No Escape From You

CHAPTER 4 – WHEN SILENCE SCREAMS

The television was already on when Victoria walked in.

The footage looped endlessly….flashing lights, twisted metal, voices overlapping in urgency. But it was the name at the bottom of the screen that held her still.

Olivia Hawthorne.

Dead.

“No.”

The word came out before she could stop it.

She stepped closer to the screen, shaking her head slowly. “No, this is wrong. They got it wrong.”

Behind her, the room was quiet.

Too quiet.

Evelyn sat by the far end of the room, hands folded neatly in her lap, saying nothing. Her gaze rested on Victoria—not the screen.

Watching.

Victoria turned sharply. “Why is no one saying anything?” Her voice rose. “This is obviously a mistake.”

Still, no answer.

Then—

The door opened.

Daniel walked in first, his expression already dark, tension written across his face. Lucas followed behind him, slower, quieter—but his eyes went straight to the screen.

They both froze.

“… Is it true?” Lucas asked, his voice low.

Victoria moved instinctively toward her sons, as if placing herself between them and the room.

“No. Of course not. They’re just talking. These people don’t know anything.”

Daniel didn’t answer right away.

He kept looking at the screen.

“It’s confirmed.”

The words landed hard.

Victoria’s head snapped toward him. “Don’t say that.”

“I already checked,” Daniel continued, his tone controlled but tight. “It’s everywhere. Police reports, media feeds—”

“I said don’t say it!” she snapped, her voice breaking now.

Lucas looked away, jaw clenched.

Victoria shook her head again, backing up slightly. “Olivia wouldn’t just die in some random accident. She’s not careless. She’s not stupid.”

Silence followed.

Then

“Victoria…”

Evelyn’s voice was soft. Careful.

Not loud enough to challenge.

Not strong enough to interrupt.

Just… there.

Victoria stilled.

Slowly, she turned.

Evelyn had already risen to her feet, her hands loosely clasped in front of her. “Sit down,” she said gently. “You need to…..”

That was as far as she got.

“Oh, don’t,” Victoria snapped, her voice sharp enough to cut through the room. “Don’t start.”

Evelyn stopped.

“I know that tone,” Victoria continued, her eyes narrowing. “That quiet, careful voice like you’re trying to fix something.”

“I’m not….”

“Yes, you are,” Victoria cut in immediately. “You always do this. You stand there like you’re above everything, like you’re the only one thinking clearly.”

Evelyn fell silent again.

But it didn’t help.

It never did.

“You don’t get to tell me what I need right now,” Victoria went on, her voice rising. “Not you.”

“Victoria,” Sebastian warned.

But she ignored him.

“Say it,” she challenged, her gaze locked on Evelyn. “Go on. Say whatever it is you’re holding back.”

Evelyn didn’t respond.

And that silence

That silence snapped something.

Victoria let out a bitter laugh. “Of course. You won’t say it. You never do.”

Her expression hardened.

“You’ve never liked her,” she said. “Not once. Because she’s mine. Because she’s everything you never had.”

Evelyn’s fingers tightened slightly.

But she didn’t argue.

Didn’t defend herself.

“Enough.”

Sebastian this time—firmer.

Victoria turned to him, breathing unevenly.

Daniel stepped forward slightly. “This isn’t the time for this.”

“Yes, mom….. You need to calm down,” Lucas stepped forward, holding her

“My daughter is….” She stopped herself, swallowing hard.

Evelyn finally spoke again, quieter this time.

“I didn’t say it to hurt you.”

Victoria didn’t even look at her.

“Then don’t speak.”

Silence fell again. Heavy. Tight.

Then… A phone rang.

Sebastian’s.

The sound cut through everything.

He glanced at the screen, then answered.

“Yes.”

A pause.

His expression shifted—subtle, but enough.

“I see.”

Another pause.

“We’ll be there.”

He ended the call.

Everyone was watching him now.

“What is it?” Daniel asked.

Sebastian slipped the phone back into his pocket.

“The bodies need to be identified,” he said.

Victoria’s breath hitched.

“They want the family present.”

Silence.

Then movement.

Victoria straightened immediately, wiping at her face like nothing had happened. “We’re going.”

