old wounds
708 Words
Calla Monroe’s POV
The moment the door closed behind him, my body trembled, my mind racing with questions and dread. Damian Vale. Here. In my apartment. Five years after I’d left everything behind, he had somehow found me. And he was standing there, sharp, confident, and utterly terrifying.
Lucas peeked from behind my legs, eyes wide. “Mommy… who’s that?”
I forced a smile, my heart pounding. “It’s… just a friend, baby.”
But I knew he wasn’t a friend. Not by a long shot.
Flashback – Two Years Ago
I remembered the first time we truly clashed. Damian had been cold, distant, his power suffocating. I had thought I could handle it, that I could endure his sharp words, his long absences, the way he commanded a room without even trying.
“You’re hiding something,” he had said one night, his gray eyes pinning me to the couch.
“I’m not hiding anything,” I replied, voice trembling.
He leaned in, close enough I could feel the heat from his body. “Calla… I always know.”
And I had known then. I had known he could never be deceived. That he could see straight through me.
Present Day – Confrontation Begins
“Calla,” Damian said, voice low and controlled, stepping closer. “I called you last night. Why didn’t you answer?”
My stomach twisted. “I… I was busy. I couldn’t—”
“You couldn’t answer me?” His eyes narrowed. “You knew I would call. You knew I would find you.”
I swallowed hard. The lie stuck in my throat. He didn’t know the whole truth yet. Lucas didn’t know. And if he ever discovered the truth too soon, I wasn’t sure I could protect him from Damian’s overwhelming presence.
“I… I didn’t think—” I started, but he cut me off.
“No,” he said sharply. “Don’t. Don’t lie to me, Calla. I can see it in your eyes. Something’s changed. Something you’re hiding.”
My heart raced. How much did he know? Could he see the connection between me and Lucas already? My breath hitched as I glanced at my son, oblivious to the tension.
“You have no idea,” I whispered under my breath, mostly to myself.
Damian’s Obsession
His gaze softened fractionally, almost imperceptibly, as he looked at Lucas. My stomach clenched. That was the first time I noticed it—the faint recognition in his eyes, the almost imperceptible tightening of his jaw.
He didn’t say a word, but I knew. He was calculating, measuring, connecting dots. My son, so much like him…
I couldn’t let him realize. Not yet. Not until I knew he was ready.
“Calla,” he said, voice gentle but edged with steel. “We need to talk. Alone.”
I shook my head. “Not here. Not in front of him.”
He smirked faintly, and my blood ran cold. “Then I’ll wait until you’re ready. But I’m not leaving.”
Tension and Flashbacks
I sank into the couch, curling inward as memories of our past flooded me. Damian had always been possessive, controlling… yet somehow tender in moments I didn’t deserve. The way he used to hold me, the rare moments when he softened, the times I thought I saw the man beneath the billionaire exterior.
And now he was back. More dangerous, more insistent, more determined than ever.
Lucas crawled onto my lap, oblivious to the storm around us. “Mommy… he’s scary.”
I hugged him tight. “He’s not scary, baby. Just… big.”
But I knew better. Damian was terrifying, and the truth about Lucas would make him unstoppable.
Cliffhanger – Damian’s Plan
Later that evening, when Lucas was asleep, Damian waited outside my apartment building. I didn’t hear him come in, didn’t see him move like a shadow.
But then a single line of text appeared on my phone:
“I know. And I’ll be back. Tomorrow. Alone.”
My hands shook. He knew something. Or at least, he suspected. And I didn’t know if I could protect Lucas if he uncovered the truth.
One thing was certain: my quiet, hidden life was over.
- Writer
