Chapter 244 CHAPTER 0244

Chapter 244 CHAPTER 0244
LAUREN'S POV

I stepped through the front door, shutting it quietly behind me, and the moment the driver caught sight of me already dressed to head out, he hurried toward the car like he usually did. He always moved fast whenever he noticed I was in a rush, almost as if he could sense it from the way I held my purse or walked. He reached for the back door immediately, ready to pull it open for me the way he always did, but today couldn’t be like every other day.

I couldn’t take my driver with me, Roman would call him the second he realized I wasn’t inside the house, and the driver would, without hesitation, tell him exactly where I was. Roman trusted him too much, and the driver respected Roman way too much not to answer. I didn’t need any of that today.

“Don’t worry, I’ll drive myself today,” I said quickly, stepping past him and heading toward the driver’s seat.

He blinked and straightened his back a little, confused by the sudden change in routine. “Are you sure, ma’am?”

“Yes,” I replied, not giving him room to question it again. I gently pulled the keys from his hand before he could speak any further.

Once I was in the car and the door shut behind me, that calm expression I forced on my face outside completely dropped. My heart was beating faster than normal, and the more I tried to slow it down, the more anxious I became. I didn’t have time to relax. I needed to drive fast and get out of the estate before Roman noticed I wasn’t in the room.

I turned on the car and immediately reversed out of the driveway, driving far faster than the driver ever would. He drove smoothly, almost too carefully sometimes, but right now I didn’t need to be careful, I needed to move.

As soon as I reached the estate gate and drove out, I checked my rearview mirror twice just to be sure no car was following behind. When I didn’t see anything suspicious, my nerves eased only a little.

But even with that small relief, my mind went straight back to what Roman said before walking into the bathroom.

He said he was going to tell me something.

Something painful.

Something I shouldn’t blame myself for.

Blame myself for what exactly? What could he possibly have to say that would make me blame myself? And why would it be painful?

Different possibilities flashed through my head but none of them made sense. Roman wasn’t the type to speak dramatically unless it was something serious… something he didn’t want to say but had no choice but to.

My phone beeped, snapping me out of my thoughts. I took a quick glance at the screen.

A missed call from Roman.

And a new message from Liz.

My phone had been on vibrate since my meeting earlier, so I didn’t even hear any of it come in.

“Where are you at now, you know I don’t have much time so hurry up, the place isn’t that far from the house,” Liz’s message read.

Her tone felt different — sharp, impatient, almost irritated. I didn’t understand why she was suddenly sounding like that when she was the one asking for my help. She could at least be a bit polite.

But I couldn’t reply. I was still driving, my eyes flickering between the road and my map.

And even with her rudeness, she wasn’t lying, the place really wasn’t far. I arrived at the address not long after, slowing the car just enough to double-check that I was on the correct street.

But the moment I stared out my windshield properly, I felt my stomach tighten.

The area didn’t look safe at all.

There were prostitutes standing on the roadside openly, barely even paying attention to who was watching. Groups of men stood in dark corners, smoking and staring around with eyes that felt too sharp, too observant. Most of them looked like they wouldn’t hesitate to rob someone if given the chance.

Was it even safe for me to carry five thousand dollars in cash into a neighborhood like this?

I swallowed slightly and texted Liz: “I am at the address.”

Her reply came immediately.

“Alright come to the creamy painted building opposite where you're parked, just tell the receptionist that you're going to room 208.”

My brows folded into a deeper frown.

So she was upstairs with the guy? She didn’t tell me anything about that. Who exactly was this man? And why would she be in a room with him at this hour, in a place like this?

I didn’t feel comfortable at all.

“Can't you come down and get the money, I need to get to the house as soon as possible and calm Roman down, because am sure he wasn’t happy that I went alone,” I replied.

Her response was almost instant again.

“I told you, this guy wouldn’t let me go anywhere, he wants me by his side so just come up with the money and forget about Roman, he would be fine.”

Forget about Roman?

That line alone made something twist inside me. Liz was never this dismissive about Roman before. She always respected him, always tried not to cross boundaries with him. But now she was acting like I should ignore him completely?

I let out a slow breath, trying to steady myself.

Something inside me kept screaming that this was a bad idea. Everything felt off, the tone of her messages, the address, the environment, the rushed instructions.

But still… I had already come this far. And I had done risky things before. Going to see Ethan had been a terrible idea, but I went anyway and nothing happened. So maybe I just needed to calm down and hope this turns out fine too.

I stepped out of the car and locked the doors. The moment I shut the door, several heads turned in my direction. The car I drove in was expensive for this street and I could instantly feel how much attention it drew.

I ignored the stares as best as I could and followed the directions Liz gave me.

Creamy building.

Room 208.

I entered the building and headed toward the elevator. The moment the doors opened on the floor of the rooms, noise rushed into my ears. Loud moans, from both men and women having sex, coming from multiple rooms. And from the sound of it, nobody cared how loud they were.

So this was the kind of place Liz was asking me to meet her in.

Why would she even come somewhere like this?

What kind of person was she dealing with?

I pushed those questions aside and stopped in front of room 208. I knocked lightly.

The door opened almost immediately, and Liz stood there, looking at me with a strange expression I couldn’t place right away.

I stepped into the room and my eyes moved around automatically.

The room was small, cramped even, but that wasn’t the problem.

Four shirtless men were inside.

Four.

My body stiffened.

“I thought you said it was just one guy,” I whispered sharply to Liz, my voice low but my eyes fixed on the men.

She didn’t answer right away. Instead, she shut the door behind me and slid the keys into her back pocket, her movement deliberate.

“What are you doing, you know I need to get back quickly,” I said, confusion already taking over my face.

“Oh you’re not going anywhere,” Liz said, a slow smirk forming on her lips.

The same smirk was on the faces of the men in the room.

And that was when my entire body went cold.