Chapter 225 Her replacement

Chapter 225 Her replacement
♡Leila♡

A minute passed.

Then two.

Then I heard a familiar sound through the bathroom door.

Cain’s ringtone.

Someone was calling him.

My breath hitched as I pressed my ear closer to the door, straining to listen. His voice dropped into a low murmur. I couldn’t make out the words. Just fragments, it was sharp and urgent.

Then fast footsteps, moving away.

“Cain, wait— What are you—” Jose’s fiancée's voice followed after him, but it was swallowed by the sound of the door shutting.

They were gone.

A shaky breath rushed out of my lungs.

I took my head from the door and opened my eyes.

At least… they didn’t do it.

At least I didn’t have to hear that.

It wasn’t my business anyway.

That shouldn’t affect me.

The main concern was about the plan, about my Tobias, and finding the truth, not about whatever… that was.

I pulled my hands away from the door slowly, my chest feeling strangely heavy.

I needed air, not this suffocating, perfume-filled, secret-soaked atmosphere. Real air.

I decided not to go after Cain.

I couldn’t, because I didn’t trust my voice not to break if I did.

So instead, I slipped out of the room quietly and made my way toward the staircase that led to the rooftop.

My mind spiralled as I move, questioning every decision I had made so far.

What was I even doing here?

In this world of masked lies, dangerous men, and half-truths?

In this world where nothing was ever simple.

I reached the rooftop and stepped out into the cool night breeze.

It hit my face instantly.

Cold, sharp, and refreshing. I needed just this.

I hugged my arms around myself.

Why did my chest hurt like that back at that room?

Why did it feel like something was squeezing my heart?

It had to be Tobias. It had to be grief.

It had to be all the things I never got to say to him.

It couldn’t be anything else. It couldn’t.

My thought paused as I saw a familiar figure.

Damn it. It was that other guy that I wanted to dance with me. Fernando.

He was standing near the railing, a cigarette between his fingers, smoke curling lazily into the night sky.

My heart dropped.

Nope. I can’t let him see me.

Instinctively, I turned around.

I was about to leave, but it was too late.

His gaze lifted, locked onto me.

A slow smile curved beneath his mask.

“Hey, Cain’s woman,” he called out. “Come on over. I’ve seen you already. No need to run.”

He chuckled lightly.

“The building’s too big for the both of us, don’t you think?”

I bit down on my lower lip.

Regret flooded me instantly.

Why didn’t I just follow Cain?

Why didn’t I just go back to the ballroom?

Why do I always make the wrong decisions?

Now I was standing alone on a rooftop… With one of his rival gang leaders.

My pulse raced.

My palms grew damp.

I straightened my back, forcing myself to breathe.

What was I supposed to do now?

Run?

Stay?

Smile?

Pretend I wasn’t terrified?

I had no idea.

“You really look prettier without the mask.”

Fernando’s voice drifted toward me, smooth and lazy, mixed with the faint smell of smoke.

My lips pressed into a thin line.

Oh God.

My mask.

That was why the air had hit my face so sharply when I stepped outside.

I had left it.

Inside the bathroom, inside that stupid room.

I froze.

He had seen my face completely and clearly.

My heart started racing.

What was I going to tell Cain?

That I had been careless enough to expose my identity in a room full of dangerous men?

That I had wandered off alone like an idiot and forgotten the one thing meant to protect my identity?

Guilt washed over me instantly.

But… wasn’t this his fault too?

If I hadn’t walked in on him almost doing something with another man’s fiancée, maybe my head wouldn’t have been so messed up.

Maybe I would have remembered.

Maybe I wouldn’t have been so distracted.

“I—”

My voice cracked.

The word died in my throat.

I dropped my gaze to the floor, suddenly finding the concrete very interesting.

“Look up.”

Fernando’s voice cut through my spiraling thoughts. Firm, not harsh, just… steady voice I should note.

Slowly, reluctantly, I lifted my head.

And that was when I noticed—

He had taken off his mask.

It dangled loosely between his fingers now.

“We’re even,” he said with a small smile. “You’ve seen my face too.”

I stared, like I… stared, because this was not what I had expected.

At all.

He wasn’t rough-looking or scarred, or intimidating in the usual mafia way.

He had soft, warm brown eyes that looked almost kind. Thick lashes. A straight nose. Full lips that curved easily into a charming smile.

His jawline was sharp but not harsh.

Clean, neat, and almost… gentle.

His dark hair was slightly tousled, like he’d run his fingers through it too many times. And his skin was smooth, unmarked.

