CHAPTER 3
1027 Words
Lily's heart shot a thousand beats a second as her eyes glanced, held captive by the threatening words on her phone screen. *"You're in over your head. Get out while you can."* She flickered her eyes upward, seeking answers within his. His gaze was resolute—only she couldn't see what he was feeling.
"Another one?" he said, his voice edging on the brink between worry and anger. He leaned over a little more, tightening his hand on hers. "Lily, I need you to be straight with me about exactly what's going on here. Whoever's sending these clearly wants to make you scared."
Lily had a moment where she faltered beneath Alex's gaze. His palm burned on her skin, hot against it, as he continued to hold her in place so she wouldn't spin off into the dizzying whirl of confusion racing through her mind. She jerked her eyes away to study the coffee shop just as Grace and James came in, laughing about some joke. They spotted her, and making their way over, they waved.
"Grace! Alex!" Grace met him, as usual, all bubbly, and sat in a seat; then James followed, nodding at Alex. "Never thought I would run into you two together. How's the coffee?"
James relaxed in his seat as he studied him curiously. "Yes, it seems you're having an interesting morning." He noted the tension.
She willed a smile onto her lips, feeling awkward about the interruption. "It's, um, been eventful," she replied, glancing at Alex. She did want to share everything with her friends, but she wasn't sure how much to reveal. The cryptic messages; Alex's involvement—none of it made any sense, and she didn't need to drag her friends into whatever mess this might turn out to be.
Grace's gaze narrowed, ever sharp-eyed. "Is everything okay? You're rather pale, Lily."
Smoothly, Alex interrupted, "We've just been going through some—complicated things." He squeezed once through Lily's hand before letting it go. His face turned soft as his eyes moved to hers. "But it's nothing we can't handle."
Her eyes locked with James', and Grace was in immediately. "Just so you know, if there's anything that you need help with, we are right here with you, supporting you," her voice said warmly. "Right, James?"
"Absolutely," said James. He leaned forward, his face serious. "Lily, if something strange's happening, be sure with us. We went through the thickest and thinnest."
With a sudden, overpowering shimmer of gratefulness for having friends like these, Lily sucked in a deep inhalation of breath and decided to share at least part of the truth. "There have been some strange messages," she confessed, her voice barely above a mutter. "They're, well, disturbing. And I have no idea who it's from."
Grace winced, concern etched into her face. "Like—threatening?"
Lily nodded, and felt a lump come into her throat. "Yes. And it's weird, because it seems they know where I am and what I'm doing. It's just creepy."
James's eyes darkened. "That sounds serious. You should consider going to the police."
Alex shook his head slightly. "It's not that simple," he said, his voice calm but firm. "There are certain… complications."
Grace met all those gazes. "Complications? Like what?"
Before Alex could say anything, Lily's phone buzzed again. A shiver went down her back as she reached for the device with a half-anticipation of finding still another ominous message. This was an unknown number. She hovered over it for a second before finally answering and putting the phone to speaker.
"Hello?" she asked tentatively.
The voice was distorted and seemed almost to run down the line as a cold chill ran up her spine. Warnings of "Lily, you are playing with fire. Leave Alex Kingston alone or things are going to quickly become very uncomfortable for you."
The line went dead. Silence fell back on the table, but the café was filled with whispers amid whispers. Grace gasped, her hand landing by her mouth in shock. James just checked his face, a grimace, and Alex's jaw clenched in anger.
"Who in the bloody world was that, and why do they want you away from Alex?" James exclaimed in a low, firm voice.
Lily looked at Alex, scared, with much confusion in her eyes. "Alex, what is happening? Why are they—why are they after you?"
Alex took in a deep breath, in which he inferred he was really weighing what he had to say. "There are people in the business world who do not like me very much," he began slowly. "Competitors, rivals… some more ruthless than others. This could be their way of trying to get to me, using you as leverage."
The pieces were falling into place within Lily's racing head just one after another, like dominoes: cryptic messages, the phone call, the warnings—all pointing to something much larger and dangerous. She felt icy blood run down her veins as the weight of everything sank in on her shoulders.
Grace's body language turned sympathetic, with a comforting arm laid on Lily's. "We are here for you," she said firmly. "Whatever this is, we're going to figure it out together."
James nodded in agreement, his face resolute. "Yeah, we're not gonna let any of those baddies mess with you, Lily."
Relief and gratitude flooded her, but fear remained. She turned to Alex, whose eyes never left hers; in them, she saw a glisten of vulnerability, a flicker of worry he couldn't quite camouflage.
As Lily opened her mouth, about to respond, the door to the café burst open and a man dressed in a dark suit charged inside. His eyes surveyed the interior for a second before they alighted on Alex. He walked purposefully to their table. The room tensed as the man stopped before Alex, looking down with an angry glare at his face. "Kingston," he hissed, his voice cold, threatening. "We need to talk. Now."
Lily's breath caught; her pulse quickened. Who was this one, and how did he know Alex? If anything, danger seeme
d closer than before, and it was going to be much worse.
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