CHAPTER SIXTY ONE

CHAPTER SIXTY ONE
Damon's expression fell, all traces of humor vanishing. He ran a hand through his hair. "How is everyone handling what happened with Tisha?"

Alicia's face crumpled slightly. She blinked back tears. "Not well. None of us are doing well. Tisha wasn't the warmest person—she kept to herself mostly—but she died protecting Alex. She sacrificed herself. That's not something any of us can just move past."

"I can't imagine," Damon said quietly. "I'm sorry you all had to witness that."

Alicia nodded, her throat working.

Damon's gaze drifted around the hospital corridor, and then something seemed to occur to him. His brow furrowed. "Where is James? I thought he'd be here with Alexandra."

Alicia went completely still. Her entire body tensed, and her eyes darted involuntarily toward Adrian, who was watching their conversation with sharp attention.

Damon caught the look immediately. His instincts flared, and his expression shifted to something more alert. "Alicia? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." The words came out too quickly, too forced. "He's fine. Sleeping."

"Sleeping where?" Damon pressed, taking a step closer. "If he's with Alexandra, why haven't I seen him? If he's at home, why isn't Alexandra with him? She wouldn't leave him alone, not after what happened today."

Alicia backed up slightly, her face betraying her internal struggle. "Damon, I really need to get back to Alex—"

"Alicia, please." Damon reached out and caught her arm gently, not restraining but pleading. "Something is wrong. I can see it on your face. Just tell me what's going on. Is James okay?"

Alicia looked torn, her features twisted with indecision. Her eyes welled up with tears. "He's—Damon, the thing is—"

"Alicia." Adrian's voice cut through the conversation as he approached them, his tone carrying clear authority and warning. "Don't."

Alicia turned to see him standing there, his expression hard, his eyes sending an unmistakable message: /This is not your information to share./

She looked back at Damon, then at Adrian again, clearly confused between what she thought was right and what she'd been asked to do.

"I'm sorry," she whispered to Damon, pulling her arm free from his loose grip. "I can't. It's not my place."

"Alicia, wait—" Damon started, but she was already backing away.

"You should leave, Mr. Hartley." Adrian positioned himself between them, his posture protective. "Alexandra needs space right now. Coming here was a mistake."

Damon gave Adrian a long, assessing look. Something passed between them—tension, challenge, understanding of some kind. Then Damon's eyes narrowed slightly. "Is something wrong?"

"That's not your concern," Adrian said evenly.

"Even if it involves my—" Damon stopped himself, but the implication hung in the air.

Adrian's expression didn't change. "Goodnight, Mr. Hartley."

Damon stood there for another moment, his jaw working, clearly debating whether to push further. Then, without another word, he turned and walked toward the hospital exit.

But his mind was racing. Something was very, very wrong with James. And he was going to find out what.

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"You were going to tell him, weren't you?"

Adrian's question came the moment Alexandra had retreated to Margaret's room. Through the window, they could see her curled up on the chair beside Margaret's bed, finally giving in to exhaustion.

Alicia turned to face him, her chin lifting defiantly. "And what if I was?"

"You had no right," Adrian said, his voice low and controlled.

"He's James's father," Alicia shot back. "He has every right to know his son is missing. How can you stand there and act like keeping him in the dark is the right thing to do?"

"Because it's not our decision to make!" Adrian's voice rose slightly before he caught himself, glancing toward Margaret's room and lowering it again. "It's Alexandra's decision. She's James's mother. If she wants to tell Damon, she will. But we don't get to make that choice for her."

"Even if telling him could help?" Alicia challenged. "Even if he has resources we don't? Even if he could bring James home?"

"You don't know that he could," Adrian argued. "You're just guessing. Hoping. But what you do know is that Alexandra is barely holding on right now. She's dealing with Tisha's death, with James being taken, with everything falling apart around her. And now Damon shows up calling her Sasha and dredging up everything from five years ago."

He stepped closer, his expression intense. "Can't you see she doesn't need more complications right now? She needs support. She needs people she can trust not to make decisions for her."

