My phone lay on the floor like a bomb I was too scared to touch.
The last message still glowed on the screen, taunting me:
Someone who knows him.
A chill crawled up my spine.
Knows who?
Lucian?
Kade?
My father?
My thoughts raced so fast they tangled.
I finally picked the phone up with shaking hands. My reflection in the black screen looked like someone I didn't recognize wide-eyed, terrified, and pulled into a world I never asked for.
I typed again.
What do you want from me?
The reply came instantly.
To keep you alive.
My throat tightened.
Alive?
Before I could respond, another message arrived:
If you ignore this, I won't warn you again.
My pulse jumped. I stared at the screen, waiting hoping for more, but the typing dots disappeared. Silence.
And then
Chat ended.
Just like that.
My trembling fingers hovered over the phone, too paralyzed to even breathe properly. The shadows in my room shifted as my mind replayed the night.
Lucian stepping into my space.
Kade dragging me onto his bike.
A stranger watching me through the dark.
I thought the forbidden part of my life was the men I was falling between.
I was wrong.
Something else someone else had already stepped into my story.
The next morning, I didn't wake up gently.
My phone exploded with missed calls one from Kade, three from my father, and then…
My breath caught.
One from Lucian.
Just seeing his name made my stomach twist.
It was ridiculous.
He had barely touched me. Barely said anything unnecessary.
But last night, when he looked at me like he was holding himself back from doing something reckless…
I felt it.
All of it.
And now I needed answers.
I got dressed quickly and headed downstairs. Dad's voice boomed before I even reached the kitchen.
"Where were you last night?"
I froze mid-step.
His eyes were sharp, jaw tight.
I wasn't used to seeing fear on my father's face… but this morning, it was there. Buried under anger, maybe but it was there.
Ijust stayed out late, I said. I texted Jane
I don't care what you told Jane. I care that you walked alone in the most dangerous part of town.
He stood up. And don't lie to me. Someone called me.
My blood turned cold.
Someone?
Who?
Who called you? I whispered.
He hesitated.
A strange hesitation.
Like the truth was something sharp he didn't want to put in my hands.
Nobody you need to know.
That was never a good answer.
Before I could push, Dad pointed to the door. We'll continue this later. Breakfast is on the counter.
He walked out like the conversation was closed.
But my skin crawled.
Someone called my father.
Someone who knew I was in danger.
Someone who
Stop thinking.
Stop spiraling.
I grabbed my bag and headed for the door.
That's when I saw it.
A black car parked across the street.
Tinted windows.
Soft engine.
Still.
Watching.
My chest tightened.
I stepped outside and the back window rolled down just an inch.
Enough for me to see those eyes.
Dark.
Sharp.
Unmistakable.
Lucian.
He didn't signal me over.
He didn't smile.
He didn't look away.
He simply waited.
My feet moved before my mind caught up.
He pushed the door open from inside. I slipped in, and the second the door shut, the air changed thickened tightened.
Lucian's gaze burned into me.
You didn't go straight home, he said, voice low and cold. I told you to.
I swallowed.
I had no idea you were still watching.
I wasn't.
His jaw clenched.
But someone else was.
My stomach flipped.
You know about the messages?
I know everything that happens around you.
The way he said it like it was a fact, not a confession sent a shiver through me.
He leaned slightly closer. Let me see your phone.
I hesitated, but his hand was already extended, palm steady, dominance quiet but unbreakable.
I placed the phone in his hand.
Lucian read every message slowly, his expression shifting from stone to ice to something darker something bordering on rage.
When he finally looked up, his voice was a whisper of danger.
Alina… who else saw you last night?
N-no one. Just you and
And Kade, he finished, voice tightening. Of course.
The jealousy wasn't loud.
It wasn't even obvious.
It was quiet.
Controlled.
Which meant it was worse.
You were following me? I asked.
No.
His voice dropped.
But I should have.
That admission felt heavier than anything else he had said.
He handed back my phone. His fingers brushed mine barely but that was enough to make my entire body react.
Lucian… I whispered, who sent those messages?
He stared at me for a long moment.
I don't know. But I intend to.
A chill swept through me.
