The Shadows behind the glass.
1257 Words
(Elara)
The soft vibrations of the air conditioner and the scent of lavender on my sheets were the only things I was aware of as I drifted somewhere between sleep and waking. I didn't mean to take a nap, not really. But after spending the entire day pretending I hadn’t discovered a near-hack and overheard Damon’s secret conversation, exhaustion had found its way in and wrapped itself around me.
I was startled when my phone buzzed beside me on the nightstand. My heart jumped, thinking it was another text from my dedicated stalker as I remembered all the warnings they had sent me. I heaved a sigh of relief when I saw the screen only read: Mom Calling.
I answered quickly, sitting upright on the bed as if Mom could see me slouching.
“Elara, sweetheart,” my mother’s voice sounded sad. “Are you okay? You’ve been quiet lately. We just wanted to check in.”
I exhaled and forced a smile into my voice. “I’m fine, Mom. Just tired. I am trying to adjust.”
Dad’s voice came on the line next. “We heard about a data breach at your school. The university sent out a vague report, and we haven’t heard from you.”
A breach at my college?
“Did you say there was a breach in my school?” I asked in shock.
“Yes,” my dad replied. “But don't worry, I had Damon check it out. It was just a virus according to what he was able to gather,”
He hid this from me? Another thing he refused to let me in on.
“That's okay,” I said, not knowing what else to say to them.
“I just want you to know that you are completely safe with Elara. I trust him with my life and I know he will do everything in his power to make sure you are okay,” I heard my dad say. I could detect some guilt in his voice, the same guilt I heard when he was away on the day of my sweet sixteen birthday party.
“Dad, what is going on? Who is coming after us? Why do we have to stay apart from each other? You guys aren't telling me anything and Damon isn't saying anything to me either,” I said as tears threatened to fall from my eyes. “This is bullshit!”
“Language Elara,” my dad scolded. Even at this time, he was more interested in the cuss word than answering the questions I had asked.
“I'm sorry I raised my voice at you. We just worry,” Dad said, his voice softer. “If you need anything, anything at all—”
I cut him off in the middle of his sentence. “The only thing I need is the truth. I need to know why I am in the middle of nowhere with Damon instead of being home with my parents,”
The line fell silent except for the sound of my parents breathing.
“It's only a matter of time, my dear,” my mom spoke. “We will tell you everything soon…i promise,”
Seeing as I wasn't going to get them to say anything, I decided to let it go.
“Can Camila visit at least? It's really lonely here and I'm beginning to feel like I'm in a prison,” I complained.
“You have to ask Damon first to make sure it's safe,”Mom replied causing me to roll my eyes.
“Sure,” I replied, sarcasm laced in my voice.
We exchanged a few more words, and I promised to call them tomorrow. When I ended the call, I leaned back against the headboard. My fingers were trembling as I tried to put everything together. How was this my life?
I was holed up in a mansion with Damon, the same man who had been off-limits since I was sixteen, who now walked around shirtless like sin incarnate?
It was a wonder I hadn't had any dreams about Damon pleasuring me since I moved into his mansion and I was grateful.
A knock on my door interrupted my chain of thought.
I jumped, heart pounding before I called out, “Yeah?”
The door opened to reveal Damon. He stepped in, dressed in a dark long-sleeved shirt and jeans. His hair was still damp from a shower, and he looked… effortlessly sexy. But there was a tightness in his jaw I had come to recognize.
“Did I wake you?” he asked in concern.
“No, my parents called. Just checking in.”
He nodded, stepping farther inside. “Good. You should keep in touch with them.”
Something about the way he said it made my chest tighten.
We stared at each other in silence for a moment. The room felt warmer suddenly.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
He blinked, like he hadn’t expected the question. “Fine.”
“You disappeared last night. After dinner. With that man.”
Damon’s lips twitched. “Business.”
Right. The kind of business that involved secret conversations about compromised files and hiding the truth from me.
Still, his tone was calm, almost too calm. I didn’t trust it. I didn’t trust him, not entirely. But something in the way he looked at me… the way he seemed to hold back like he was protecting me from something dangerous, it made it hard to push.
“Thanks again for letting me stay,” I said, standing up.
He looked me over, eyes lingering at my bare legs beneath the oversized t-shirt I’d stolen from one of my dad's drawers. “It’s not charity,” he said, voice low. “You’re here because I want you safe.”
“From what?” I asked almost immediately.
He didn’t answer. Just gave me a faint smile before nodding and turned to leave the room.
“Wait,” I called, stopping him in his tracks.
“Yes?,” he answered, turning to meet my eyes.
“Can my friend Camila visit, I feel lonely and...,”
“No,” he said and walked away from my room. Just like that.
I hated him, I was sure of it now.
I needed a distraction so as not to bash his head in.
A buzz echoed from my phone again. I paused, frowning as I picked it up.
Unknown Number.
My blood went cold.
Attached was a single image.
It was Damon’s house.
Taken from a distance.
At night.
From the woods.
I stood, dropping the laptop to the bed. My breath caught. Someone had been outside. Watching us. Watching me.
A message followed:
You shouldn’t feel safe. Pretty girls disappear too.
I nearly dropped the phone. My hands trembled, my stomach turning violently. Whoever had tried to hack me… this wasn’t just about the HOPE project anymore.
This was personal.
I scrolled back through the HOPE database, my fingers flying over the keyboard.
Then I saw it.
A second algorithm had put itself into the AI’s learning loop. One I didn’t write.
It had a single purpose: pattern recognition of individual movement.
My movement.
They were tracking me through my own code.
I backed away from the screen, eyes wide, breath shaky.
This wasn’t just about the government or my dad's past. This wasn’t just about Damon.
Someone else had embedded themselves into the middle of it.
And they were watching everything.
- Writer