Lucas stood.

Daniel nodded once.

Evelyn rose last.

Sebastian looked at all of them.

“Get ready.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The smell hit first.

Cold air. Sterile. Sharp enough to settle into the lungs and stay there.

The Hawthorne family moved through the corridor in silence, their footsteps echoing faintly against the tiled floor. No one spoke. There was nothing left to say that hadn’t already been broken back at the house.

At the end of the hallway

He stood there.

Damien.

Dressed in black, composed as ever, speaking quietly with a uniformed officer. His posture was relaxed, almost indifferent—but the surrounding tension told a different story. People gave him space without being asked.

Power didn’t need to announce itself.

It was felt.

The officer nodded quickly at something Damien said and stepped away.

That was when Victoria saw him.

Everything else disappeared.

“Damien….”

Her voice cracked as she moved forward, faster than anyone could stop her. Tears had already gathered in her eyes, but she didn’t care.

“You have to find them,” she said, grabbing onto his arm before he could react. “Whoever did this…..you have to find them.”

Damien looked down at her hand briefly.

Then back at her.

Calm. Unreadable.

“They took her from me,” Victoria continued, her voice shaking now. “You have people, don’t you? You have power. Use it. Find whoever did this.”

There was no hesitation in her demand.

No restraint.

Only grief—and expectation.

Daniel stepped in quickly, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. “Mother….”

“Don’t,” she snapped, trying to pull away. “Don’t stop me….”

“I’m not,” Daniel said quietly, tightening his grip just enough to steady her. “But this isn’t the way.”

Victoria’s breathing was uneven now.

Daniel turned slightly toward Damien. “I apologize,” he said, voice controlled. “She’s….”

“I understand.”

Damien cut him off.

Simple. Flat.

No offense taken.

No comfort given.

Victoria stilled at that tone.

Daniel gently pulled her back. “Let’s go,” he said under his breath.

For a moment, she resisted.

Then, slowly, she let him.

Lucas followed behind them, his expression dark, his silence heavier than before.

Evelyn remained where she was.

Watching.

As she always did.

Sebastian stepped forward next.

Measured. Controlled.

“Mr. Sterling.”

Damien’s gaze shifted to him.

“Mr. Hawthorne.”

A pause.

Different kind of silence now.

Not emotional. Strategic.

Sebastian glanced briefly toward the corridor where Victoria had been taken, then back at Damien. “You’ve confirmed it?”

“Yes.”

No hesitation.

“It’s her.”

The words were final.

Sebastian nodded once, jaw tightening almost imperceptibly. “Unfortunate.”

Damien didn’t respond.

“From what I understand,” Sebastian continued, “this wasn’t random.”

Now..

A shift. Small. But there.

Damien’s eyes sharpened slightly.

“No,” he said.

“It wasn’t.”

Another pause.

Sebastian studied him. “Then this concerns you more than it does us.”

“That would be correct.”

No denial. No attempt to soften it.

Just truth.

Cold and direct.

Sebastian exhaled slowly. “Then I assume you already know what comes next.”

Damien adjusted his cuff slightly, gaze steady. “A meeting.”

“Tomorrow.”

Sebastian’s eyes narrowed slightly. “With whom?”

Damien held his gaze.

“The matriarch of the Starling family.”

A beat.

Recognition.

Even Sebastian didn’t speak immediately this time.

“…your grandmother,” he said.

“Yes.”

The weight of that settled between them.

A beat. Recognition.

Even Sebastian didn’t speak immediately this time.

“You’ll be informed of the time,” Damien added.

Sebastian gave a slight nod. “We’ll be there.”

Silence stretched for a moment longer.

Then Sebastian spoke again.

“The driver.”

Damien’s expression didn’t change.

“Still being tracked,” he said.

“They won’t get far.”

At the far end of the corridor, a body was wheeled past, covered completely.

Unseen.

Unnamed.

But not forgotten.

Damien’s gaze followed it briefly.

Then retu

rned.

“The vehicle’s already been recovered,” he added. “Abandoned.”

Sebastian’s eyes sharpened. “And?”

“Traffic cameras,” Damien said. “We’re pulling everything.”

A pause.

Then..

“We’ll find them.”