Chapter Nine: The Face Behind the Mask
583 Words
Alina didn’t sleep.
She stood on the balcony again—this time not as a prisoner, not even as a wife. But as a woman unraveling her own existence.
Xander’s words echoed:
> “I was never supposed to fall in love with either of you.”
Her heart throbbed, confused and cornered.
What did it mean?
What was Isla to her?
Why did they look the same?
And most importantly—who the hell was pulling the strings?
Behind her, the lights flickered.
She turned.
Silence.
Then—
CRASH.
Glass shattered across the floor. A vase.
Thrown from the hall into her room.
She ran out, barefoot.
The hallway was empty—until she saw it.
A single white rose. On the floor. Its stem covered in ash.
And behind it, scratched into the wall—
> "Second flames burn slower, but deeper. Ready to meet your match, Alina?"
Her pulse jumped. She ran to the security room. Slapped buttons. Pulled footage.
And that’s when she saw him.
A masked man, dressed in all black, had slipped past every camera, every guard.
And stood outside her door for seven full minutes, watching.
---
Minutes Later
Alina stormed into Xander’s study, the rose in her hand, rage in her voice.
“Someone’s inside your house. He left this.”
Xander turned. Took one look at the ash-covered rose—and his entire face changed.
Fear. Real, raw, unfiltered fear.
He didn’t speak. He walked straight to a hidden wall panel and typed a code.
A steel door slid open, revealing a secret room.
Inside?
Files. Weapons. Surveillance gear. And a wall covered in photos.
Photos of her.
Photos of Isla.
And in the center—the same masked man.
“Who is he?” she asked.
“His name is Cain,” Xander said finally. “He used to work for me. Until Isla got between us.”
“Why is he after me?”
“Because he thinks Isla faked her death and became you.”
Alina’s mouth went dry. “You think that too, don’t you?”
Xander’s silence was all the answer she needed.
---
Elsewhere – Renna's Apartment
Renna poured herself a glass of wine, her laptop open beside her.
A video played—Alina kissing Xander in the hospital room. Secret footage.
She hit "upload." Scheduled the leak for midnight.
“Let the world see the cracks,” she whispered.
And then her door creaked open.
She turned, expecting her assistant.
Instead—Cain stood there.
The mask. The eyes. The monster.
“You said you wanted to ruin them,” he said.
“I wanted control,” Renna replied. “I didn’t want to kill anyone.”
He stepped closer.
“You don’t get to set the fire and walk away, darling.”
---
Back at the penthouse...
Xander locked the steel door.
Alina sat against the cold wall, head in her hands.
She finally asked the question that had haunted her since the wedding:
“Was this marriage ever about me? Or was I just Isla’s ghost in a prettier dress?”
Xander knelt beside her.
“I didn’t know you’d look like her. I didn’t expect you to fight like her. But when I saw you… I couldn’t let you go.”
She met his eyes, broken and boiling.
“That’s not love, Xander. That’s obsession.”
He leaned closer.
“Maybe. But if it keeps you alive… I’ll wear it like a crown.”
- Writer