"I am trying to support her!" Alicia's voice cracked. "That's why I think we should tell Damon. Because you and I—" She paused, choosing her words carefully. "We can't give her what she really needs right now. Not the deep kind of protection and care she needs."

"And you think Damon can?" Adrian's laugh was bitter. "The man who left her at an altar? Who broke her so completely she had to change her entire identity just to function?"

"People change," Alicia said quietly. "And whether you want to admit it or not, he looked genuinely devastated just now. He looked like a man who's been living with regret for five years. Maybe he can help. Maybe he deserves the chance."

"Or maybe he'll make everything worse," Adrian countered. "Maybe he'll complicate things so badly that we'll never find James. Have you thought about that?"

Alicia fell silent for a moment. Then, more gently, "I know you care about her, Adrian."

Adrian's entire body went rigid. "This isn't about—"

"Yes, it is." Alicia's voice was soft now, almost sympathetic. "It's exactly about that. You're in love with her. I've known for a while."

Adrian's jaw tightened, but he didn't deny it.

"And I'm not judging you for it," Alicia continued. "I understand. Alex is incredible. She's strong and beautiful and she's been through hell. Of course you fell for her. But Adrian—" She paused, making sure he was really hearing her. "She doesn't love you back. Not the way you want her to."

"You don't know that," Adrian said, but his voice lacked conviction.

"I do know that." Alicia's expression was kind but firm. "Because she's still in love with Damon. She's in denial about it, fighting it with everything she has, but it's true. I see the way she looks at him when she thinks no one's watching. I see how affected she gets every time he's mentioned."

Adrian looked away, his hands clenching at his sides.

"Damon isn't going to give up," Alicia said gently. "He's going to keep pushing, keep trying. And eventually, Alex is going to stop fighting what she feels. So you need to protect yourself. You need to let go of whatever you're hoping for with her."

"I'm not hoping for anything," Adrian said, but the words sounded hollow.

"Yes, you are." Alicia reached out and touched his arm lightly. "And I'm sorry. I really am. But holding onto it is only going to hurt you more."

Adrian was silent for a long moment. Then he released a heavy breath and sank into a chair, his eyes drifting to Margaret's room where Alexandra slept.

Alicia sat down beside him, her own expression sad. She patted his shoulder once, then pulled out her phone.

She needed to hear Chris's voice. She needed something normal and good in the middle of all this chaos.

She scrolled to his number and hit the call. He answered on the first ring.

"Hey." His voice was warm, and just hearing it made her feel steadier.

"Hey," she said back, standing and moving into the hallway for privacy.

"How are you holding up?" Chris asked immediately. "Just got off work and was about to call. How's Alex doing?"

"She's... surviving. Barely." Alicia leaned against the wall. "She's asleep right now with Margaret. I think exhaustion finally won."

"And you? Are you taking care of yourself?"

"I'm trying." It wasn't a lie, exactly. "Chris, something happened today."

"What happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. But Damon came to the hospital."

The silence on the other end was telling.

"He what?" Chris finally said. "Why would he—how did he even know to come?"

"He saw the news about the explosion. About Tisha dying." Alicia's throat tightened at the memory. "He came to check on Alex.

"And finally spoke to her. Telling her he knew who she was. Called her Sasha, apologized for everything that happened five years ago, told her he'd been lied to. It was intense."

"How did Alex react?"

"She denied everything. Maintained her name is Alexandra Sterling and they were just business partners." Alicia closed her eyes. "But Chris, you should have seen her face. She was breaking apart. She just kept it together long enough to walk away."

"That's rough," Chris said quietly. "For both of them."

"Yeah." Alicia paused. "But there's something else. Something bigger."

"What is it?" She could hear the concern sharpening in his voice.

"It's about James. Chris, I need to tell you something, and you need to tell Damon."

"Okay," Chris said carefully. "What's going on with James?"

Alicia took a deep breath, bracing herself. "He was taken. Kidnapped. Three days ago now."

The sharp gasp on the other end of the line was immediate and visceral. "What?”