Chapter 109

CHAPTER 109

UNLOCKED

NARRATO’S POV

There was a thin line between fear and panic, and Julien Marceau was standing with a foot on that line.

Julien knew something was wrong the second Isabella bit the floor. For a few seconds, he just stared in disbelief, still believing she was acting up or maybe he was seeing things. But when she stayed unmoving for another ten seconds, he confirmed that he was indeed not imagining anything.

“Isabella?”

He was already kneeling beside her before the name fully left his mouth. Turning her slightly, he tapped her cheeks, his fingers clumsy with a panic he couldn't quite hide.

“Hey—hey baby, wake up.”

But no matter how hard he tapped or shook her, there was no reaction from her. His chest tightened as his head became heavier each growing second.

This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

It had been a stupid idea—he knew that now—but not this stupid. All he did was give her something just enough to loosen her up and get him the answers to the questions he's had since he stepped foot into the beach house. Not… whatever this was.

He swallowed hard, dragging a hand down his face and trying to calm his already wrecking nerves.

“Okay. Okay, think.”

That little pep talk didn't have the time to sit when he head footsteps padding the ground just in that same hallway. His head snapped to the door, his heart kicking hard against her ribs.

“Shit.”

Everything after that happened fast.

He slid one arm under her knees, the other behind her back, and lifted her up. She didn’t react at all, not even a soind. And that did something ugly to his gut that he didn’t have time to unpack.

He laid her on the bed, adjusting her like she’d just fallen asleep. It didn’t look right at first because she was too stiff and it was just too obvious. So he fixed it. Tilting her head, he pulled the duvet over her and tucked it enough in the right order.

The footsteps grew closer and closer by the second, adding to his panic.

Julien kicked off his shoes, climbed into the bed beside her, and barely had time to settle before the door opened.

“Isabella?”

Camille’s voice echoed throughout the walls of the room, soft and thick with sleep. Julien forced himself to relax into the mattress, turning his head like he’d just been lying there all along while trying not to wake her up.

“Hey.”

Camille stopped a few steps into the room, her eyes moving from Isabella to him before it settled.

“Julien?” Her brows pulled together. “What are you doing here?”

Letting out a controlled breath, he tried not to let his panic show on his face while not hesitating to give her a response.

“Do I need permission to be with my girlfriend? I know I fucked up recently, but she was cool with me being here.”

It came out a little sharper than intended, but it did the job. Camille blinked, clearly too tired to argue properly. Still, something in her expression shifted as she looked back at Isabella.

“She’s asleep?”

“Yeah,” he said. “She was just very tired before she fell asleep in my arms. Isn't that sweet?”

Camille didn't seem a bit impressed but his charm as she stepped closer to the bed, her frown deepening slightly.

“She’s still dressed.”

Damn.

Julien didn't think of that again and when the question landed, he felt it. That split second where his mind went blank and no excuse or smooth cover was ready.

Then an idea popped in his head and he instantly pulled on a concerned look on his face, nodding just slightly.

“I know right? She said she was cold.”

Camille stared at him for a few more seconds. Then she rolled her eyes, the tension easing just a little. “You could’ve just turned off the AC.”

She muttered something else under her breath that Julien didn't catch, but he couldn't be bothered by it.

“She was already half gone,” he said, nodding toward Isabella. “Didn’t feel like arguing with her.”

Camille huffed softly, like she didn’t fully buy it but didn’t care enough to push.

“I’m not here for that anyway,” she said, lifting the phone in her hand. “She forgot this in my room and it's been buzzing nonstop. It's what woke me up.”

Julien’s eyes flicked to it, his eyes holding something Camile didn't quite catch.

“Just drop it there.”

She walked over and placed it on the bedside table. The soft tap of it against the wood sounded louder than it should have whe for a few seconds she lingered, staring at Isabella.

Something about the stillness, maybe. Or the way she hadn’t moved once since she walked in. But whatever thought crossed Camille’s mind, she let it go.

“I’ll see her in the morning,” she murmured.

“Yeah.”

She glanced at Julien one last time, then turned and left, pulling the door shut behind her.

The room went quiet again.

Julien didn’t move immediately, he just listened, waiting for the sound of her footsteps to fade completely. For another door somewhere down the hall to close and confirm she was now back in her room.

Only then did he let out a breath.

His eyes shifted to Isabella, and she was still out. She was still breathing, but she still wasn't moving. A flicker of something uneasy passed through him again, but he pushed it down just as quickly.

Without having time to sit with it, his gaze slid to the bedside table. To the phone. For a second, he weighed his option. Then he reached for it.

He pressed the power button and the screen lit up at his touch. It was locked. Of course, he expected that.

Julien glanced at Isabella again, like she might suddenly wake up and catch him. But she didn't even stir and his jaw tightened slightly.

“Fine,” he muttered under his breath.

If she wasn’t going to tell him the truth…. He’d find it himself.