CHAPTER THREE — No One Is Safe Anymore
1063 Words
The words still echoed in Lila Morgan’s mind like a broken alarm.
Ashford.
She stood in the dim alley, rain dripping from her hair, her breathing uneven as she stared at Daniel Cross.
“No,” she whispered firmly, shaking her head. “This is wrong. I don’t know any Ashford. I’m Lila Morgan.”
Her voice cracked slightly at the end but she refused to step back.
Daniel watched her without blinking.
He wasn’t surprised by her denial.
He expected it.
“You don’t have to believe it,” he said calmly. “But it doesn’t change what you are.”
Lila clenched her fists. “Stop talking like you own my life.”
A silence followed.
Cold.
Heavy.
Then Daniel took one step closer not threatening, just final.
“I don’t own your life,” he said. “I’m trying to keep it from being taken.”
Before she could respond, a deep engine sound rolled through the street.
Lila froze.
Daniel turned slightly.
His expression changed.
Not fear.
Calculation.
“Move,” he said immediately.
Lila didn’t move fast enough.
A black SUV appeared at the end of the street again same one. Same men.
But this time, there were more.
Doors opened.
Three… then five figures stepped out.
Lila’s heart dropped.
“They found us again,” she whispered.
Daniel didn’t look away from them.
“No,” he said quietly. “They never left.”
Lila’s breathing turned uneven. “What do they want from me?!”
Daniel finally looked at her.
And this time, his voice was lower.
Serious.
“You.”
The word hit harder than the rain.
Before she could react, Daniel grabbed her wrist not rough, but firm and pulled her behind him.
“Stay behind me,” he ordered.
“I don’t need”
“Now.”
Something in his tone stopped her argument.
Not fear.
Authority.
The men began walking forward.
Slow.
Confident.
Like they already owned the outcome.
One of them spoke loudly:
“Step aside, Cross. This has nothing to do with you.”
Daniel tilted his head slightly.
“It does now.”
The man sighed. “You’re protecting a girl you don’t understand.”
Daniel’s eyes darkened.
“I understand enough.”
A pause.
Then
The man raised his hand slightly.
And in an instant, chaos broke loose.
Footsteps erupted.
Daniel moved first.
Not running.
Striking.
Fast.
Precise.
One of the men rushed forward Daniel sidestepped, grabbed his arm, twisted CRACK the man dropped.
Lila gasped.
“Wh...what are you doing?!” she shouted.
“Surviving,” Daniel replied coldly.
Another man lunged.
Daniel blocked, pushed him into the wall, then turned sharply just as a third approached.
Everything happened too fast.
Too controlled.
Too professional.
Lila stepped back instinctively, her heart pounding so hard she could barely think.
“Daniel!” she called.
But he didn’t look at her.
Not even once.
Because his focus was entirely on keeping her alive.
Another man pulled something from his coat
A weapon.
Lila saw it.
Her breath caught.
“Daniel behind you!”
He turned instantly.
Too late?
No.
Not for him.
He grabbed the attacker’s wrist mid-motion, twisted, and the weapon fell to the ground.
A sharp kick sent the man down.
Silence returned just as quickly as it broke.
Three men were down.
The rest hesitated.
That hesitation saved them.
Because sirens began faintly in the distance.
The attackers looked at each other.
“Retreat,” one of them snapped.
They backed away quickly, disappearing into the SUV.
Within seconds, the street was empty again.
Only rain remained.
Only breathing.
Lila stood frozen.
Her hands were shaking.
“What… what are you?” she whispered.
Daniel turned slightly toward her.
His coat was wet now.
His expression unchanged.
“A man who knows when to act,” he said simply.
Lila shook her head. “That was not normal.”
Daniel didn’t argue.
Instead, he stepped closer.
“Neither is your situation.”
She swallowed hard.
Her mind was spinning.
Nothing made sense anymore.
The word Ashford echoed again.
And suddenly
A sharp flash hit her mind.
Not imagination.
Memory.
A grand hall.
Golden lights.
A woman’s voice
“Little Miss Ashford, don’t run too far…”
Lila gasped, stumbling slightly.
Daniel noticed immediately.
His eyes narrowed.
“What did you see?”
“I… I don’t know,” she whispered. “I saw something… a house… a big place…”
Another flash.
A staircase.
White gloves holding her hand.
Then gone.
She grabbed her head. “Stop… why am I seeing this?”
Daniel stepped closer, studying her reaction carefully.
“Because it’s real,” he said.
Lila looked up sharply. “No! I would remember living in a mansion!”
Daniel’s voice softened slightly but not with comfort.
With certainty.
“Memory can be removed,” he said.
That sentence froze her completely.
“You’re lying,” she whispered.
“I don’t lie about things that can get you killed.”
Silence.
The rain grew heavier again.
Lila’s breathing slowed slightly but not from calm.
From shock.
Daniel glanced around the street once.
“We can’t stay here,” he said.
She stepped back. “I’m not going anywhere with you again.”
A pause.
Then Daniel looked at her directly.
For the first time… something different crossed his face.
Not coldness.
Concern.
“You don’t have a choice anymore,” he said quietly.
Before she could respond
His phone vibrated.
He checked it.
His expression changed instantly.
Lila noticed.
“What is it?”
Daniel didn’t answer immediately.
Then he turned the screen slightly toward her.
A message.
Unknown sender.
Short.
Cold.
Final.
“THE REAL HEIRESS HAS BEEN FOUND.”
Lila’s breath stopped.
Her knees almost gave way.
“What… does that mean?” she whispered.
Daniel closed the phone slowly.
His eyes lifted toward the dark street ahead.
“We just became targets,” he said.
A pause.
Then
“More than before.”
Far away, another engine started.
Closer this time.
Multiple.
Daniel stepped in front of Lila again.
Fully blocking her this time.
And in the distance… headlights appeared through the rain.
Approaching slowly.
Unstoppably.
Daniel’s voice dropped lower.
“Stay behind me no matter what happens.”
Lila’s heart pounded violently.
“Daniel…”
But he didn’t look back.
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