FREEDOM WAS THE LIE

CHAPTER 4: SHE'S LOOKING

Tension built in Lilith's mind. The meeting wasn't leaving her mind, the atmosphere grew tense as she kept thinking about it. She needed answers, the traces of this man creeping on her left chills and her curiosity grew. Lilith stared at her phone for a second. Chances were her brothers knew.

“ Luke. He might know something”. She thought as Luke's number came in.

“Lilith?” Luke’s voice came through. Calm. Normal. “Hey,” she said. “Are you free?”

Luke felt a shift in Lilith's voice.

“For you? Always. What’s going on?”. She hesitated, then said it.

“I need to ask you something. Have you heard of the Blackwood company?”

There was a pause.

A small one—but she noticed the switch.

“Why?” he asked.

“Earlier today I had a meeting there,” Lilith said slowly. “And there was this man… Everyone treated him like some..God. We actually had to wait before coming to conclusions from the meeting. But that's not why I'm calling you.”

Silence again.

Then Luke spoke, his tone no longer as relaxed.

“Lilith… why do you want to go asking questions around?”. She frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Do not get involved,” he said.

That made her sit up. “Luke… what’s going on?”

“This man literally knows everything about my life. He knows you, Liam,mum. He knows my family,I can't ignore that.” She waited for a response but didn't get any from Luke's end.

“ Do you know him? Luke!.”

“I don't want you involved “,he replied quickly. “Just—focus on your work.”

Lilith shook her head. “No. You just changed your tone. Just tell me what I need to know.”

Another pause. Longer this time.

Then—

“Lilith,” he said, sharper now, “I said don’t get involved!!”

She went quiet, surprised. Luke rarely snapped like that.

“Why are you acting like this?” she asked, her voice lower now.

He exhaled. “Look… just come home on Tuesday.”

Lilith blinked. “Tuesday?”

“Yes,” he said. “Don’t tell anyone. Just come.”

Her heart skipped. “Luke… What's going on? Who is he?”

There was a brief silence. Then he added, more quietly—

“He might come asking.”

Lilith’s breath caught. “Who—?”

The line went dead.

“Luke?” she said, pulling the phone away to check.

CALL ENDED

Lilith stared at the screen, her mind racing.

“He might come asking? Who was he?”

And why did it suddenly feel like this wasn’t just about a company anymore?

It was Tuesday morning when Lilith arrived at the Sinclair home.The house looked the same as always—quiet, familiar, almost peaceful—but there was a strange feeling in the air she couldn’t explain. Like something important was about to happen, even though nothing looked different on the surface.

She stepped out of the car and paused for a moment, holding her bag tighter than usual. Luke’s words still lingered in her mind, but she pushed them aside and walked toward the door.

Her sister stepped aside quickly, pulling her in like nothing in the world was wrong.

“Lilith!” she said warmly. “You finally came in. I was starting to think work had swallowed you whole.”

Lilith let out a small breath, forcing a light smile as she stepped inside. “It almost did.”

Her sister laughed softly, closing the door behind them. The sound echoed through the house—familiar, safe.

“You’re home now, at least for a bit,” she said. “Come, sit. I’ll get you something to eat.”

Lilith followed her into the living room, glancing around as she walked. Everything looked the same… but the feeling she had wouldn’t go away.

She sat down slowly on the couch.Her sister sat opposite her, still smiling. “So? How’s work? You look like you’ve been running on stress.”

Lilith hesitated for a second, then shrugged. “Just busy. A lot of meetings lately.”

“Important ones?”

“Yeah… actually,” Lilith said, then paused. The Blackwood meeting flashed in her mind again.

She quickly shook it off. “Just a major client. Nothing I can’t handle.”

Her sister nodded, not noticing the slight shift in Lilith’s expression.

“Good. I like hearing that. At least someone in this family is moving forward.”

Lilith smiled.Forward didn’t feel like the right word anymore.

Not after Luke’s call. Not after that warning.

She leaned back slightly, her voice quieter now.

“Where is Luke, by the way?”

Her sister paused for just a moment before answering. “He said he had something important to take care of. He’ll be back soon.”

Lilith frowned slightly. “Important… Is work important?” Her sister shrugged. “He didn’t say much.”

Lilith stared down at her hands, her thoughts tightening again. Something about this didn’t sit right.

And now, she was here… waiting… not knowing what she was really walking into.

But deep down, she could feel it.

This wasn’t just a family visit anymore.Something had already started changing.