Chapter 7: Our First Move
1085 Words
I swallowed hard. “And what makes you think so?”
Lucian c****d his head, examining me. “Because I’ve seen what happens to people like you. People who believe they can thrive in a society founded on power and deception.”
Something about the way he said it made my blood pressure rise. Could it be that I had landed myself in another phase of battle?
“What are you trying to say?” I asked gently.
Lucian moaned, scratching his jaw. “I’m saying there is another way out of this. A method that doesn’t entail you attaching yourself too close to Alexander.”
I gaze at him, distrust seeping in concerning what I have just heard.
“Come with me.” He requested I follow him.
I frowned. “Why and to where?”
Lucian leaned in slightly, his voice lowering to a near whisper. “I can get you out of this mess. Away from Greg, away from this mess, you have chosen to get yourself involved with Alexander. I have… connections.”
My heart hammered. “Connections?”
He nodded. “Let’s just say I know people who don’t like Greg. People who would be pleased to make him disappear.”
I gazed at him, a combination of awe and panic squeezing my chest.
“What exactly are you talking about?”
“Exactly what you think I’m talking about.” His expression was unreadable. “No more running. No hiding. One move and Greg will be gone forever.”
I gulped hard, my thoughts racing. Was he serious? Was he genuinely proposing to quench Greg's existence?
My hands shook slightly. “Why would you do this for me?”
Lucian’s smile faded into something unreadable. “Maybe I like you, Isabella. Maybe I believe you deserve more than being imprisoned between my brother and a psychopath.”
I didn’t know what to say. This was ridiculous.
But then, something much worse occurred.
A rustling noise came from the garden below. As I turned, what I saw almost took my life. Figures were moving in the darkness.
My stomach hums when I see “Greg’s men,”
Lucian noticed what was going on, his whole stance transformed in an instant, the teasing humour disappearing. “Damn it,” he mumbled.
I took a step back, my pulse thumping. “They have found me.”
Lucian’s jaw constricted. “Not just you. They know you’re with Alexander now.”
I began to shiver; he took hold of my hand. “We need to go now,” he muttered.
My head snapped up. “Go where?”
“To my car. I can get you out of here before they—”
“Isabella!” Immediately, Alexander called.
"You’re not taking her anywhere." Then, he harshly warns Lucian from making his move.
Alexander’s voice was like steel, firm and full of command. His penetrating stare moved between Lucian and me, and they engaged in a quiet fight for supremacy.
Lucian tightened his grasp on my wrist; his body stiffened as if preparing for a battle. "And what’s your plan, Alexander? Keeping her locked up while Greg is out there threatening to take her mum's life?" His words dripped with scorn, yet there was truth in it.
Alexander’s jaw tightened. "I won’t let that happen to her or any family member of hers."
"Then let her go," Lucian challenged. "Let her decide."
Both males turned to me. My heart beat so fiercely it seemed like it might leave my chest. My gaze flew between them, two guys who were struggling to have relevance in my life.
Lucian was giving me an escape alternative, but at what cost? Alexander had pledged to protect me. However, how much of that was merely a means to an end? I became entangled, confused about what to accept. My breath felt short as the weight of the decision descended on me.
Before I could speak, Greg’s men were combing the ground. The 24-hour time limit given to me to decide either to return to Greg or either my mother or Clara to pay the ultimate price was running out.
Determine within me, I decided to stay "I am staying," I murmured.
Lucian breathed hard, frustration blazing over his countenance. "Isabella—" he called.
Immediately, Alexander moved between us, his presence a blockade. "Leave, Lucian. Now."
Lucian’s eyes stayed on me for a while, something inscrutable moving through them before he laughed, shaking his head. "Fine. But don’t come weeping to me when you realize that you have caged yourself, dear."
After uttering those words, he turned and left.
A heavy stillness descended between Alexander and me. The tension from before persisted, but something else boiled behind it. Something I wasn’t ready to identify.
Later that night, Alexander and I decided to make it to the gala event hosted by him.
The place was shunned with gold chandeliers and quiet music humming in the background as exquisite individuals glided effortlessly across the huge ballroom. Alexander had hosted this banquet in commemoration of a major corporate merger, but I knew the actual reason. It was a statement to show the world that I was his wife since that was what he was lacking to maintain his place.
I wore a deep green gown, the silk clinging to me like a second skin, the plunging neckline bold and daring. I could feel the gaze of the privileged elite measuring me up, talking behind me to the point that one of them couldn't hold it, rather confessing how beautiful I was.
One of them had to even walk up to me and openly confess how charming I looked. Alexander couldn’t take his eyes off me.
Alexander hadn’t left my side all through the evening. There was something unusual about him tonight. Something restless I noticed in his behaviour.
"Enjoying yourself?" His voice sounded from behind me, sending a shudder down my spine.
As I turned, catching his dark, deep gaze," he drew me to himself, paraded me around like a trophy,"
His lips twitched. "You’re more than that."
I scoffed. "Am I?"
Instead of replying, he stuck out his hand. "Come with me."
I hesitated. " To Where?" I
"To somewhere quieter," he replied.
But there was something about the way he said it that made my heartbeat race faster against my better judgment. I put my hand in his.
Where was Alexander taking me?
Find out in the next chapter!
- Writer
