Chapter 3 - The Woman Behind the Warning
The name hit the room like a bullet.
Victoria.
I didn’t know who she was.
But Adrian did.
And the second her name left his mouth, the man who had looked untouchable a moment earlier became someone else.
Someone carrying years of anger.
Years of betrayal.
Years of something much darker.
The phone was still pressed against his ear.
Nobody spoke.
Not Marcus.
Not me.
Not even Adrian.
Then the woman on the other end laughed softly.
A calm, almost gentle sound.
It was the kind of laugh that made my skin crawl.
"Still protecting strangers, Adrian?"
His jaw tightened.
"You shouldn't have contacted me."
"Oh, I think I had to."
Her voice remained calm.
"You finally found the girl."
I looked at Adrian.
The girl.
She was talking about me.
My stomach turned.
"Who are you?" I whispered.
Adrian heard me.
But he didn't answer.
Instead, his eyes stayed locked on the phone.
"You stay away from her."
A pause.
Then Victoria spoke.
"You don't even know who she is."
Adrian's expression changed slightly.
And that was enough.
Because suddenly I understood something.
This woman knew something about me.
Something Adrian didn't.
"I know exactly who she is."
Victoria's voice became quieter.
"Do you?"
The call ended.
Adrian stood completely still.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then Marcus spoke.
"Boss."
Nothing.
"Adrian."
Still nothing.
Finally, Adrian placed the phone down.
His eyes moved toward me.
And I hated that I could see the question in them.
Not suspicion.
Not anymore.
Something worse.
Doubt.
"What?" I asked.
He didn't answer.
"What did she mean?"
Silence.
"Adrian."
The way I said his name surprised both of us.
Because until that moment, he had been a stranger.
A dangerous stranger.
A man who held a gun against me.
But somehow, after hearing that phone call, I knew we were both trapped in something bigger than either of us understood.
He walked toward the window.
The Chicago skyline stretched behind him.
Beautiful.
Cold.
Unforgiving.
"Victoria Cross was someone I knew years ago."
"Someone?"
Marcus looked away.
That told me enough.
"Who was she?"
Adrian didn't respond immediately.
"Someone who disappeared."
I frowned.
"People don't just disappear."
"In my world, they do."
His voice was quiet.
I watched him.
For the first time, I saw something behind the power.
Behind the money.
Behind the reputation.
Pain.
"You think she sent me here."
"No."
His answer came too quickly.
That surprised me.
"Then what?"
He turned around.
"I think someone used you."
I shook my head.
"I don't understand."
"Neither do I."
That sentence scared me.
Because Adrian Vale admitting he didn't understand something felt impossible.
Marcus walked toward the table.
"There is something else."
Adrian looked at him.
"What?"
Marcus pulled out his phone.
"The hotel security footage."
"And?"
"We recovered the deleted files."
Adrian's eyes narrowed.
"Show me."
Marcus connected the phone to the screen.
The image appeared.
A hallway camera.
Fourth floor.
2:57 a.m.
I saw myself walking toward suite 412.
My stomach dropped.
There I was.
Completely unaware.
But then the video slowed.
A person appeared behind me.
A man.
Wearing a hotel employee uniform.
My breath stopped.
"Who is that?"
Marcus zoomed in.
The image became blurry.
But clear enough.
The person wasn't following me.
He was watching me.
Waiting.
Adrian stared at the screen.
"Enhance his face."
"We're trying."
The image sharpened slightly.
Then stopped.
A message appeared.
FILE CORRUPTED.
Marcus cursed quietly.
Adrian didn't move.
"He wanted us to see that."
I looked at him.
"Who?"
"Someone sending a message."
"To you?"
He looked at me.
"Yes."
"And I was the message?"
A pause.
Then he said:
"Maybe."
I hated how calm he sounded.
Like my life had become a chess piece.
Like I was something being moved between powerful people.
I stood up.
"Okay."
Both men looked at me.
"I'm done."
Adrian frowned.
"What?"
"I'm leaving."
I grabbed my clothes from the floor.
"I don't know who you are. I don't know who Victoria is. I don't know why someone took a picture of me."
I looked directly at him.
"But I know this isn't my problem."
I walked toward the bathroom.
Then stopped.
"Or at least it wasn't."
Because I knew the truth.
It already was.
When I returned several minutes later, I was dressed.
My hands were still shaking.
But I refused to show it.
Adrian was waiting near the door.
"You can't leave."
I laughed once.
Not because it was funny.
Because I was exhausted.
"You don't get to decide that."
"In my world, you don't survive by walking away from things you don't understand."
"In your world."
I pointed at him.
"That's exactly the problem."
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then Adrian stepped closer.
Not threatening.
Not aggressive.
Just serious.
"Someone knew where you would be."
I froze.
"They knew your schedule."
Silence.
"They knew the hotel."
Silence.
"They knew which room you would enter."
I swallowed.
"That means someone has been watching you."
The words hit harder than I expected.
Because suddenly I remembered things.
The strange feeling of being followed last week.
The unknown number that called and never spoke.
The email from an address I didn't recognize.
Small things.
Things I ignored.
Because I thought they were nothing.
Adrian saw the change in my expression.
"What?"
I didn't answer.
"What did you remember?"
I looked away.
"Nothing."
His eyes narrowed.
"You just lied."
I hated that he noticed everything.
"I don't know."
"Chloe."
The way he said my name stopped me.
It was the first time he had used it.
Not "the woman."
Not "the stranger."
My name.
And somehow that made it more dangerous.
"I've gotten weird messages recently."
Marcus immediately looked at Adrian.
"What kind?"
"I don't know."
"Show me."
I hesitated.
Then pulled out my phone.
I opened my messages.
There were three unknown numbers.
The first one was empty.
The second one had a single photo.
A picture of me leaving work.
The third one was from last night.
I had never opened it.
Because I was too tired.
Adrian took the phone.
He read the message.
His expression changed.
"What does it say?" I asked.
He didn't answer.
"Adrian."
He looked at Marcus.
"Lock down the building."
My heart sank.
"What?"
Marcus moved immediately.
Adrian handed me the phone.
I looked at the screen.
A single sentence.
A sentence sent at 2:56 a.m.
One minute before I entered suite 412.
"Sleep well, Chloe. Tomorrow you meet the man who will either save you or destroy you."
I looked up.
Adrian was already moving.
"Who sent it?"
He didn't answer.
Because he was staring at something outside the window.
Something below.
Something in the hotel driveway.
A black car had stopped.
The same black car from the security footage.
Adrian's face became cold.
"Stay here."
"No."
He looked at me.
"Chloe."
"I want answers."
For a second, he looked like he wanted to argue.
Then his phone rang.
Unknown number.
Again.
This time, he answered.
Nobody spoke.
Only breathing.
Then a voice whispered:
"Adrian."
His eyes hardened.
Because he recognized it.
May you like
The voice continued.
"You should ask Chloe why she doesn't remember the night her parents died."
