CHAPTER 5
1226 Words
Luna stared at her phone. The screen had gone black, but the voice still echoed in her ears.
“You shouldn’t have come back.”
Every instinct told her to run. But she couldn’t, not with Emery under Atlas’s roof, not while her daughter’s life hung in the balance. And not without knowing who had just found her.
Atlas stepped forward, his brow furrowed. “What did they say?”
Luna’s throat felt tight. “Someone called. No ID. Just one sentence. ‘You shouldn’t have come back.’ And then they hung up.”
He didn’t speak. His eyes darkened as he took the phone from her, checking the call log. “Blocked number.”
Luna nodded slowly. “Someone’s stalking me.”
Atlas's voice was low and controlled, but there was a sharp edge under it. “I’ll have security check all the entry logs and camera feeds. No one threatens someone under my roof.”
She let out a bitter laugh. “That’s comforting, coming from the man who once ruined my entire life with a single press release.”
He didn’t rise to the bait. “That was three years ago. And I’m not the same man I was then.”
“You’re still trying to control me.”
“I’m trying to protect you.”
“No,” she said. “You’re trying to cage me. There’s a difference.”
They stared at each other, the air thick with anger and history and things they couldn’t say out loud. Then, from down the hall, a small voice broke through the tension.
“Mommy?”
Luna turned.
Emery stood in the doorway, hair messy from sleep, her bunny clutched in her arms. “I heard shouting.”
Luna rushed to her. “I’m so sorry, baby. We didn’t mean to wake you.”
Emery looked past her at Atlas. “Is he mad at you?”
Luna hesitated. “No, sweetheart. We’re just... figuring things out.”
Atlas approached slowly, kneeling to Emery’s level. “Hi, Emery.”
She looked up at him with curious eyes.
“I’m your dad,” he said gently.
Emery blinked. “Mommy said you were far away.”
“I was,” he said, voice soft. “But I’m here now.”
She studied him. “Do you like bunnies?”
Atlas blinked. “I’ve... never had one.”
“This one’s name is Star,” she offered, holding it out. “You can pet her, but don’t squish her tummy. She doesn’t like that.”
Atlas reached out and gently tapped the bunny’s fuzzy head with one finger. “Nice to meet you, Star.”
Emery giggled, then yawned. “Okay. I’m sleepy again.”
Luna picked her up and carried her back to bed, brushing the hair from her daughter’s forehead. After she tucked her in, she returned to the living room to find Atlas standing by the window, back turned.
“She’s amazing,” he said, voice low. “You did all of this on your own.”
“I didn’t have a choice.”
“You shouldn’t have had to.”
She blinked. “Is that... regret I hear?”
His shoulders tensed. “Don’t twist it.”
“I’m not. I just didn’t think you were capable of regret.”
“I regret a lot of things,” he said quietly.
Luna stepped closer. “Then start fixing them.”
He turned to face her. “That’s what this is. Fixing it.”
“By marrying me against my will?”
“Call it what you want. But if you really wanted to walk away, you wouldn’t be here.”
She opened her mouth to argue but stopped when her phone buzzed again.
Same number. No caller ID.
Luna’s heart jumped.
Atlas stepped forward. “Answer it. Put it on speaker.”
She nodded and picked up.
“Hello?” she said, voice tight.
Nothing. Just a long breath.
“She won’t be safe there.”
Luna froze. “Who are you?”
“I warned you once. You should’ve stayed gone.”
Atlas grabbed the phone from her hand, already calling security. “I want a full sweep. Now. Check all cameras. Get me a list of every building staff member working tonight.”
Luna hugged herself, her hands cold. “You think it’s someone inside?”
“I don’t trust anyone.”
“Could it be your brother?” she asked. “The one who…..”
“No,” Atlas said quickly. “I told you times without number that Julian doesn't have anything to do with this.*
Her brows furrowed. “Then who?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But if they know you’re back, and they know you’re here, then this isn’t just about you.”
Luna’s stomach twisted. “What do you mean?”
Atlas turned to her, his voice lower now. “It means someone’s watching. Not just you. Us. Emery. And that means we’ve stepped into something much bigger than either of us realized.”
A knock sounded at the door.
Atlas stiffened and reached into the drawer of a nearby cabinet. Luna blinked as he pulled out a gun and tucked it behind his back before opening the door.
A man in a dark suit stepped in, crisp and composed.
“Nathaniel Cole,” the man said, eyes sharp. “Head of your new private security team. We’ve been monitoring building activity. There’s something you both need to see.”
He handed Atlas a tablet.
Luna stepped closer and watched as Atlas tapped the screen.
It showed footage from the lobby cameras. People coming in and out. Guests. Staff. Cleaners.
Then the image froze on a hooded figure standing in the corner by the elevators.
The timestamp was from twenty minutes ago.
Atlas zoomed in.
The figure never looked up, but something about their stillness made Luna’s skin crawl.
“Who is that?” she whispered.
“We’re still trying to find out,” Nathan said. “But here’s the part that matters.”
He flipped to the next clip.
The same figure. Standing outside the guest room door. Outside Emery’s room.
Atlas’s fist clenched. “How the hell did they get past the guards?”
“They didn’t enter,” Nathan said. “They just... stood there. Watching. Then left.”
Luna’s hands shook. “They were right outside her room?”
Atlas turned to Nathan. “Double the guards. Secure every entrance. I want facial recognition tracking every person who enters this building.”
Nathan nodded. “Already on it.”
As he left, Luna sank onto the couch, trying to calm her breathing.
“I shouldn’t have come,” she whispered. “I brought this into your world.”
“No,” Atlas said firmly, sitting beside her. “This isn’t just about your past anymore.”
Luna looked up, eyes wide.
“This is about all of us now,” he said. “And whoever they are, they’ve made the biggest mistake of their life.”
He stood, grabbed his coat, and h
eaded for the door.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
Atlas paused, looking back at her with a dark, unreadable expression.
“To find out who wants to hurt my daughter.”
- Writer
