Chapter 16
452 Words
Chapter Sixteen
Sophie watched as Lucas ended the call, his jaw tight, his body coiled with barely restrained fury. She had seen him composed, sarcastic, even amused—but this? This was different.
This was a man on the edge of something dangerous.
"You trust this Damon guy?" she asked cautiously.
Lucas turned to her, his expression unreadable. "Damon is my CFO. If anyone's been moving money under my nose, he'll find it."
Sophie crossed her arms. "And what happens when you do?"
A muscle ticked in his jaw. "Then I deal with it."
She shivered, not from fear exactly, but from the certainty in his voice. Lucas Blackwell didn’t make threats—he made promises. And right now, someone was about to learn just how far he was willing to go.
A beat of silence stretched between them before Lucas exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "You should get some rest. This could take a while."
Sophie arched a brow. "And you think I’m just going to sit back and wait?"
His lips twitched, but there was no real amusement. "I didn’t think you’d make it easy."
"Not in my nature."
Lucas studied her, something unreadable flickering in his gaze. Then, with a quiet sigh, he reached for his drink and took a slow sip. "Fine. But if you’re staying in this, you follow my lead."
Sophie tilted her head. "You mean, we follow the truth."
Lucas's eyes darkened. "That’s what I said."
And somehow, she wasn't sure if he was lying to her…
Or to himself.
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The next morning, Sophie woke to the sound of her phone vibrating on the nightstand. She blinked against the soft light filtering through the curtains, groggy from too little sleep.
Unknown Number.
Her pulse spiked.
She hesitated for only a second before answering. "Hello?"
A pause. Then, the same distorted voice from before.
"I warned you, Miller."
Cold fear slithered down her spine.
"I don’t scare easy," she said, gripping the phone tighter.
A low chuckle. "You should. Because now? It's not just a warning."
The call cut off.
Sophie shot upright, her breath unsteady. She barely had time to process the words before her door swung open.
Lucas stood there, phone in hand, eyes sharp. "You got another call."
It wasn’t a question.
Sophie nodded, swallowing hard. "Yeah."
Lucas exhaled, his jaw tight. "Then we’re out of time."
He turned, already in motion. "Get dressed, Sophie."
"Why?"
He looked back at her, and for the first time, she saw something in his gaze she hadn't before.
Pure, unfiltered rage.
"Because whoever’s behind this just made a mistake."
And Lucas Blackwell?
He wasn’t the kind of man to let mistakes go unpunished.
- Writer
