Novel-novel oleh Ameerah ZB

Edrick’s POVFinding Leonardo was supposed to be a key point. He is the mastermind, and with an eye on him, finding Alina would be way easier. But had vanished.No flights under his name.No activity on his known accounts.No sightings from his usual contacts.It was as if he had dissolved into thin air.By the fourth day of nonstop searching, my body finally gave in. My head throbbed. My vision blurred from lack of sleep.I drove home.The mansion gates opened slowly, almost accusingly.Four days.I had ignored every call.Every message.Every responsibility that wasn’t Alina.The front door barely closed behind me before someone collided with my chest.“Edrick!”Aria.She stumbled back, hands protectively on her bump, eyes blazing.“Where have you been?” she demanded. “You haven’t picked up my calls. You haven’t come home. You’ve ghosted everyone for four whole days!”I stared at her, stunned.“Do you know Alina has been missing?” I asked.She blinked.“What?”“She’s been missing f

Alina’s POVI had lost count of the days.At first, I tried to track them.I scratched tiny marks into the wooden floor beside me with a loose nail I found near the wall.One.Two.Three.But after the beatings started, after exhaustion swallowed my sense of time, the marks stopped.Now it was just darkness.Cold.And the heavy smell of damp wood and stale air.I did not know where I was.The room was small, barely large enough for me to stretch my legs fully. The walls were wooden planks, old and cracked. Through one thin opening between the boards, a narrow line of light slipped in.That crack was my only connection to the outside world.Sometimes the light was bright.Sometimes it was dim.That was how I guessed day from night.My wrists were tied behind a metal pipe bolted into the wall. My ankles were bound too, the rope rough against my skin. My mouth was gagged most of the time.I had fought the first day.I screamed.Kicked.Tried to run when he untied me briefly.That earned

Edrick’s POVAlina was gone.And there would be no rest for me until she was found.Sleep had become a stranger. Food tasted like nothing. Time blurred into endless hours of phone calls, meetings, and waiting for updates that never came fast enough.Now that I knew she had not simply run away… now that I had seen the footage with my own eyes…There was no peace left in me.She was in danger.And every second that passed felt like sand slipping through my fingers.It had been three days since we pulled the CCTV footage.Three days since I last went home.I had not stepped foot into the mansion.I had not showered properly.I barely changed clothes.My office had become my war room.Maps spread across the table. Screens looping footage. Names. Leads. Dead ends.If she was hurt…If she was scared somewhere…If she was kept in a cold, dark torture whole…If she cried every night hoping for it to end…Or, if she had lost hope already…The thought made my chest tighten until it was hard to

Edrick’s POVDanger.The word echoed in my mind.I forced my face to remain composed.“I’ll get to the bottom of this,” I said firmly. “I promise you.”But beneath my controlled tone, panic was clawing its way through me.She could be fine.She could have changed her mind.She could be hiding somewhere, determined to cut all ties.Or…She could be in real danger.Leonardo’s face flashed in my mind.I straightened.“Take me to the station.”…The train station was crowded as usual, people moving, announcements echoing overhead.To them, it was just another day.To me, it felt like a crime scene.We went straight to the information desk.“I need access to the passenger records for the trains that departed four days ago,” I said coldly.The attendant blinked. “Sir, we can’t release that information due to privacy protocols.”I leaned forward slightly.“You will.”“Sir, without proper authorization…”“Shut your mouth.” I said, not wanting to hear his whining. Then stepped back and made

Edrick’s POVIt had been days.Days since I last saw her.Days since I heard her voice.Days since I felt that pull in my chest that only Alina could create.I had gone to the bar more times than I cared to admit. I went under the excuse of a drink. Under the excuse of checking on things. Under the excuse of coincidence.But she was never there.At first they said she was off shift.Then they said she had not come in.Then they said she had stopped coming altogether.Did she resign because of me?Did she finally decide I was not worth the trouble?My jaw tightened at the thought.My spies had reported that she had not left the house on Friday and saturday, and sunday. After that, their updates became uncertain. They said she drove out with Lila one evening, and that they came back. They said the curtains stayed drawn. No movement. No confirmed sightings. They said they haven't seen her since then, and its like she was probably sick. So she was staying in. I tried calling her.The lin

Alina’s POVIt had been two days since the tests.Two days since my world cracked open and refused to close again.I had not stepped out of my room.I had not eaten.I had barely slept.I lay on my bed staring at the ceiling, replaying everything over and over again until my thoughts felt like knives scraping against my skull.A soft knock came on the door.“Alina,” Lila’s voice called gently. “Please open the door.”I closed my eyes.“I’m not hungry,” I said weakly.“You haven’t eaten in two days,” she replied, her tone breaking. “At least drink something.”“I’m fine.”I was not fine.I heard her sigh on the other side. She knocked again, softer this time.“Please.”I turned my face into my pillow and pressed it over my head to block her out.Silence eventually followed.And then the tears came again.They came in waves, violent and uncontrollable. My body shook with them. I cried until my throat hurt and my chest felt hollow.Why did my life keep getting worse?What had I done to de