Chapter Four: Running From the Ruins
1076 Words
“Find her.”
Damien Ashford’s voice was cold enough to silence the entire executive floor.
His assistant, Oliver, straightened nervously. “Sir?”
Damien loosened his tie impatiently as he strode into his office, the city skyline glowing behind him through the massive glass windows.
“The woman from Noir,” he said flatly. “Find her.”
Oliver blinked once.
That alone was shocking.
Damien Ashford never chased women.
Women chased him.
“Do you have her full name?” Oliver asked carefully.
“No.”
“A phone number?”
“No.”
Oliver hesitated. “Anything useful at all, sir?”
Damien’s jaw tightened.
He remembered her soft skin beneath his hands. The sadness hidden behind her eyes. The way she looked at him like she wanted to destroy herself for one night.
And somehow, he couldn’t stop thinking about her.
“She has dark hair,” Damien muttered irritably.
Oliver looked helpless.
Damien cursed under his breath.
He sounded insane.
The hacking crisis at Ashford Group should have been his priority right now, yet all morning his mind kept drifting back to Charlotte.
The woman who vanished before sunrise.
The woman who left him wanting more.
“She was at Noir two nights ago,” Damien finally added. “Check the VIP guest list. Security footage. Anything.”
Oliver nodded quickly. “I’ll handle it immediately.”
But three hours later…
Nothing.
No name. No records. No reservation.
It was as if Charlotte had disappeared into thin air.
Damien stared darkly at the report on his desk.
For the first time in years, something felt completely out of his control.
And he hated it.
—
Meanwhile…
Charlotte’s life was falling apart even faster.
“You can’t hide here forever.”
Ethan’s furious voice echoed through Zara’s mansion the moment the front door opened.
Charlotte immediately stiffened from the couch.
Zara crossed her arms angrily. “You weren’t invited.”
Ethan ignored her completely, his eyes locked on Charlotte.
He looked exhausted.
Desperate.
But Charlotte felt nothing now except anger.
“What do you want?” she asked coldly.
Ethan stepped closer. “To fix this.”
Charlotte laughed bitterly.
“You slept with my sister for six months.”
“And I said I was sorry!”
“You’re only sorry because you got caught.”
Pain flashed across Ethan’s face.
“Charlotte, please…”
“No.” Her voice cracked slightly. “You don’t get to destroy me and then beg for forgiveness when things become inconvenient.”
Ethan’s expression slowly hardened.
“Fine.”
The sudden coldness in his tone made Zara frown instantly.
“If you want to play this game,” Ethan continued quietly, “then understand there’ll be consequences.”
Charlotte stared at him.
“What does that mean?”
Ethan shoved his hands into his pockets. “My father is furious about this scandal. If we break off the engagement publicly, he’ll pull every business contract connected to your family.”
Charlotte’s stomach dropped.
“No…”
“Yes.” Ethan looked frustrated now. “Your father already knows.”
A horrible feeling crawled into Charlotte’s chest.
Almost immediately, her phone began ringing.
Her father.
Charlotte answered slowly.
The second she placed the phone against her ear, his furious voice exploded through the line.
“What the hell are you doing?!”
Charlotte flinched.
“Dad—”
“Do you realize what this scandal could cost us?”
Tears burned her eyes instantly.
Not once had he asked if she was okay.
Not once.
“He cheated on me with Vanessa,” she whispered painfully.
“And you’re acting like a child!” her father snapped. “Marriage requires sacrifice!”
Charlotte felt sick.
“You want me to marry him after this?”
“If that’s what protects this family, then yes.”
The words shattered something inside her completely.
Charlotte slowly looked up at Ethan standing in front of her.
He knew.
He knew her family would pressure her.
And he still came here to threaten her with it.
“You really are disgusting,” she whispered.
Ethan sighed heavily. “Charlotte, I’m trying to save both our families.”
“No,” she said softly, tears slipping down her cheeks. “You’re trying to save yourself.”
Her father’s voice thundered through the phone again.
“You will come home immediately and fix this situation!”
Charlotte’s hands trembled violently.
For years she had done everything to make her family proud.
Everything.
And still…
They chose money over her.
Business over her pain.
Charlotte ended the call slowly.
Silence filled the room.
Then her mother called.
Then her father again.
Then Vanessa.
Charlotte switched off her phone completely.
The room suddenly felt too small.
Too suffocating.
Zara moved closer carefully. “Charlotte…”
Charlotte broke.
A sob escaped her chest as she covered her face with trembling hands.
“They don’t care about me,” she cried brokenly. “None of them care.”
Zara immediately hugged her tightly.
And for the first time since everything happened…
Charlotte allowed herself to fall apart completely.
—
Later that night, Charlotte stood alone on the balcony outside Zara’s room, staring blankly at the city lights.
Everything she once loved had become poison.
Her family. Her relationship. Her home.
Nothing felt safe anymore.
Then suddenly…
A thought entered her mind.
Leave.
Charlotte’s breath caught.
Maybe the only way to survive this pain… was to escape all of it.
Start over somewhere nobody knew her.
No Ethan. No Vanessa. No judgment.
Just freedom.
Behind her, Zara stepped quietly onto the balcony.
“You’re thinking about leaving the country, aren’t you?”
Charlotte turned slowly.
Tears filled her eyes again.
“I can’t stay here anymore.”
Zara stared at her for a long moment.
Then quietly said—
“If you go… I’m coming with you.”
Charlotte’s lips parted in shock.
“Zara—”
“I mean it,” Zara said firmly. “You shouldn’t go through this alone.”
Emotion clogged Charlotte’s throat instantly.
For the first time in days…
She felt less alone.
But before she could respond—
A sudden wave of dizziness hit her violently.
Charlotte grabbed the balcony railing immediately.
Zara frowned. “Charlotte?”
The nausea returned stronger this time.
Much stronger.
Charlotte pressed a shaky hand against her stomach…
As fear slowly crept into her eyes.
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