Chapter 8: Phone call
1272 Words
Lilian did not sleep after the call.
She replayed the voice again and again in her head.
It had not sounded like her stepmother. Not like her sisters. Not like anyone from Phantom.
It had sounded... older. Worn. Tired.
If you want the truth about your mother... come alone.
Her heart wouldn't settle.
By morning, she had already made up her mind. She would go.
The only question was how.
Xavier had tightened security since her return. She noticed it now. Guards rotated more frequently. Cameras covered blind angles that had been left open before. Even the hallways felt watched.
He did not trust easily.
And after yesterday's confrontation about leaving, he trusted her even less.
She needed help.
She found Stone in the courtyard again, overseeing weapon cleaning this time. He glanced up when she approached, and something in his expression shifted when he saw her face.
"You look like you haven't slept."
"I haven't."
He dismissed the men with a subtle nod. They scattered immediately.
When they were alone, she spoke quickly, quietly.
"I got a call."
His posture straightened. "From who?"
"I don't know. A woman. She said she has the truth about my mother."
His jaw tightened.
"That's dangerous."
"I know."
"You still want to go."
It wasn't a question.
"Yes."
He ran a hand over the back of his neck, thinking. She could see the calculation in his eyes. Not reckless. Not impulsive.
"You can't walk out the front gate," he said. "That's suicide. Xavier has eyes everywhere."
"I don't care about that."
"You should."
She stepped closer. "You said leaving requires timing."
His gaze sharpened.
"This isn't just about leaving," he replied carefully. "This is about walking into something unknown."
"I've been living in unknown for years."
He held her stare for a long moment.
Then he exhaled slowly.
"There's a supply route. East perimeter. Trucks come in twice a week. Security is lighter during transfer."
Her pulse quickened.
"When?"
"Tonight."
Her breath hitched.
That fast?
"You'll get one chance," he continued. "If you're caught..."
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
She nodded.
"I'm not asking you to come with me."
He almost smiled.
"You already did."
The day dragged painfully.
Every time she crossed paths with Xavier, her chest tightened. He watched her differently now. More alert. More aware. As if he sensed something shifting beneath the surface.
At dinner, she barely touched her food.
"You're distracted," he observed.
She forced herself to meet his eyes.
"Am I not allowed to think?"
"You're allowed to breathe," he replied evenly. "Nothing more."
The sharpness in his tone made her flinch.
He noticed.
His voice lowered slightly. "What is it?"
For a split second, she considered telling him. About the call. About the meeting.
But the image of armed guards flooding the place the moment she mentioned it stopped her.
"Nothing," she said softly.
His gaze lingered on her longer than usual.
"I don't like lies," he said quietly.
Her heart skipped.
She looked down.
That night, her hands trembled as she pulled on darker clothes. Simpler. Easier to move in.
Her reflection in the mirror looked different. Less fragile. More desperate.
She slipped out of her room when the hallway cameras shifted on rotation. She had memorized their pattern earlier. Stone had confirmed the blind window lasted eight seconds.
Eight seconds felt like eternity.
Her heart pounded in her ears as she moved through the shadows.
She almost collided with him near the east wing.
"You're late," Stone whispered.
"I couldn't get away."
He studied her face one last time.
"You're sure?"
"No," she admitted honestly. "But I'm going."
They moved quickly.
The night air bit at her skin as they reached the perimeter. A truck engine hummed softly nearby. Two guards stood smoking, distracted.
Stone's timing was precise.
He grabbed her wrist gently and pulled her toward the vehicle when the guards turned to argue about something trivial.
They climbed into the back unnoticed.
Her lungs burned from holding her breath.
For a moment, there was silence.
Then the truck began to move.
She almost laughed. A shaky, disbelieving sound.
"We did it," she whispered.
Stone didn't respond.
His expression remained tense.
They rode in silence until the truck slowed outside the estate walls.
Once it stopped, they slipped out and ran toward the tree line.
The gates loomed behind them.
They didn't make it ten steps into the road before headlights exploded around them.
Her heart stopped.
Black SUVs blocked every direction.
Doors opened in sync.
Armed men stepped out.
She recognized the formation immediately.
Phantom.
Her stomach dropped.
Stone's grip tightened around her hand.
"Stay behind me," he murmured.
The driver's side door of the central vehicle opened slowly.
Xavier stepped out.
No rush.
No anger on his face.
Just certainty.
The air felt heavy. Charged.
Her throat went dry.
"You disappoint me," he said, voice carrying easily across the distance.
Her body trembled, but she stepped forward anyway.
"I needed answers."
"You needed permission."
"I don't belong to you!"
The words tore out of her.
His gaze flickered toward Stone.
"So this is what this is," he said softly.
"It's not-" she started.
But the accusation was already there.
"You think running off with one of my men makes you free?" Xavier asked.
Stone stepped forward.
"This was my idea," he said firmly. "She didn't force-"
The gunshot echoed before she could process it.
The sound split the night open.
Stone's body jerked.
Warm blood splattered across her hands.
For a moment, her mind refused to understand what had happened.
Stone looked down at his chest slowly.
Then at her.
His lips parted as if he wanted to say something.
He collapsed.
Her scream tore through the darkness.
"No!"
She dropped beside him, shaking him, pressing her hands uselessly against the spreading red stain.
"Stay with me," she begged.
His eyes were already glazing over.
She felt hands grab her shoulders.
She fought, kicking, screaming.
"You killed him!" she sobbed, staring up at Xavier.
His face remained hard.
"You crossed me," he said.
"I didn't-"
"You left with him."
"I was going to meet someone!"
"Alone?" His voice sharpened. "In my territory?"
Her chest heaved.
"You don't trust me," she whispered.
His eyes burned.
"Trust is earned."
"By obedience?"
"By loyalty."
She looked down at Stone's still body.
A hollow ache spread through her chest.
"You're a monster," she breathed.
Something shifted in his expression then. Just for a second.
But it vanished as quickly as it appeared.
He bent down, lifting her off the ground despite her struggling.
She beat against his chest weakly.
"I hate you," she cried.
He held her tighter.
"You will survive me," he said quietly. "You would not have survived what waited beyond those gates."
She stopped fighting.
Because for the first time, doubt crept in.
What had been waiting for her?
As they drove back toward the estate, she stared at her bloodstained hands.
Stone had wanted freedom.
Now he had nothing.
And Xavier had not hesitated.
Not even for a heartbeat.
When they arrived, he carried her inside as if she weighed nothing.
She went limp in his arms.
The empire felt colder than before.
As he set her down inside her room, she whispered hoarsely,
"If I die here, at least it will be by your hand."
He froze.
***
The door closed behind him.
And somewhere deep inside the mansion, an alarm began to sound.
Not from security.
From within Phantom's inner circle.
Because while Xavier had been busy stopping her escape...
An attack had just been launched on the empire.
- Writer