He reached over and brushed a strand of hair away from my cheek. The touch was soft, but the command in it was sharp.
If someone is watching you because of me…
His voice dropped lower, more dangerous.
…I need to know why.
Because of you? I whispered. "What does that mean?
Lucian didn't answer.
Instead, he exhaled through his nose like he was fighting himself like part of him wanted to keep me close and the other part wanted to lock me away.
You shouldn't be involved with me.
His eyes went half-lidded, almost pained.
My world isn't safe. It was a mistake letting you walk into it.
I didn't walk, i whispered. You pulled me in.
Lucian's breath hitched barely, but I heard it.
He leaned closer.
Exactly, he said softly.
And I can't seem to stop.
My pulse skyrocketed.
His fingers brushed my chin, lifting it slightly gently, but with a dominance that made my breath catch.
For a split second, I thought he would kiss me.
I felt the possibility like heat wrapping around my ribs.
But then
His phone buzzed violently.
Lucian pulled back instantly, all softness erased. He checked the screen, his expression darkening.
What is it? I asked.
He didn't answer.
He just started the car.
We're going somewhere.
My heart pounded.
Where?
His knuckles tightened on the steering wheel.
To find out who's watching you.
My stomach twisted.
Lucian, I have school
Not today.
His voice brooked no argument.
You're not going anywhere I can't see you.
The car pulled into traffic, the city blurring past us.
Lucian, I said, breath shaking, you're scaring me.
He glanced at me, something raw flickering in his eyes.
Good, he whispered.
Maybe you'll finally understand the danger you're in.
A silence stretched between us tense, electric, terrifying.
We drove for several minutes before the tension broke.
Lucian? I whispered. Is this… because you care?
His grip tightened on the wheel.
He didn't answer.
But he didn't have to.
The way his jaw clenched…
The way he kept glancing at me like he needed to make sure I was still breathing…
The way he could barely sit still
It told me everything he wouldn't say.
You have no idea, he finally murmured.
No idea what you're doing to me.
My breath caught.
But before I could unravel those words, he pulled the car into a dim, abandoned industrial lot old warehouses, broken fences, shattered windows.
Why are we here?
Lucian shut the engine off.
Because this, he said quietly, "is where the message came from."
My blood froze.
He reached into his jacket, pulled out a small black device I didn't recognize, and handed it to me.
A tracker.
A real tracker.
It was stuck under your car, he said.
My… my car? I whispered.
Yes.
His voice sharpened.
They knew where you were. Every step. Every moment.
My heart slammed against my ribs.
Lucian… who would
Before I could finish, a shadow moved across the far warehouse roof.
Lucian's hand shot out, gripping my wrist, pulling me sharply against him.
Stay close, he murmured.
His tone made my knees weaken.
Protective.
Dominant.
Deadly.
The shadow paused watching.
My heart hammered so loudly I was sure whoever it was could hear it.
I'm calling the police, i whispered.
His reply was instant.
No, Why
Because the police can't touch whoever this is.
He stared into the dark, eyes sharp.
And because bringing the law into this will only make the person watching you… angrier.
Angrier?
My stomach twisted.
Lucian… who are they? Who would do this to me?
He looked at me, and for the first time since meeting him, I saw something close to fear in his eyes.
Not for himself.
For me.
Someone from my past, he said quietly.
Someone who shouldn't know your name.
I swallowed hard.
My entire world tilted.
Am I in danger because of you? I whispered.
He closed his eyes for a second.
Yes.
My breath broke.
But you're safer with me, he added, "than anywhere else.
A shout echoed across the lot distant, aggressive.
Lucian grabbed my hand, pulling me back toward the car.
Get in.
What's happening?
Right now? His voice dropped to a low growl.
We're leaving. And after that…
He opened the door, forcing me inside.
you're not going anywhere without me until I know exactly who's touching your shadow.
My heart thrashed.
Lucian got in beside me, engine roaring to life.
As the car peeled out of the lot, I looked at him jaw clenched, eyes burning, every muscle tense.
Whoever was watching me wasn't just a problem.
They were a threat.
And Lucian Hale?
He was ready to burn the world down to keep me out of their reach.