Chapter 14 – Poisoned Smiles
517 Words
The music flowed.
The dancers glided.
The smiles around Serena felt rehearsed.
Every person who approached them wore elegance like armor.
“Mr. Blackwood,” a woman said, draped in diamonds. “Such a pleasure.”
Adrian nodded politely.
Her eyes slid to Serena.
“And you must be…?”
“Serena,” Adrian answered for her.
The woman smiled wider.
“Charming. You’re very lucky.”
Something in her tone suggested the opposite.
They moved on.
Serena leaned closer to Adrian.
“I feel like prey.”
“You are,” Adrian said calmly. “So is everyone else.”
That did not help.
A waiter passed with champagne.
Serena reached for a glass.
Adrian stopped her.
“No.”
She blinked.
“Why?”
“You didn’t watch him pour it.”
Her stomach twisted.
Another waiter approached moments later.
Adrian watched closely as the drink was poured in front of them.
“Now,” he said.
Serena took the glass.
Her hands felt unsteady.
They hadn’t even taken two steps when a woman deliberately bumped into Serena.
The glass tipped.
Liquid splashed across Serena’s dress.
“Oh my goodness!” the woman exclaimed dramatically. “I’m so clumsy!”
The liquid burned.
Not her skin.
But her instincts.
Something was wrong.
Adrian smelled the fabric.
His jaw hardened.
“Take her to the restroom,” he ordered Ethan, who had appeared instantly.
Serena’s pulse spiked.
“What’s happening?”
“Walk,” Adrian said.
Inside the restroom, Serena stared at herself in the mirror.
The blue fabric was stained dark.
Her chest felt tight.
“What was in that drink?” she asked.
Ethan answered.
“Sedative.”
Serena’s knees nearly buckled.
“They were trying to drug me?”
“Yes.”
Her breath came fast.
Adrian entered.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
“Victor,” Serena whispered.
Adrian nodded.
“They wanted you vulnerable.”
Serena hugged herself.
“If you hadn’t stopped me…”
“You don’t finish that sentence,” Adrian said.
He turned to Ethan.
“Double security. No one approaches her without clearance.”
“Yes, sir.”
Silence filled the restroom.
Serena stared at Adrian.
“Why me?”
Adrian stepped closer.
“Because you matter.”
Her heart skipped.
“I’m just a dancer.”
“You’re a liability,” he said. “To Victor. To his plans. That makes you valuable.”
That explanation felt incomplete.
But she didn’t push.
A replacement dress was brought.
Black.
Sleek.
Deadly elegant.
When Serena emerged, the party resumed as if nothing had happened.
But everything had changed.
Serena noticed glances.
Whispers.
Judging eyes.
A woman leaned toward another.
“She’s trouble.”
Serena heard it.
Adrian heard it too.
“Let them talk,” he murmured.
Victor appeared again.
Slow clapping.
“Impressive survival instincts,” he said.
Adrian stepped forward.
“You’re running out of chances.”
Victor leaned closer.
“So are you.”
Serena realized something terrifying.
This wasn’t about intimidation anymore.
Victor was escalating.
And the next move might not fail.
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