Chapter 17

The second car door opened and the moment shifted before she could even decide what to do with everything already in front of her, because the person stepping out didn’t move like someone walking into a controlled situation, and the second her eyes landed on him properly, recognition hit without delay in a way that didn’t fit into anything she had been trying to make sense of.

“You,” she said before she could stop it, her voice low but clear enough, because seeing him here didn’t match anything about the setup around her, not with the road blocked, not with the men already in place, not with Sebastian still on the line giving instructions like he was the one in control.

He didn’t react the way he should have, didn’t pause, didn’t question it, he just closed the door behind him and looked straight at her like this was expected, like her being here was part of something already decided.

“Thought you’d take longer,” he said, calm, like timing mattered more than everything else happening.

She didn’t answer immediately, her focus staying on him as everything else around her felt less important for a second, because this wasn’t just someone from her past showing up in the middle of something dangerous, this was someone who wasn’t supposed to be connected to any of this at all.

“You know him,” the man beside her said, his tone quieter now, more careful, like the situation had just changed in a way he hadn’t planned for.

She didn’t respond, because the problem wasn’t knowing him, the problem was how he fit into everything else happening right now, and before she could speak again, he did.

“Still doing this the same way,” he said, but he wasn’t looking at her anymore.

He was talking to Sebastian, the silence on the line came instantly, different this time. Heavy.

“You picked a bad place,” he added.

That was enough, that alone confirmed this wasn’t new between them.

“Who is he,” she asked, her voice sharper now, because she wasn’t gonna stand in the middle of something like this without answers.

No one responded immediately, and that silence felt like both sides choosing what to reveal and what to hold back.

“You didn’t tell her,” he said finally, looking back at her.

it wasn't a question, but a statement.

“Tell me what,” she said.

“Ask him,” he replied.

***

“Sebastian,” she said, her tone tighter now.

“It doesn’t change anything,” he replied.

“You don’t get to decide that,” she said immediately, because this wasn’t something he could redirect anymore.

“It changes everything,” the man in front of her cut in without hesitation.

The shift was instant.

“How do you know him,” she asked, not taking her eyes off him now.

He tilted his head slightly, studying her like the answer was obvious.

“Better question,” he said, “why do you think he found you first.”

That didn’t land lightly, because it didn’t feel like a guess, it felt like something already known.

“Say it properly,” she said.

“You weren’t hard to find,” he replied.

“You were just taken first.”. and that changed everything.

Her grip tightened at her side because that meant this wasn’t just about being chased, it was about being moved before anyone else got to her.

“Sebastian,” she said again, quieter now, more focused.

“Don’t listen to him,” he replied.

“Why not,” she asked.

No answer again, the same silence... The man in front of her exhaled slightly like he expected that.

“Still the same,” he said.

Then his attention shifted slightly, not to her, not to the cars around them, but past her like something else had just entered the moment.

“Too late,” he said quietly.

Aria didn’t miss that.

Her focus snapped instantly, her body reacting before her mind caught up because that tone wasn’t for her, it wasn’t for Sebastian, it was for something else.

Then she heard it. An engine, close, too close.

She turned just enough to see it, another car cutting into the space behind her, not slowing, not adjusting, just coming straight in like stopping wasn’t part of the plan.

“That’s not mine,” the man in front of her said.. and for the first time, something shifted in his voice, not fear, but awareness which was worse.

“Sebastian...” she started.

“Move,” he said immediately.

No explanation, no delay, just that.. she didn’t think twice, she didn’t question it, she just moved fast but not away, she went forward

Because the car behind didn’t slow, it didn’t hold it's brake, itt didn’t hesitate at all.

It hit hard.

The impact slammed into the back of her car, throwing everything forward in one violent second, the sound sharp enough to cut through everything else, and for a split second control slipped just enough to matter.

“Get down!” Sebastian’s voice cut through.

But it was too late, the second hit came faster and stronger , not from behind but from the side.

Metal collided hard, glass cracking, the force pushing the car off balance just enough to make everything inside shift again, and in that moment nothing felt controlled anymore.