Chloe's fingers shook as she gripped the phone.
She had tracked Vex all night, calling contacts, asking questions, pushing for answers.
And then—
A single voice spoke. Calm. Deliberate.
"Miss… I have information about Vex."
Her heart skipped a beat. Relief and fear tangled.
"What is it? Where is he?!" she demanded.
The voice paused. Cold, careful.
"Vex is… gone. The job—"
Chloe froze, breath catching. "Gone? Gone how?"
Before the voice could answer, there was a sudden, metallic click.
A soft grunt.
A sharp gasp.
And then—silence.
Chloe's pulse spiked. "Hello? Hello? Are you there?"
No answer.
She pressed the phone to her ear tighter, her voice rising. "Answer me! What happened?"
Still silence.
A whisper, faint, almost drowned by static, floated through the line:
"You shouldn't have called…"
And then—click.
Dead line.
Chloe's blood ran cold.Chloe's fingers shook as she held the dead phone to her ear.
"You shouldn't have called…"
The words echoed in her mind. Ice ran through her veins.
Then, without warning, headlights blazed from the street. A massive truck barreled toward her car, engine roaring.
Her hands froze on the wheel.
Metal screamed as the vehicle slammed into hers with a force that twisted the frame. Glass shattered. Airbags exploded.
The car skidded across the asphalt, finally coming to a stop against the curb.
Chloe's vision blurred. Pain lanced through her side. She tried to move, but the car trapped her.
Bystanders screamed and ran, some pulling out their phones.
"Call 911! Someone—please!"
Minutes later, sirens wailed. EMTs extracted her from the crumpled car. She was alive, but barely. Blood streaked her hair, her breathing shallow.
Hospital Scene — Lucian Arrives
The hospital hallway smelled of antiseptic and tension. Monitors beeped steadily in the background.
Chloe's eyes fluttered open in her hospital bed. She smiled faintly, thinking she saw a familiar figure approaching. Relief and hope flickered across her face.
"Lucian…" she whispered, weakly.
He stopped beside the bed—but it wasn't Lucian Ashbourne.
Her smile faltered. "What…?"
Lucian stepped closer. Sadness and steel in his sea-blue eyes.
"I know what you did," he said softly, but every word cut like a blade.
Chloe's heart skipped. "I… I—"
Lucian shook his head. "I blame myself… for not seeing the truth sooner. For believing you."
She tried to reach for him, trembling. "Lucian… please…"
He shook his head again, voice calm but merciless:
"It's too late for apologies."
Lucian turned, his coat sweeping behind him.
Chloe's voice rose, panicked, raw:
"Lucian! Don't leave me!"
"Lucian! Don't leave me!"
"Lucian! Don't leave me!"
But her weak body couldn't move. She was trapped in the bed, unable to stop him from walking away.
Lucian disappeared from the room as Chloe's sobs echoed off the sterile walls.
Outside, the world went on—but inside, she realized: she had lost control. She had no more leverage.
The hospital room was quiet except for the steady beep of the monitor and Chloe's ragged breaths.