Chapter 3

Rachel's POV

The morning arrived quietly over the Raphael mansion, wrapped in gray skies and lingering rain. 

I opened my eyes slowly, exhaustion sitting heavily in my chest, I had barely slept. Every time I closed her eyes, I heard her father’s voice again. “You will marry Matthew Kane.”

The words felt less like a sentence and more like chains tightening around her throat.

For several moments, I simply stared at the ceiling above my bed, listening to the faint sound of rainwater sliding against the windows. The mansion was unusually silent today, no laughter from Elena, no sharp commands from Clarissa.

I slowly turned my head toward the bedside table, the black card still rested there. “Matthew Kane accepts.”

A cold feeling crawled through my stomach instantly, I grabbed the card quickly and shoved it into the drawer beside my bed as if hiding it would somehow make everything disappear, but nothing disappeared in this house. Pain only waited patiently until it found you again.

I sat up slowly, my thoughts drifted to Lucas.

The tightness in my lungs eased slightly at the thought of him, Lucas Grant had never looked at me the way everyone else did. He never treated me like a burden, never looked at me with pity or calculation.

With him, I could breathe, a small, painful smile touched my lips as memories surfaced.

University lectures where Lucas used to sneak coffee onto my desk because he knew I skipped breakfast whenever things became difficult at home, the way he used to make stupid jokes just to hear me laugh.

The night after my mother’s funeral when I had sat outside the church completely numb while everybody else offered empty condolences Lucas had sat beside me quietly for almost an hour before finally saying softly,

“You always look like you’re trying to survive something.”

I remembered staring at him in shock, because he had seen me, not the Raphael name, not  the wealthy family, and not even the carefully controlled mask.

And somehow that frightened me almost as much as it comforted me, I reached for my phone now, opening our old messages.

I reread them slowly, hundreds of conversations, the small jokes, the late-night confessions, the arguments, the apologies, the love hidden between ordinary words.

Then my eyes landed on one message, one day I’ll get you out of there, a tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it.

I wiped it away quickly, because now I might lose him.

Not because I stopped loving him, but because powerful people had decided my life belonged to them.

My phone suddenly buzzed, I frowned slightly, three missed calls from an unknown number.

My stomach twisted uneasily, before I could think too deeply about it, another notification appeared, a new message, from Lucas.

Meet me today, please, I closed my eyes briefly.

Then typed back only one word, “Where?”

The café sat hidden near the older side of the city, tucked between narrow streets and faded brick buildings untouched by modern luxury.

I pulled my hood lower as I stepped out of the taxi, even after leaving the mansion, I kept checking over my shoulder nervously, fear has become instinct now.

The soft sound of jazz music greeted me as I entered the café, warm lights glowed against dark wooden walls, and there he was.

Lucas, the  second he looked up and saw me,  his expression softened instantly, concern filled his eyes almost immediately.

My chest ached, I hadn’t realized how badly I needed someone to look at me gently.

Lucas stood quickly, “Rachel.”

The moment he wrapped his arms around me, something inside me nearly broke apart.

I held onto him tightly, breathing him in like safety itself. There was Clarissa, no Victor, no Matthew Kane, no Elena. 

Just warmth, Lucas pulled back slightly, studying my face carefully, “What did they do this time?” He asked. 

I looked away immediately, “They want me to get married,” she whispered.

Lucas frowned slightly, “To who?”

I hesitated, then finally forced myself to say it, “Matthew Kane.”

Lucas’s entire body went still, even the color drained slightly from his face, “Matthew Kane?” he repeated quietly.

I nodded, there was fear in his eyes now.

Everyone feared Matthew Kane, both politicians, business men, and criminals. A man powerful enough to destroy lives with a single command.

I explained everything slowly, Victor’s demands, Clarissa’s manipulation, the engagement announcement, the threats.

Lucas listened quietly, but she could feel the anger building inside him, finally he leaned forward sharply, “Then we leave.”

I blinked, “What?”

“We leave this city,” Lucas said firmly. “Tonight if we have to.”

I stared at him, part of me wanted to say yes immediately, to run, to disappear, to finally escape this suffocating life. But reality crushed the hope almost instantly.

“You don’t understand,” I whispered painfully. “My father would find us.”

“Then let him.”

“You don’t know what these people are capable of.”

