CHAPTER.FOUR: THE MONSTER WAKES
823 Words
**Alexander's POV**
The photo on my phone should have made me angry.
Instead, all I felt was cold calculation.
Someone knew about the pregnancy. Someone had leverage.
Finally, an enemy I could identify.
"We need to leave," I told Sophia. "Now. Pack one bag. Thirty seconds."
She didn't argue. Smart girl.
First call to Oliver. "Lock down the penthouse. Full security sweep. Find every camera, every bug."
"Where will you be?"
"The Connecticut estate."
Second call to Dr. Park. "You're compromised. Someone photographed you with Sophia. I'm sending a car. Black SUV. The driver's name is Chen."
Third call to Marcus.
He answered immediately. "Little brother. Heard you visited Grandfather's lawyer."
"Did you know about the heir clause?"
"Of course. I helped write it." Bitterness dripped from every word. "One year, Alexander. One legitimate heir. Think you can manage that?"
"Why do you want the company so badly?"
"Because it should have been mine from the beginning. I just need to wait. Ten months. No heir. Company splits. I won."
He hung up.
The drive to Connecticut took ninety minutes. Sophia dozed, one hand resting on her still-flat stomach.
I'd meant my threat that first night. Every word.
But that was before I knew Grace had violated me in my sleep. Before I understood the pregnancy wasn't Sophia's manipulation, it was my mother's.
The baby was still leveraged. Still a weapon.
But it was also mine.
And I protected what was mine.
The estate appeared through morning fog. Three hundred acres. Security gates requiring retinal scans. My grandfather's legacy, left to me in a separate trust.
My safe house.
"It's beautiful," Sophia said.
"It's isolated." I parked. "No neighbors for miles. The security system is private, not connected to Knight Industries networks."
Inside, I made her breakfast.
"How do you know about morning sickness?" she asked.
"I read medical journals while recovering." I set the plate down. "You're six weeks along. Symptoms peak around week eight or nine."
"Alexander, why are you helping me? You could terminate the pregnancy."
I turned to face her. "That child exists because my mother violated my body and yours. Because my grandfather tried to control me from beyond the grave. Because my brother wants me dead."
"That's not the baby's fault."
"No. It's mine." The admission cost me. "I should have seen the crash coming."
"What's your plan?"
"We make everyone believe we're trying and failing to conceive. Public appearances. Doctor's appointments showing fertility concerns. Build a narrative." I met her eyes. "Then, month seven, we 'discover' you're pregnant. Surprise. Miracle. By the time anyone does the math, the baby will be born and the company will be secure."
"And after that?"
"After that, you disappear. New identity. New city. Five million dollars."
She was quiet. "What if I want my child to know their father?"
The question hit harder than it should have.
"Why would you want that? I threatened to kill you both."
"You were scared. And poisoned. Emma told me about mercury." She reached across the table. "That wasn't you. That was Marcus."
"Maybe I was always a monster."
"No. Monsters don't research pregnancy symptoms."
I pulled my hand back. "Don't mistake strategy for kindness."
"Then why am I here? Why not just lock me in the penthouse?"
Because she was right. And I hated it.
"Eat your breakfast," I muttered. "We have work to do."
Over the next three days, I taught Sophia how to survive in my world.
How to spot surveillance. How to lie convincingly. How to read people.
She was a fast learner.
That night, I woke to screaming.
Sophia's.
I was through her door instantly. She thrashed in bed, caught in a nightmare. Crying.
"Sophia." I touched her shoulder. "Wake up."
She gasped awake. Terrified. Then she saw me.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."
"What were you dreaming about?"
"Emma. Marcus beating her. He said the baby would be next."
The fear in her voice made something twist in my chest.
"Marcus won't touch you or the baby. I promise."
"You can't promise that."
"And failed. I'm still here." I sat on the edge of her bed. "Marcus makes one mistake. He underestimates me."
Moonlight caught the tears on her face.
My hand moved. Brushed the tears from her cheek.
She froze.
So did I.
The moment stretched. Her skin was soft. Her breath caught. My heart did something irregular.
"Alexander," she whispered.
I pulled back like she'd burned me. "Get some sleep. We're going back to Manhattan tomorrow. Board meeting."
I left before she could respond.
My phone buzzed. Oliver.
*Found the bug in Sophia's bedroom. Professional grade. Placed during your coma. Multiple cameras throughout the penthouse.*
Below it, surveillance footage.
Marcus. In my home. Planting cameras while I was in the hospital.
Another message. Unknown number.
*Cute estate. Connecticut suits you. But you can't hide forever. Tick tock, little brother.*
Marcus had found us.
- Writer
