Chapter 36

Chapter 36


Hope stood up from her bed and grabbed her coat. She opened her drawer and pulled out a gun from it. Her heart beat faster as her gaze landed on the door, searching for prying eyes. She wiped off the dirt on the gun and held it as if she was about to shoot at something. This little gun in her hand was given to her by one of her friends a few years ago. Though, she had been warned not to toy around with the gun or even reveal it, but today she had no other thing to use as protection except it.

" You won't use it. It's just for protection," A voice at the back of her head reared. She heaved a deep sigh and shoved the gun in between her abdomen.

Hope clutched her coat tightly around her, her breath misting in the cold air. The city lights grew dimmer the farther she walked from civilization. Her steps slowed as the buildings turned to warehouses and industrial sheds.

She stopped in front of a tall, rust-streaked warehouse with cracked glass windows and a dented steel door. This was the address. Her pulse beat violently in her throat.

Her phone buzzed again.

Unknown Number.

With trembling fingers, she answered.

“I’m here,” she said, voice small but steady.

The same calm voice replied, “Are you alone?”

Hope hesitated, eyes scanning the shadows.

“Yes,” she lied.

“Don’t test me, Hope Alejandra. If you bring anyone else into this, you both die.”

The call ended.

Hope exhaled slowly, forcing her trembling legs forward. Her fingers grazed the handle of the door, cold like ice. She pushed it open.

The warehouse was dimly lit, bare bulbs hanging from cords like nooses, casting elongated shadows that danced along the cracked concrete floor. A single table sat in the center, surrounded by empty crates. And leaning against one of the crates was a tall, lean man in a black coat.

He turned at the sound of the door.

“Hope,” he said, his voice the same as on the phone; low, calm, a bit too smooth. “I wasn’t sure you’d come.”

“Who are you?” she asked.

He stepped into the light. His features were sharp, cheekbones like blades, dark eyes with a glint of something untrustworthy, and a scar slashing across his chin.

“Name’s Elijah,” he said. “I used to be Georgiana’s… friend.”

Hope’s brow knit. “Friend?”

His smile didn’t reach his eyes. “More like a partner. In crime. Secrets. Take your pick. We were a dangerous pair—until she decided she no longer needed me.”

Hope narrowed her eyes. “Why are you helping me?”

He shrugged, beginning to pace slowly around her. “Call it revenge. Georgiana crossed me, and people like me don’t forgive that easily.”

“You’re risking your life to help me out of spite?”

He laughed bitterly. "Partly. But also because I know the monster you’re up against. Georgiana isn’t just cruel. She’s calculated. She destroys people from the inside out, slowly, beautifully. You’re not her first game, Hope. But you could be her last.”

Hope held his gaze. “Still doesn’t explain why you’re helping me.”

There was a pause.

Elijah tilted his head, the grin returning. “You’ll know… eventually. Let’s just say your story is more connected to mine than you realize. Don’t be scared, Hope. I’m not your enemy.”

Hope's gut twisted. Something about him felt off. Too rehearsed. Too smooth. But there was something else too truth. A bitter truth that whispered through his words.

Before she could ask for more, the door suddenly banged open behind her.

“Noah?” she turned with wide eyes.

He stood there, chest heaving, eyes wild, his coat flung open. “Hope, don’t trust him! He’s—”

BANG!

The sound split the air like a thunderclap.

Hope screamed as Noah stumbled back, a crimson bloom spreading across his shirt. He crashed to the ground, blood pooling beneath him.

“Noah!” she shrieked, dropping to her knees beside him.

Elijah cursed, already backing away. “He wasn’t supposed to be here!”

“You shot him!” Hope screamed, tears already spilling down her cheeks. “You said I was safe!”

“He followed you. That changes things!” Elijah hissed, already running toward the side door. “Don’t worry. He’ll live. Probably.”

And just like that—he vanished into the shadows.

Hope’s heart thudded violently as she cradled Noah’s head in her lap, pressing her hands over the wound in his abdomen. “No, no, no… Stay with me!”

Noah coughed, blood staining his lips. “I told… you not to trust him…”

“Shh,” she sobbed. “You shouldn’t have followed me.”

His hand found hers, weak but warm. “Couldn’t let you face it alone.”

Hope fumbled for her phone with blood-slicked fingers and dialed emergency services.

“Please!” she screamed into the speaker. “He’s been shot! Send an ambulance to the North District warehouse, please! Please hurry!”

She dropped the phone and returned to Noah, pressing harder on the wound. “Stay with me. Stay with me, please, Noah.”

His eyes fluttered, struggling to stay open. “I’m not… leaving you. Not again…”

Hope bent down, her forehead resting against his. “You can’t die, Noah. You hear me? You can’t.”

The sirens were distant but growing louder.

Hope could barely breathe as she pressed her hands harder against Noah’s wound. Her palms were slick with his blood, the sticky warmth seeping into her sleeves. Every second felt like it was slipping through her fingers.

“Noah,” she whispered again, her voice cracking. “Stay with me. Just hold on a little longer.”

He blinked slowly, his breaths shallow and ragged. “You’re... shaking.”

“I’m terrified,” she choked, brushing his hair back with trembling fingers. “But I’m here. And I’m not leaving you.”

He gave the ghost smile, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. “Typical... stubborn Hope.”