Lucas grabbed her hand gently across the table, “You don’t belong to them, Rachel.”

My eyes burned instantly, I wanted to believe him so badly.

Lucas squeezed her hand softly, “We can figure this out together.”

I closed my eyes for a moment, fighting tears. Because for the first time since Victor announced the marriage, I almost believed escape was possible.

Outside the café, rainwater slid slowly across the windows.

Neither of them noticed the black luxury car parked across the street, and the camera pointed directly toward them.

……

Inside the vehicle, two men sat silently behind dark tinted windows, one lifted a camera slightly, another photograph captured Rachel holding Lucas’s hand.

“The girl met the ex-lover,” one man reported quietly into an earpiece.

Then a calm male voice spoke, “Did she look afraid?”

The two men exchanged glances, one answered carefully, “No… unhappy.”

I stepped outside the café beside Lucas, the unseen men watched carefully.

Noticing everything, The sadness in her eyes, The tension in her shoulders, The way she looked around cautiously without realizing she was already being watched.

“Keep watching her,” the voice ordered calmly.

“Yes, sir,” one of the men hesitated slightly before asking,

“Should we intervene?”

The answer came smooth and cold, “Not yet.”

The line disconnected, Inside the car, another file was opened, Rachel’s photograph slid neatly into place beside several others.

At the top of the folder, bold letters read: RACHEL RAPHAEL.

……

By the time I returned to the mansion, evening shadows had already settled across the estate, the large iron gates closed behind me with a heavy metallic sound.

Something immediately felt wrong, the mansion was too quiet, I stepped inside cautiously.

I froze when I saw Clarissa waiting in the hallway, and Elena leaning casually against the staircase railing nearby with amusement sparkling in her eyes.

My heartbeat quickened instantly.

Clarissa smiled slowly, “Did you enjoy seeing Lucas?”

My blood turned cold, “What?”

Clarissa held up several photographs, I and Lucas inside the café, when I hugging him, holding his hand, talking closely.

Elena laughed softly, “Your little love story is honestly pathetic.”

I grabbed the photographs with trembling hands, “How did you get these?”

Clarissa ignored the question entirely, instead she stepped closer, “If Matthew Kane discovers you’re still entertaining another man,” she said quietly, “Lucas Grant could disappear.”

Real fear slammed into my chest, not for myself but for Lucas. Clarissa noticed instantly, a cruel satisfaction flashed across her face.

“Powerful men don’t like competition,” she added softly.

My breathing became uneven, “You can control my life,” I whispered shakily, “but you cannot control my heart.”

The slap came so suddenly my head snapped sideways, pain exploded across my cheek, silence filled the hallway, even Elena looked slightly surprised. I slowly lifted a hand to her burning face.

Clarissa stepped closer, eyes cold and sharp, “You still haven’t learned.”

I stared at her with tears burning painfully behind my eyes, then a movement upstairs caught my attention, Victor stood at the top of the staircase watching everything, their eyes met briefly.

I waited for my own father to say something but Victor simply turned away and disappeared down the hallway as though I wasn’t worth defending.

Late that night, I stood alone on the rooftop overlooking the city, wind pushed through my hair violently while distant thunder rolled across the skyline.

I wrapped my arms around herself tightly, my cheek still hurt. Below me, the city lights stretched endlessly into the darkness.

I touched my mother’s necklace beneath my shirt, then closed my eyes.

Thoughts crashed endlessly through my mind, Lucas, Clarissa, Victor, and Matthew Kane.

A man I had never even met was already controlling my future,  rage slowly replaced fear, for years I had survived quietly.

“I won’t let them own me,” I whispered into the wind.

The words felt small, but real, and for the first time in years, something stronger than helplessness stirred inside my chest.

I inhaled slowly, I would protect Lucas, I would uncover whatever secrets Clarissa was hiding, and I would never be powerless again.

My phone suddenly vibrated, I frowned, that unknown number again….. a chill slid down my spine, I opened the message slowly.

- You should stop meeting Lucas Grant.

My heart nearly stopped, another message appeared immediately afterward.

- Danger follows people you love.

I looked around sharply, the rooftop was empty, but suddenly I no longer felt alone.

Fear crawled slowly through my chest, far below the mansion gates, partially hidden beneath shadows and rain, a black luxury car waited silently.

And inside it, a  man watched the rooftop with unreadable eyes.