42

Chapter 42

Adrian’s Pov

After I left Darcy in the hallway to my room, I turned on the tub for a quick bath before I went to sleep that night. It's been a terrible day already in the park so I was exhausted.

The bathwater was warm with a rose flower scent I added to make it smell nice on my body when I'm done bathing.

I removed my robe, entered the bathtub before I knew what was happening, then I slept off. Then the dream came. Sharp. Horror.

The dreams were real and I felt every pain like it was happening.

There were two men all in black but looked like those officers back in prison. They were taking me into the cell with force. I screamed but didn't hear myself.I tried to let loose of my hands and run but they were too strong for me.

“No! Let me go! Please!”

They didn’t respond. Nightmares never listened.

The walls around me transformed to where I knew before. It looked like the same prison I'd been before. The lights buzzing on and off never steady then the foul smell of rotten soup filling the air.

At the end of the hallway stood Martin and Amelia.

They were laughing. Loudly. Cruelly.

Martin stood with Amelia, his face looking sharp, smug, and merciless. They were laughing nonstop as they pointed their fingers at me.

“Did you really think you could escape?” Martin taunted. “ You think you'll have a better life?”

I tried to shun them off but my throat was tight as if it was covered with foam. Then I saw someone else—Darcy.

He stood behind them, watching. He was partly hiding behind the walls. His face was unreadable with cold emotions.

“Darcy,” I whispered. “Please... help me.”

He didn’t move. Didn’t blink. Just stared, detached and silent, as if watching something that didn’t concern him.

The men pulled me closer to the cell. Martin was laughing very loud and Amelia’s smile widened. "You’re useless Adrian."

It was so scary in that prison that I screamed...

And I woke up immediately, breathing heavily. The water I was inside spilled everywhere all over the sides of the tub even on the floor. My heart beat increased, my breath coming in short bursts.

Then I looked around and I was still in Darcy’s mansion, bathing and I was not in prison.

Nowhere is safe. The dream played again in my mind. Heavy. Suffocating.

"It's just a dream," I said, "calm down Adrian."

This dream was because I saw Martins at the park. It was just a trauma, I had told myself. But still, it felt too real, the pains, the terror. I was helpless in that dream, and then the question came : Is it really possible that I'd escape Martin?

I needed to calm down.

A tune came to mind—my mother’s lullaby. She sang it often before the accident. I don’t remember all the wordings of the song, but the tune still feels warm and gentle.

I hummed the song softly, then sang. The song made me feel calm for the time being. I wasn't afraid anymore. Then my breathing eased.

Then I heard it. It was a ringtone.

Not mine.

It was the emergency phone Darcy had given me earlier.

Fear shot through me. He’d said to use that number only if something happened to Pink.

I stood up, wet. I ran out of the bathroom without thinking. Water dripped down my body. My feet slipped on the tiles, I nearly fell but I didn’t care. All that mattered was Pink.

I rushed into the bedroom…

And froze.

"DARCY" I whispered...

Darcy was standing there in my room with the phone in his hand. We both stopped dead.

His eyes opened in shock.

His eyes movement went up and down tracing all the curves of my body . When he did that,I remembered I just rushed out of the bathroom completely naked, dripping wet, water pooling on the floor.

I should have shouted. Or run. Or grabbed a towel. But shock rooted me to the spot.

And Darcy... didn’t look away.

His eyes moved slowly down to my body, he didn't even want to looʻk away or turn back. For a second I felt he bit his lower lips.

The room grew hotter; he swallowed hard.

Then, I quickly covered my chest, but the rest of me was still bare. Praise lord, I shaved yesterday so it wasn't looking like a forest.

I moved to grab the curtain fabric in the window to cover my body. I was humiliated.

“I’m sorry,” Darcy said quickly, his tone rough and uneven. “I didn’t know you were... I called several times. When you didn’t answer, I got worried.”

Had I locked the door? Maybe not. I was too tired, maybe I forgot.

“What’s going on, sir?” I asked, trying to sound calm.

“Pink can’t sleep,” he said, forcing himself to meet my eyes. “She’s scared. It was a nightmare about the man from the park. I tried to comfort her, but she keeps asking for you.”

His concern for his daughter cut through my embarrassment. “I’ll come right away.”

He nodded.

He didn’t leave immediately, neither of us moved. We just looked at each other, his face was unreadable.

Tension filled the air.

He turned and left quietly, the door shut behind him.

I stood there with a lot of thoughts.

"Be calm Adrian, your body isn’t a new thing to him." I murmured, "he’d seen me naked before, he even fucked you. So... But that had been different. That night had been mutual, intentional. This was raw and exposed.

And the way he’d looked at me… it wasn’t just a surprise. It was hunger, like he wants me.

I forced myself to focus on my work here. Pink needed me. That came first.

I wore a long nightgown then went to Pink’s room.

Pink was sitting up in bed,with her toy, when she saw me, she came closer for a hug.

“Adrian! Can you stay here with me?.”

I sat beside her and pulled her close. “Yes, sweetheart. I will stay with you.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

I began to hum the same lullaby from earlier. Pink’s breathing slowed, soon enough she slept off.

I stayed a little longer, watching her peaceful face. She’d been through so much already. I couldn’t bear the thought of her suffering again.

Eventually, my thoughts drifted to Martin at the park, to the fear that still clung to me, to Darcy’s protective anger… and then to tonight. The nightmare. The phone. The look in his eyes.

What must he be thinking now? Was he embarrassed? Regretful? Or remembering that night we’d shared months ago?

My face heated at the thought.

I couldn’t go down that road again. He was my boss and engaged to someone else. She belonged in his world. I didn’t. I was just an ex-convict, a nanny.

But still that didn’t stop my heart beating faster when I remember the way he looks at me. The feelings I've for him are growing.

I looked at Pink again, sleeping soundly on her pillow, and felt tears in my eyes. I value her a lot. My job. Her safety. Not the burning desires I had for her father.

Here, my job is my first priority, to earn enough money, find my own place, and keep my head down. I couldn’t let Darcy Rodrigo affect me anymore.

But deep down, I knew something had shifted tonight. There was no going back acting like nothing happened.

Sleep didn’t come quickly, I picked up my phone to scroll through social media. Maybe a distraction would help.

Then a notification appeared.

Unknown number.

Probably spam. But something in me said to open it.

The image took a few seconds to load. When it did, my heart stopped.

It was me.

Years ago.

On stage at The Velvet Room, in the strippers club.

Half-naked and only nipple covers and a G-string. My face was visible. The picture was clear.

I froze. My hand started shaking as another photo appeared. Then another. Each one worse than the last, different nights, different outfits, all from a past I’d buried.

Who had these pictures? How did they get them?

My breath hitched as a new image loaded.

Mrs. Linda Chen, the manager from the strippers club.

She was unalived.

Her head was on the desk in a pool of blood. Her eyes open and blank

Then a single hole on her forehead showing where the bullet penetrated.

It looked deliberate—professional.

I’M COMING FOR YOU.

This message was written under the pictures,written in capital letters.

The phone fell from my hand to the floor. My heart skipped.

I kept looking at it, frozen, as the screen light faded.

Why? Who was doing this? Martin? Someone from the club? Someone who knew my past?

My heart was pounded painfully, this message is not an ordinary message. It was sent by someone who wants to destroy me or put me behind bars. The message keeps running through my mind.

Whoever this was—they knew everything.

And they were coming for me.