to meet up earlier than planned primarily because
I couldn’t sleep, yesterday’s in Incident kept on replaying like a broken record. If I was
going to be dragged into a Chad’s mess, I at least wanted to control how exactlyI walked
into it.
I didn’t have too wait long fortunately. The door swung open, and Chad stepped in
walking with his usual cocky arrogance. But he wasn’t alone.
A woman trailed slowly behind him, her expression quite unreadable, that’s wierd I
thought to myself. She was beautiful—strikingly so—with sharp blue eyes and perfectly
styled dark hair that looks like she put lot of effort to get that result, There was
something unnerving about her, something calculated in the way she carried herself, it
exuded grace and determination.

“This is Emily,” Chad introduced, gesturing towards her.
figured you could use someone trustworthy in your corner.”
“She’s been looking for a job. I..
And you couldn’t bother to say your greetings?
I raised a brow confused about his last statement.
You’re telling me you suddenly care about my business?
Chad smirked, sliding smoothly into the seat across from me.“
I care about keeping Leonard as far away from you as possible, I scoffed loudly in
disbelief.

Emily smiled, extending a hand drifting my attention from chad. It’s a pleasure to meet
you, Miss Lancaster.
I hesitated before taking it, thank you Emily I presume?
“Yes Miss Lancaster” she smoothly responded.
Emily has experience in business operations, Chad added.
“She’d be quite useful at your company”.
I studied her carefully. There was something… off. But I couldn’t pinpoint what exactly
was off about her.
Regardless, I still needed more people in my corner. Especially now.
“Fine,” I said trusting chad’s judgment. Welcome aboard miss Emily.

Emily’s smile widened, but something in her eyes made my stomach twist in a bit so
good way.
Her smile seemed so sinister.
I had no idea that I had just let in, but I’d like to trust chad’s judgment.
Later That Night
I sat in my office, drowning in paperwork that kept on pulling because of f my earlier
distractions with my personal life, I decided to work on them in order to distract myself
from the chaos closing in on me.
But the uneasy feeling from earlier hadn’t left at all.

I glanced at my phone, my fingers hesitating over Leonard’s name in my contacts.
A part of me wanted to call him. To end this twisted game before it spiraled further out of
control.
But I couldn’t, I just couldn’t.
Not yet.
A sudden sound made me freeze in my skin.
A soft click—barely audible, but distinct enough to send my pulse into overdrive, my
heart was beating so fast at this moment maybe because of the unknown calls I have
been getting recently.

Someone was in my office.
I didn’t move. Didn’t breathe, just say still like a fucking ice sculpture.
Then—a shadow shifted near the door.
My heart leaped into my throat.
Weapon, I needed a weapon.
Slowly, my fingers reached slowly for the letter opener on my desk, trying my possible
best not to alert the intruder of my plan to get a weapon.

Who’s there?” My voice was steady, but my grip tightened around the metal.
I was met Silence.
I stood up cautiously, every nerve in my body completely on edge.
Then—a low chuckle.
And I knew.
Dammit, Leonard, I hissed, whirling around so fast I could swear that I was going get a
concussion.

He stepped out of the shadows, his arms crossed, his expression unreadable.
Paranoid much?”he mused, only if he knew.
His gaze flicked to the letter opener in my hand.
You broke into my office,m I shot bac harshly.
I wanted to talk, he said smoothly, stepping closer, like that was a valid reason to break
into my damn office “And I figured… you wouldn’t exactly invite me in.
” he continued.

Well he was also damn right.
“You figured right,
” I muttered.
He leaned against my desk, watching me closely, it was like he was trying to see my soul
of something of that sort “Trista, I know you’re hiding something.”
I swallowed visibly hard.
His eyes locked onto mine, and for the first time in years, I saw something, something
dangerous lurking behind those eyes.
Determination.
Obsession.

Leonard wasn’t just chasing me anymore for the fun of it. He was hunting.
“I’ll give you one chance Again to redeem yourself,
” he said quietly.
now… or I’ll find it myself.”

“Tell me the truth
Why is he so relentless, a circus was literally going on in my head trying to come up with
something.
A sharp knock on the door made us both freeze.
Then a voice.
“Trista? It’s Emily. Can I come in?”
Leonard’s eyes flicked slowly towards the door, then back to me.

I had seconds to decide.
Let Emily in and risk her seeing Leonard here?
What would this whole encounter look like?
Or turn her away and raise suspicion in both hers and chad’s mind?
Either way, I knew one thing was certain—this was only the beginning of the approaching
storm.
And God help me because, I am not ready for what’s coming next.