Chapter 5Her Last Words
797 Words
Sophia collapsed into my arms.
Warm blood covered my hands.
“No—no, no, no!”
Her body trembled violently as I pressed my hands against the wound in her chest.
“Somebody help her!”
Police officers ran in every direction.
People screamed.
Lucian’s security team immediately formed a shield around us.
“Sniper on the rooftop!” someone shouted.
Gunfire erupted.
I barely heard it.
All I could hear was Sophia struggling to breathe.
“Bella…”
Her voice was weak.
Broken.
I leaned closer, crying uncontrollably.
“I’m here.”
She coughed blood.
“I’m sorry…”
“For what?”
Her trembling hand grabbed mine.
“It was my father…”
My heart stopped.
“What?”
Tears streamed down her face.
“He betrayed your father.”
I couldn’t breathe.
“No…”
“He worked with someone.”
“Who?”
Sophia’s body shook violently.
“I don’t know his name…”
“Please, Sophia—please!”
She looked terrified.
“All I know…”
Blood spilled from her lips.
“…is that they were looking for something your father hid.”
My body froze.
“What did he hide?”
Her eyes filled with panic.
“I don’t know…”
She coughed violently.
“But your father said…”
Her voice faded.
“What did he say?!”
She stared at me with tears.
“Never trust…”
Bang.
Another gunshot echoed.
Lucian tackled me to the ground.
Glass shattered above us.
People screamed again.
The second bullet missed my head by inches.
When I looked back—
Sophia was gone.
Her eyes remained open.
Lifeless.
“No!”
I screamed so loudly my throat burned.
Lucian pulled me against his chest as his guards fired back.
“Get her out of here!”
I fought him.
“Let me go!”
“Arabella!”
“She was trying to tell me something!”
“She’s dead!”
His words hit me like a slap.
I froze.
Everything stopped.
Sophia was dead.
My mother was unconscious.
My father was dying.
And someone wanted me dead too.
Lucian forced me into the armored SUV.
I punched his chest repeatedly.
“This is your fault!”
He grabbed my wrists.
“Enough.”
“You ruined everything!”
His jaw tightened.
“You think I wanted this?”
“Yes!”
He looked at me with something raw.
Something painful.
“You have no idea what I’ve sacrificed to keep you alive.”
I stopped fighting.
“What?”
He looked away immediately.
Like he regretted saying it.
The SUV sped through the city.
I wiped my tears angrily.
“What are you hiding from me?”
Silence.
“Lucian!”
He finally looked at me.
And for the first time—
his walls cracked.
“Ten years ago…”
His voice was quiet.
“Your father saved my life.”
I froze.
“What?”
He stared out the window.
“My father wanted me dead.”
My heart pounded.
“What are you talking about?”
Lucian’s voice turned emotionless again.
“The Devereaux empire wasn’t built legally.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
“My father ran weapons, trafficking operations, political corruption.”
I couldn’t breathe.
“And your father?”
“He helped me escape.”
I blinked rapidly.
“That makes no sense.”
“Because your father wasn’t innocent.”
That shattered everything again.
“He worked for my father for years.”
I stared at him in horror.
“No.”
“He helped build the empire.”
“No!”
Lucian grabbed my chin gently but firmly.
“Look at me.”
Tears blurred my vision.
“He tried to leave.”
My breathing became uneven.
“And?”
Lucian’s expression darkened.
“Someone wouldn’t let him.”
“Who?”
His phone suddenly rang.
He answered.
Then his face turned pale.
Impossible.
Lucian Devereaux looked shaken.
That terrified me.
“What happened?”
He ended the call slowly.
Then whispered—
“They found your father.”
Relief flooded me.
“Is he alive?”
Lucian looked directly into my eyes.
And shattered me again.
“He escaped prison.”
I froze.
“What?”
Lucian’s voice dropped lower.
“And he took something before he disappeared.”
My entire body shook.
“What did he take?”
Lucian answered:
“A file powerful enough to destroy both our families.”
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Sophia dies after revealing her father’s betrayal—but before she can expose the full truth. Lucian reveals Arabella’s father once saved his life and may be connected to his criminal family empire. Now her father has escaped prison with a file that could destroy both families.
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