Chapter 144 The Shadow That Follows

Chapter 144 The Shadow That Follows

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY FOUR

Valenticia’s POV

The weight in my chest refused to ease no matter how many times I tried to steady my breathing.

Walking out of the police station felt harder than walking in.

I didn’t look back as I stepped through the doors, but the image stayed in my mind anyway.

Stefan sitting across from me in the  cold room. The way his voice sounded when he spoke. And the way he looked at me.

I reached my car and paused for a second before opening the door.

Something about seeing him like that had unsettled me more than I expected.

I told myself it shouldn’t.

So much had happened between us. Too much damage. Too many mistakes.

But none of that erased everything.

A part of me still cared.

That was the truth I couldn’t ignore.

I got into the car and shut the door, letting the silence settle around me.

My hands rested on the steering wheel, but I didn’t start the engine immediately.

His words replayed in my head.

“Do you feel safe with him?”

I had said yes.

And I meant it.

Didn’t I?

I exhaled slowly and shook my head.

Stefan had always been like that. Intense. Suspicious. Emotional.

Of course he would say something like that.

Of course he would try to make me doubt Lucas.

“It’s just jealousy,” I muttered under my breath. That had to be it. There was no reason to think otherwise.

Lucas had helped me.

Everything he promised had happened exactly as he said. He had never threatened me. Never forced me.

Still…

The thought didn’t sit as firmly as I wanted it to. Something about the way Stefan said it lingered. I pushed the feeling aside and started the car.

The drive home began quietly.

The city moved around me like it always did. Cars passed. Traffic lights changed. People crossed the streets without paying attention to anything beyond their own lives.

I focused on the road, trying to clear my mind.

But it didn’t take long before something else caught my attention.

A black car.

At first, it meant nothing. Just another car on the road. I turned left at the next intersection.

A few seconds later, I noticed it again. Behind me. I frowned slightly but kept driving.

“It’s nothing,” I told myself.

There were dozens of cars on the road. It didn’t mean anything. I turned again. This time to the right.

My fingers tightened slightly on the steering wheel as I checked the mirror.

The same car followed and a  small knot formed in my chest.

“Okay…”

I kept my expression calm, but my eyes stayed on the mirror longer this time.

Maybe it was just heading the same way.

That happened all the time.

I turned again into another street, corner and street.  Still,  the car followed.

My heart began to beat faster.

“That’s not a coincidence,” I whispered.

I swallowed slowly and forced myself to stay calm. Panicking wouldn’t help.

I adjusted my grip on the wheel and kept driving, my eyes moving between the road and the mirror. The car stayed at a distance.

Not too close.

But always there.

I took a deeper breath and made another turn, this time toward a busier part of the city.

If something was wrong, this was the safest place to be.

Traffic slowed as I reached a crowded street. LCars lined up in front of me, and I eased my foot on the brake. My heart was still racing.

I checked the mirror again.

The black car was still there. For a moment, nothing happened. Then suddenly, it moved.

The car pulled out of the lane, drove past me, and continued straight ahead.

I watched it carefully. It didn’t slow down. Didn’t turn. Didn’t stop. It just kept going.

And then it was gone.

I stared at the road ahead for a few seconds before letting out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

“That was nothing,” I said quietly

It had to be. Just a coincidence. I stayed where I was until the traffic began moving again, then continued driving home.

But the uneasy feeling didn’t fully disappear.

By the time I reached the house, the sky had already started to darken.

I slowed the car as I approached the gate. And then I noticed something else.

There were more guards.

I frowned immediately.

Two additional men stood near the entrance, dressed in black suits. Their posture was straight, alert.

They hadn’t been there before.

I parked the car and stepped out, my eyes moving between them. One of the guards approached me quickly.

“Miss Dykstra,” he said respectfully.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“Security has been increased,” he replied.

“By who?”

Before he could answer, my phone rang. I glanced at the screen.

Lucas.

I answered immediately.

“Hello?”

“Valenticia,” his voice came through, calm as always.

“I just got home,” I said. “Why are there more guards here?”

“I arranged it,” he replied.

My brows pulled together slightly.

“When?” I asked.

“After the incident with Stefan,” he said. “It was necessary.”

I looked toward the gate again.

The guards stood in position, watching everything carefully.

“You didn’t think to tell me?” I asked.

“It was handled quickly,” he said. “Your safety comes first.”

I stayed quiet for a moment. Part of me understood.

After everything that happened, increasing security made sense. But another part of me felt… uncomfortable.

Everything around me seemed to shift so easily whenever Lucas made a decision.

“I’m fine,” I said.

“I know,” he replied. “But I don’t take risks.”

His tone didn’t change.

“Just rest tonight,” he added. “I’ll handle everything else.”m

The call ended shortly after. I lowered the phone slowly. My thoughts were mixed with gratitude and unease. 

Both sitting side by side.

I turned and walked into the house. The silence inside felt heavier than usual.

Later that night, I stood in my bedroom getting ready to sleep.

I had changed into something comfortable, my hair loosely tied back. The room was quiet, and for the first time all day, I allowed myself to sit down on the bed.

My body felt exhausted. But my mind refused to settle as everything kept circling.

I reached for my phone, planning to set it aside for the night. But before I could, the screen lit up with a  message from an unknown number.

My brows pulled together slightly as I opened it. There was only one sentence.

Be careful who you trust.

My breath caught. 

“What…?”

I stared at the screen, my heart starting to pound. A strange feeling spread through my chest. Before I could think, another message came in.

This time, it wasn’t just words.

It was a photo.

My fingers tightened around the phone as I opened it. The image loaded slowly. And when it did… everything inside me froze.

It was me.

Walking out of the police station earlier that day.

The angle.

The distance.

It wasn’t taken by the media. This was different. My heart began to race harder.

Someone had been there, watching and following  me. My hands trembled slightly as I stared at the screen.

The room suddenly felt colder as the message echoed in my mind again.

Be careful who you trust.

I didn’t move.

I just stared at the phone in shock.

And for the first time since all of this began, I realized the danger around me was far from over.