CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

 

The nightmares started again three nights later.

Adrian hadn’t had them in years.

Not since childhood.

Not since the lake.

But now they returned in fragments.

Cold water.

Blurred voices.

A hand reaching for him through darkness.

And every single time—

just before he woke—

the face changed.

Sometimes it was Seren.

Sometimes—

it wasn’t.

—

Adrian woke sharply at 4:12 a.m., breathing hard.

Rain hammered against the penthouse windows.

The room was dark except for the faint glow of city lights beyond the glass.

Beside him, Seren slept peacefully.

Or pretended to.

He sat up slowly, pressing a hand against his jaw.

Something was wrong.

Not physically.

Something deeper.

Like a memory trying to claw its way to the surface.

He closed his eyes again.

And suddenly—

a detail returned.

Not the lake.

Not the fall.

A voice.

Soft.

Young.

Trembling.

“You’re okay.”

Adrian froze.

The voice didn’t sound like Seren.

His heartbeat slowed painfully.

Because for the first time in his life—

he realized he couldn’t actually remember Seren pulling him from the water.

Only waking afterward and seeing her there.

The realization disturbed him more than it should have.

—

The next morning, Adrian canceled two meetings for the first time in nearly a year.

Damien stared at him across the office in disbelief.

“You’re sick.”

“I’m thinking.”

“That’s somehow worse.”

Adrian ignored him.

“Do you remember the incident at the lake?”

Damien blinked.

“What?”

“When we were kids.”

Damien frowned slightly.

“Not much. Why?”

Adrian leaned back slowly.

“What do you remember about Elara back then?”

That question earned him silence.

Long silence.

Then—

“She followed Seren everywhere,” Damien said carefully. “Quiet kid. Smart. Kind of invisible.”

Invisible.

The word hit something inside Adrian immediately.

Because that was exactly it.

Elara had always been there.

But somehow—

never fully seen.

“What brought this on?” Damien asked cautiously.

Adrian’s gaze moved toward the skyline.

“I don’t know.”

That was the problem.

He truly didn’t.

—

Across the city, Elara sat inside her office while Naomi reviewed schedules aloud.

“You have the investor dinner tomorrow, the press conference Friday, and your medical appointment moved to Monday.”

Elara paused mid-signature.

“What?”

“The clinic called. They moved it.”

Elara nodded once.

But tension settled instantly in her shoulders.

Because routine mattered now.

Predictability mattered.

Especially with the pregnancy becoming harder to hide beneath fitted dresses and endless work schedules.

Naomi noticed the shift immediately.

“You’re worried.”

“I’m careful.”

“There’s a difference.”

Elara looked toward the window.

Far below, the city moved endlessly beneath gray skies and traffic lights.

Everything continued.

No matter what happened to people inside it.

“I can’t let him find out yet,” Elara said quietly.

Naomi softened slightly.

“You think he’d react badly?”

Elara laughed once.

Not because it was funny.

Because it wasn’t.

“You’ve seen Adrian when he loses control.”

Yes.

Naomi had.

And that was exactly why she understood the fear in Elara’s voice now.

Because Adrian Hale didn’t experience emotions halfway.

When he loved—

he consumed.

When he hated—

he destroyed.

And if he discovered the pregnancy while already unraveling emotionally—

no one knew what would happen.

—

That evening, Seren arrived at the Hale estate earlier than expected.

She found Richard Hale alone in his study.

He barely glanced up when she entered.

“You’re restless,” he observed calmly.

Seren forced a smile.

“I didn’t realize it showed.”

“Everything shows eventually.”

Something about the statement unsettled her immediately.

Richard Hale was not a warm man.

Not cruel either.

Just observant in ways most people found uncomfortable.

And right now—

he was watching her too carefully.

“You seem concerned lately,” he continued.

“I’m fine.”

“No one says ‘I’m fine’ more than unhappy people.”

Seren’s smile weakened slightly.

Richard finally looked up from his paperwork.

“Adrian has been distracted.”

Her chest tightened instantly.

“You’ve noticed?”

“Everyone has.”

The words landed heavily.

Because if everyone noticed—

then it was already worse than she thought.

Richard leaned back slowly.

“He’s asking questions.”

Fear slipped visibly across Seren’s face before she could stop it.

And Richard saw it.

Every bit of it.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

“About the lake?” he asked quietly.

Seren’s blood ran cold.

The silence that followed told him everything.

Richard studied her for a long moment after that.

Then finally—

“You should be careful, Seren.”

Not threatening.

Not protective.

Worse.

A warning.

—

Later that night, Adrian stood alone in the archives room inside the Hale estate.

Old photographs covered the table before him.

Family events.

Business gatherings.

Summer vacations.

And there—

a picture from the lake.

Adrian picked it up slowly.

The image was faded with age.

Three children near the shoreline.

Seren smiling brightly at the camera.

Adrian standing beside her.

And slightly behind them—

Elara.

Watching.

Not smiling.

Not unhappy either.

Just distant.

Like someone already used to standing outside the frame.

Adrian stared at the picture far longer than necessary.

Then something caught his attention.

The timestamp.

The photograph had been taken minutes before the accident.

And Elara’s clothes—

were wet.

His breathing slowed.

Why would her clothes be wet before anyone realized he had fallen in?

Unless—

The thought hit so suddenly he nearly dropped the photograph.

No.

That didn’t make sense.

Did it?

His chest tightened painfully.

Memory flickered again.

Hands dragging him upward.

Cold shaking breaths.

Dark hair sticking to someone’s face.

Not lighter hair.

Dark.

Adrian stepped back abruptly.

“No…”

The word left him under his breath.

Because deep down—

something horrifying was beginning to form.

—

Across the city, Elara stood alone on her apartment balcony, one hand resting lightly against her stomach.

Wind moved through her hair softly.

The city lights below blurred beneath exhaustion.

She closed her eyes briefly.

And suddenly—

emotion hit her harder than expected.

Not fear.

Loneliness.

A deep, aching loneliness she had ignored for years because surviving had always mattered more than feeling.

But tonight—

she felt it.

Strong enough to hurt.

“You’re getting emotional,” she whispered bitterly to herself.

Maybe it was the pregnancy.

Maybe it was exhaustion.

Or maybe she was simply tired of carrying everything alone.

Her phone buzzed softly behind her.

A message from Naomi.

You need rest.

Elara stared at it for a moment before replying.

Soon.

But even as she typed the word—

she knew it was a lie.

Because rest implied safety.

And something inside her told her safety was running out.

Fast.

—

Back at the Hale estate, Adrian remained frozen beside the old photographs.

The rain outside intensified.

Thunder echoed distantly across the city.

But he barely heard it.

Because one thought had now rooted itself violently inside his mind—

What if he had remembered wrong all these years?

And once that question existed—

he could no longer escape it.