Beneath HIS EMPIRE

Chapter 5

The screen froze on my father’s face. Alive. Not a dream. Not a trick. He breathed. He moved. He walked into my flat like he owned it.

My fingers went cold. Mason sat next to me. His breath came short. “Selene… I didn’t know how to tell you.” I didn’t look at him. My eyes stayed on the screen.

Lucien stood still. His hands were fists. “That video is new.”

A guard hit keys. “Real feed. Time is real.” My throat shut. “My dad is dead.” No one spoke. The quiet rang in my ears.

The video played again. My dad pressed his palm to my flat wall. A panel slid open. He stepped inside like he’d done it before. The men in masks waited. He pulled out the metal box. The same one Mason talked about. My chest got tight. I bit my lip. Blood hit my tongue.

Lucien walked to the screen. “Stop it.” It didn’t stop. Again. My dad handed them the box. Then he turned. He looked straight at the camera. Straight at me. Mason grabbed my arm. “He said he’d come back.”

I shook my head. “No. I saw the paper—” Lucien cut me off. “Papers can lie.” I snapped my head to him. “Don’t.” “Don’t what?” “Don’t act like this is small.” His eyes locked on mine. “Nothing about your life has ever been small.”

The screen went black. My ears buzzed. Mason whispered, “He said the box keeps you safe.” My ribs hurt. “Safe from what?” Silence. Lucien moved first. “Where did they take him?” Mason swallowed. “Didn’t say. But I heard ‘harbor’.” Lucien’s jaw clicked. “I know that place.”

He turned to his men. “Get teams ready.” One guard stepped up. “Sir, east side is bad.” “I didn’t ask.” The guard ran. Boots hit the floor. I pushed up from the chair. My legs shook. “I’m going.” Lucien looked at me. “No.”

I laughed sharp. “You don’t own me.” “You’ll slow us down.” “My dad is alive.” The room went still. Lucien stepped close. “If he’s with them, you walking in there burns it all down.” I didn’t step back. My dad alive. His hands steady when he gave them the box.

Lucien grabbed his coat. “Then you stay on me. No steps alone.” I didn’t answer. I followed.

The cars tore through wet streets. Rain hit the glass. No lights. No noise. Just black cars in the night. I stared out the window. My face broke apart in the rain on the glass. Each blink, I saw it. My dad. Alive. Hands steady. Giving them the box.

Lucien spoke once. Eyes ahead. "Everything you've been told about your father is a lie." I said nothing. "He disappeared after he betrayed my family." Mason leaned forward. “What’s that?” Lucien didn’t look at him. “Drive.”

We stopped at the harbor. Fog hung low. Boxes rose like walls. Lights blinked on wet metal. Salt and rust filled my nose. Under that, fear. Lucien got out first. Then me. Cold bit my skin. Mason stayed in the car. A guard sat with him.

I walked with Lucien between the boxes. His men split left and right. Guns low. “No one shoots till I do,” Lucien said. I watched him. “So you’ll shoot your way in.” “I’ll get you out alive.” “That’s not an answer.” He stopped. Rain ran down his jaw. “For once, stop fighting me in a war zone.”

We hit a steel door. Lucien pressed his palm to a black pad. Green light. Click. It slid open. My stomach dropped. “You’ve been here.” “I had to be.” Cold air pushed out. Lights flickered inside. The room was wide. Empty. Too empty. One metal table stood in the center. On it, the box.

Lucien stepped in slow. My skin prickled. “Wait,” I said. Too late. Lights cut out. Black. CLICK. The door sealed behind us. Lucien spun. Too slow. Hiss. Gas fell from the vents. I slapped a hand over my mouth. Too late. My knees buckled.

Lucien caught my arm. His grip was iron. “Short breaths,” he said. A laugh came through the walls. My dad’s voice. “Lucien Armand. Still easy to read.” Ice ran down my spine. Lucien said nothing. The voice kept talking. “You brought her right where I need her.”

I tried to speak. My throat burned. Lucien pulled me to his chest. “Open the doors,” he said. “No.” The word came from every corner. My vision swam. The floor tipped. Lucien held me up. “You should have kept her out of this,” my dad said. Lucien’s voice was steel. “She is not your tool.”

A pause. Then my dad laughed. “You still think that?” THUD. Something hit the floor behind us. Metal scraped. The box. The lid rose slow. Light poured out. Not gold. Not cash. Paper. Files. Thick stacks. On top, a small black drive.

My dad’s voice went soft. “All you thought you knew… was a lie.” Lucien went still. For the first time, his face changed. Not mad. Lost. Then sirens screamed. Red lights flashed. Doors locked twice. A voice came through, close to my ear: “Selene, dear… welcome home.”

The wall behind the box slid open. A dark hall opened up. Footsteps. Slow. Steady. A shape stepped into the red light. Alive. Close. My dad. He looked at me. No smile. No sorry. Just eyes I knew. Eyes that used to check my homework.

Mason made a noise behind me. Hurt. Scared. I didn’t turn. Lucien moved in front of me. One step. His back to my chest. Gun up. “Stay back,” he said. My dad tilted his head. “Put that down, Lucien. You know it won’t help.”

Lucien didn’t move. “You let them shoot Mason.” “He was in the way.” My dad’s gaze slid past Lucien. Landed on me. “Hi, sweetheart.” My knees almost hit the floor. That name. He said it when he fixed my bike. When he bandaged my knee. Now it cut me open.

“Why?” I got one word out. It cracked. My dad walked to the table. He picked up the drive. “Because you were never meant to be safe, Selene. You were meant to be bait.” The room spun. Lucien’s arm shot back. Held me up. “She’s not yours,” Lucien said. His voice shook. Furious.

My father looked at Lucien first.

Then at me.

His expression didn't change.

"You've been standing beside the wrong man this entire time."

My heart stopped.

Lucien didn't move.

Neither of them looked surprised.

Only I was.