Chapter 3The Devil’s Rules
725 Words
“My mother disappeared?”
The words barely left my mouth before I grabbed Lucian’s arm.
“Where is she?!”
Lucian looked at me sharply.
“Let go.”
“I swear to God, if this is another one of your sick games—”
“It isn’t.”
His voice cut through my panic like a blade.
And somehow—
that terrified me more.
Because Lucian Devereaux was many things.
Cruel.
Controlling.
Infuriating.
But he never sounded afraid.
Until now.
He grabbed his car keys.
“Move.”
I stood frozen.
“What?”
His jaw tightened.
“We’re going to the hospital.”
Within seconds, his security team surrounded us.
The elevator ride felt endless.
I could barely breathe.
My mother was weak.
She could barely walk without assistance.
How could she disappear?
Unless—
Someone took her.
The thought made my stomach twist violently.
The moment we entered Lucian’s armored black SUV, I turned toward him.
“Tell me everything.”
He stared straight ahead.
“The hospital cameras were disabled for seven minutes.”
My blood went cold.
“Seven minutes?”
“That was enough time.”
“To do what?”
His silence terrified me.
“Lucian.”
His jaw clenched.
“To take her.”
I nearly screamed.
“No.”
My hands shook violently.
“No, no, no—”
Lucian suddenly grabbed both my trembling hands.
The warmth of his hands shocked me into silence.
“Listen to me.”
His voice lowered.
“We will find her.”
Tears fell down my cheeks.
“You don’t know that.”
His eyes darkened.
“I do.”
Something about his tone made me stop panicking for half a second.
Like failure wasn’t an option for him.
The SUV stopped violently.
We rushed into the hospital.
Chaos exploded around us.
Security guards everywhere.
Police questioning nurses.
Doctors panicking.
Then I saw her nurse.
I grabbed her.
“What happened to my mother?!”
The nurse burst into tears.
“I’m sorry!”
“She was sleeping—then the lights went out—when they came back she was gone!”
I froze.
“Did you see anyone?”
The nurse hesitated.
Then nodded.
“There was a woman.”
Lucian stiffened.
“What woman?”
The nurse swallowed hard.
“She looked exactly like your wife.”
Silence.
I stared at her.
“What?”
“She wore sunglasses and a mask... but she had the same hair color... same height... same face structure…”
My blood turned cold.
Lucian’s expression became dangerously unreadable.
Someone disguised themselves as me.
Why?
To kidnap my mother?
Then a detective approached us.
“Mr. Devereaux.”
Lucian turned.
The detective handed him a sealed evidence bag.
“We found this in Mrs. Laurent’s hospital room.”
Lucian opened it.
Inside was a silver necklace.
My breathing stopped.
No.
No.
No.
That necklace—
I knew that necklace.
My cousin Sophia wore it every day.
She once called me her sister.
She cried with me at my father’s arrest.
She promised to help me survive this.
And now her necklace was found in my mother’s room.
“She wouldn’t…” I whispered.
Lucian looked at me.
“Do you trust her?”
“Yes.”
My answer came too fast.
Too emotional.
And Lucian noticed.
“That means nothing.”
I glared at him.
“She’s family.”
His laugh was cold.
“That usually makes betrayal easier.”
Before I could argue—
his phone rang.
He answered.
Listened.
Then his face darkened with lethal rage.
“Where?”
Silence.
“We’re coming.”
He ended the call.
“What happened?”
His expression turned deadly.
“We found your mother.”
Relief nearly made me collapse.
“Thank God.”
Then he said—
“She was found unconscious in an abandoned warehouse.”
My relief died instantly.
“What?”
“And she wasn’t alone.”
My heart pounded violently.
“Who was with her?”
Lucian stared directly into my eyes.
“Your cousin Sophia.”
My world shattered all over again.
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Arabella’s missing mother is found unconscious in an abandoned warehouse—but beside her is someone Arabella trusted most: her own cousin Sophia. Is Sophia the real traitor behind her family’s destruction?
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