Can You Be My Luna

Chapter 14 THE TRAP SHE SET

The morning started too quietly. Vanessa didn’t appear at breakfast. Her absence itself felt wrong. By midday, she found me alone in the laundry room.

Her voice was sweet. “Silver,” she said, leaning against the doorway, arms folded. “Lucas wants you upstairs.”

My stomach tightened.

She smiled. “The guest room…there’s a mess. He wants it cleaned immediately.”

I hesitated. Vanessa sighed dramatically. “What? Are you questioning me now?”

“No,” I said quickly. “I’ll go.”

She stepped aside, her eyes gleaming with something I couldn’t name. As I passed her, she leaned close and whispered, “Be careful up there.”

The guest room was at the far end of the hallway, rarely used and always locked. But the door was open.

The moment I stepped inside, the air was thick with the sharp scent of perfume. The curtains were drawn, the room dim with only light coming from few candles which were lite, shadows stretching unnaturally across the floor. My skin prickled, a strange unease crawling up my spine.

I took two steps in and saw that the room was destroyed. Shattered glass on the floor. Torn sheets. An overturned chair. A broken lamp lying near the bed.

Then the door slammed shut behind me. I spun around just as the lock clicked.

My heart leapt into my throat.

“Vanessa?” I called, my voice shaking.

No answer. Then I heard footsteps retreating down the hallway. Panic surged through me. I rushed to the door, rattling the handle, pounding against the wood. “Let me out! Please!”

I turned, my chest heaving and that was when I saw smoke. For a second, my mind refused to understand what my eyes were seeing. Then the truth hit me like a blow to the chest. The curtain was on fire.

Flames crawled up the fabric with terrifying speed, crackling violently as thick, black smoke poured into the room. Heat wrapped around me, suffocating, merciless. Panic seized my body whole.

I spun around and slammed my fists against the door. “Help!” I screamed. “Please__ someone help me!”

Nothing. The fire spread faster, devouring the room. Smoke burned my eyes, clawed at my lungs. Every breath felt like swallowing fire. I coughed violently, my head spinning, my vision blurring until the walls melted into shadows. My legs gave out.

I collapsed onto the floor, still pounding the door no longer with strength, but with desperation. My hands felt numb. My body felt heavy. So, this is how I die, I thought hazily. Trapped. Forgotten. Disposable. Tears streamed down my face as darkness crept closer.

Then the door burst open. Fresh air rushed in.

Lucas stood there. Relief hit me so hard it hurt. And then everything went black.

When I woke up, the world felt distant. My head throbbed painfully. I was lying on something soft only to realize l was on Lucas’s bed.

A doctor sat beside me, checking my pulse, shining a light into my eyes. I blinked slowly, my body refusing to fully cooperate. As my vision cleared, I noticed others in the room. It was Lucas, Vanessa, and Aunt Locia.

All of them looked tense. Uneasy. The doctor asked me questions—my name, how I felt, if I could breathe properly. I answered weakly. After a moment, he stood and pulled Lucas aside, whispering something I couldn’t hear.

Lucas nodded stiffly. The doctor thanked him and left. Lucas stepped closer to the bed, his expression unreadable. “The doctor says you need to rest,” he said flatly. “We’ll talk later.”

Before I could respond, he turned and walked out. Vanessa followed him.

Aunt Locia rushed to my side, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Oh, my child,” she cried softly. “What if you had died?”

Her words broke something inside me. I shook my head gently, squeezing her hand. “I’m okay,” I whispered, though my voice trembled.

She stayed with me for a while, crying and scolding fate, until exhaustion pulled at my eyelids again. Eventually, she kissed my forehead and left me to rest.

That evening, I woke to the sound of footsteps. Aunt Locia brought me food and insisted I eat. My hands shook as I held the spoon, but I forced myself to finish.

Not long after, the door opened again. Lucas and Vanessa walked in. The air instantly felt heavier.

Lucas’s gaze swept the room, sharp and searching, before landing on me. His eyes were cold, stormy.

“What the hell happened?” he demanded.

My heart jumped. I shook my head quickly, lowering my gaze.

“I—I… Vanessa told me the guest room was dirty. When I went there, the room was destroyed. Then someone shut the door behind me and locked it.” My voice trembled. “When I turned around… there was fire. The curtain—”

“Enough.” I flinched at the sound of Lucas’s voice.

He turned slowly toward Vanessa, fury blazing in his eyes. “Is this true?” he asked. “Did you tell her to clean the room?”

Vanessa scoffed, pointing at me. “She’s lying. She probably destroyed the room herself and then tried to—”

The accusation felt like a slap.

“That’s not true,” I said, my voice cracking. “You sent me there. You locked me inside.”

“Why would I do that?” Vanessa snapped.

Lucas stared at her—really stared. Something dark shifted behind his eyes.

“You locked her in?” he asked slowly.

She laughed nervously. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

“You sent her to a locked room,” he said quietly, dangerously. “And left her there.”

Vanessa’s eyes flashed. “So, what if I did? She deserved it! But the fire wasn’t my fault—”

“Enough!” Lucas shouted.

He stepped toward her, his voice shaking with rage. “Have you completely lost your mind?”

“You don’t get to talk to me like that!” Vanessa snapped.

“You could have killed her!” he roared. “Do you understand that?”

She crossed her arms defensively. “I didn’t start the fire! Why are you blaming me?”

“Yes!” he yelled. “Because you locked her in!”

I sat frozen on the bed, my chest tight, my heart pounding painfully. Vanessa’s eyes filled with tears. “After everything I’ve done for you,” she cried. “After everything I’ve endured for you.”

Lucas dragged a hand through his hair, breathing hard. “You crossed a line.”

Her voice broke. “So that’s it? You choose her?”

“Are you even listening to yourself?” he snapped. “Someone almost died because of you.”

She stared at him, then laughed—a broken, hysterical sound. “I don’t care about her, Lucas!” she screamed. “It would have been better if she had died!”

The room went deathly still. Lucas raised his hand, fury blazing then stopped.

Vanessa stared at him, shattered. “You wanted to hit me,” she whispered. “Because of her.”

Lucas said nothing. Didn’t even look at her.

“Fine,” she said coldly. “I’ll go to my parents’ house. Since I’m no longer welcome here.”

Before leaving, she turned and looked at me. Her gaze burned with hatred.

“This isn’t over,” she said softly.

Then she left. Silence swallowed the room. Lucas stood there, fists clenched.

Without turning around, he said, “Get up and Get out.”

My chest tightened. I didn’t wait.

I stood on shaking legs and walked out, every step reminding me that no matter what had happened, I still didn’t belong here.