He looked… Cute.

Hot and cute at the same time.

Like the kind of guy you’d expect to see in a romance movie.

Or standing in front of a church giving sermons.

Not running one of the most dangerous gangs in Manhattan.

I blinked.

Twice.

What the hell?

For a second, I honestly wondered if I had walked into the wrong building.

Was this really the Don of the Snipers?

This man looked more like a Catholic priest who volunteered at orphanages.

The mask really was doing all the work here.

So that was the trick.

They wore those terrifying masks to look ruthless and dangerous.

To hide the fact that underneath…

Some of them looked completely harmless.

And Fernando was the perfect example.

I had gotten it all wrong completely.

And that realization somehow made me even more nervous, because why do I feel like I can trust him?

“Want a smoke?”

Fernando held out a cigarette toward me, two fingers pinching it casually.

I shook my head immediately.

“No. Thank you. I don’t… um… smoke.”

He chuckled softly, like my answer amused him.

“Well, you’re missing out.”

He turned back to face the city, exhaling a thin line of smoke into the night.

Silence stretched between us for a beat.
Then he spoke again.

“So,” he said slowly, “what’s being Cain’s woman like?”

My brows knitted instantly.

I snapped my head toward him.

Cain’s woman?

Excuse me?

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

That was the second time he had called me that.

Like I didn’t have a name and I was some property with Cain’s tag on it.

“I am not ‘Cain’s woman,’” I said sharply, lifting my fingers to make air quotes. “Okay?”

“I’m—” I paused, biting my lip, hesitating.

My heart skipped.

I shouldn’t tell him who I really was.

That would be stupid, and reckless, and dangerous.

“I’m… his distant cousin.”

The lie slipped out weakly, even I didn’t believe it.

I looked away immediately, my face burning with regret.

Great, Leila.

Brilliant move.

Now you’ve opened a whole new line of questioning.

Because who wouldn’t be curious about Cain’s “distant cousin”?

“Distant cousin, huh?” Fernando murmured. “Didn’t know Cain had family. I thought he was adopted.”

My stomach dropped.

Oh God.

I groaned quietly.

This was going terribly.

“I mean— adopted distant cousin,” I rushed. “We… we just found out recently.”

My words were tumbling over each other now.

Lies on top of lies.

“I should go,” I added quickly. “Cain and the guys must be looking for me.”

Before I could embarrass myself further, I turned and started walking away.

Then—

“I actually thought you were Tatiana’s replacement. Poor girl.”

I froze.

My feet stopped moving. My back stiffened.

Replacement?

Tatiana?

Who the hell was Tatiana?

Mia had never mentioned any girl named Tatiana.

Replacement for what?

For who?

For… Cain?

My heart skipped in a very uncomfortable way.

I was tempted to turn around.

To ask, and demand answers.

But something stopped me.

This could be a trap.

A way to make me stay.

These men were clever and manipulative. Mia taught her that.

“Well, I’m not,” I said flatly, without turning around.

And I started walking again.

“Stop.”

His voice came from behind me.

Firm.

My chest tightened.

I forced myself to breathe.

Slowly, I turned around, pasting a tight smile on my face.

What now?

Was he going to threaten me?

Question me?

Should I pull out the gun?

“Y-yes?” I asked, my teeth clenched.

He glanced down lazily, then back up at me.

“Your baby toy is exposed,” he said casually. “You should fix it. We don’t want to scare the guests, do we?”

He smirked, taking another drag of his cigarette.

My eyes shot down instantly.

Oh shit.

He was right.

The mouth of the gun was peeking through the slit of my dress.

I hadn’t adjusted it properly after the bathroom.

Anyone could see it.

Panic rushed through me.

“Th-thank you,” I said quickly.

My fingers fumbled as I fixed the strap, hiding it properly this time.

Without waiting another second, I turned and hurried away.

I didn’t look back.

As soon as I reached the stairway, I slowed, pressing my hand against the wall.

“What the hell was that?” I whispered to myself.

My head was spinning.

This night was turning into a disaster.

I need to leave this place.

Now.

I started down the stairs, planning to find Cain.

But then a sharp, binding pain sliced across my back like fire.

“Ah—” The cry escaped me before I could stop it.

I tried to turn, and see what had hit me or grab onto something.

But it was too late.

Something slammed into me again.

Hard.

My balance broke.

The world tilted.

Spun.

And suddenly—

There was nothing beneath my feet.

My body collapsed onto the stairs.

Darkness rushed in.

And everything went silent.