Chapter Eight — Watched
720 Words
Nobody spoke for several seconds after Dira lowered the phone.
Radi looked nervous immediately.
“What did he say?”
Dira swallowed hard.
“‘You should’ve stayed hidden.’”
Mandy stood up instantly.
“Okay, that’s officially psycho behavior.”
Radi grabbed Dira’s phone.
“Block the number.”
“It won’t matter,” Dira whispered.
The room suddenly felt unsafe.
Mandy walked to the window and peeked through the blinds carefully.
“Do you think somebody’s outside?”
“You watch too many crime shows,” Radi muttered, though she sounded scared too.
Dira tried calling the number back.
No answer.
A few seconds later, a text message appeared.
This isn’t your world, Dira. Walk away while you still can.
Her hands trembled.
Mandy read the message over her shoulder.
“Oh, absolutely not.”
She immediately grabbed her hoodie.
“Where are you going?” Radi asked.
“To tell Mom and Dad.”
Downstairs, Jacob’s expression darkened the moment he saw the message.
Emily looked horrified.
“This is exactly what we were afraid of.”
Dira crossed her arms.
“You knew this could happen?”
Jacob sighed heavily.
“When Vanessa contacted us months ago, she warned us about Vincent.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me?” Dira snapped.
“Because we hoped he’d never find out about you.”
Emily sat beside Dira gently.
“Sweetheart, the Monroe family has enemies everywhere. Your grandfather was extremely powerful.”
“That still doesn’t explain why some creepy uncle is threatening me.”
Before anyone could answer, the doorbell rang.
Everyone froze.
Mandy whispered immediately:
“Please tell me nobody’s dumb enough to open that.”
Jacob carefully walked toward the front door and checked the security camera.
His face changed instantly.
“It’s Vanessa.”
Relieved, Emily opened the door quickly.
Vanessa rushed inside looking panicked.
“You got the call too, didn’t you?” she asked Dira.
Dira nodded slowly.
Vanessa cursed under her breath.
“That means Vincent moved faster than I expected.”
Radi frowned.
“How dangerous is this guy exactly?”
Vanessa hesitated.
Then quietly said:
“Dangerous enough that I hired private security for all of you tonight.”
Mandy blinked.
“Private WHAT?”
Two black SUVs suddenly pulled into the driveway outside.
Men in dark suits stepped out.
Radi stared through the window.
“Oh my God…”
Dira looked at Vanessa.
“You’re serious.”
“I told you the Monroe family isn’t normal.”
By midnight, two security guards stood outside the Carter house while another vehicle waited across the street.
The entire situation felt unreal.
Mandy actually seemed excited by it.
“I’m not gonna lie,” she admitted while eating cereal, “this is kind of cool.”
Radi looked horrified.
“We’re literally being stalked.”
“Yeah, but in a billionaire way.”
Dira sat quietly on the couch hugging a pillow.
Vanessa noticed immediately and sat beside her.
“You’re scared.”
Dira looked at her.
“Shouldn’t I be?”
Vanessa’s expression softened.
“When I was your age, my father controlled everything around me. I spent years terrified of disappointing him.”
“And Vincent?”
“He worshipped him.”
Dira frowned.
“So why leave the inheritance to me?”
Vanessa stared into space briefly before answering.
“Because deep down, I think my father regretted what he did to us.”
Us.
That word stayed in Dira’s mind.
For the first time, Vanessa sounded less like a stranger and more like family.
Then suddenly—
One of the guards outside shouted.
Everyone jumped.
Jacob rushed toward the window.
A black car sped away from across the street.
“What happened?” Emily cried.
The security guard ran toward the house.
“There was someone watching the property,” he said urgently.
Dira’s heartbeat quickened instantly.
“Did you see who it was?”
The guard nodded once.
“He left before we could stop him.”
Vanessa looked pale.
Then the guard added:
“But he dropped something.”
He handed Vanessa a silver lighter engraved with the letter V.
Vanessa’s face drained completely.
Dira noticed immediately.
“What is it?”
Vanessa looked up slowly.
“It belongs to Vincent.”
- Writer
