Into the unknown

Sophia’s POV

The cabin’s living room is a frozen tableau of terror, the helicopter’s roar vibrating through my bones as its blinding light floods the shattered windows. I’m crouched behind the couch, Julian’s hand gripping mine, his body a tense shield between me and the chaos outside. Asher’s pacing near the door, his phone clutched tightly, his face pale as he mutters updates from Rob, Julian’s fixer. The message I just received a photo of this very cabin, with the chilling words “You can run, but you can’t hide”burns in my mind, a taunt from an enemy I can’t name. Lucas? Emily? Nadya? Or someone new, someone tied to Julian’s dark past, his vendetta against Lucas’s family? My hand rests on my stomach, protecting the life growing inside me Julian’s child, the secret that’s turned my world into a warzone.

The knock at the back door low, deliberate, menacing sends my heart into overdrive. Julian’s eyes snap toward it, his switchblade gleaming in his hand, his jaw set with a determination that both comforts and terrifies me. “Stay here,” he whispers, his voice low but firm, as he motions for Asher to flank him. I want to protest, to cling to him, but my voice is trapped in my throat, choked by fear. The helicopter’s thumping grows louder, the light sweeping across the room like a hunter’s gaze, and I hear boots crunching outside, voices barking orders. This isn’t just a warning anymore it’s an invasion.

I press myself against the couch, my bare feet cold against the hardwood, my mind racing. Lucas’s cruelty has haunted me for years, his cold gray eyes and controlling grip a prison I thought I’d escaped. But now, with Julian, I’m still running, still hiding, and the stakes are higher than ever. My baby,our baby is a beacon of hope, but also a target. Whoever sent that message knows I’m pregnant, knows I’m here, and they’re closing in. I think of Emily, her jealousy a poison that’s festered since childhood, her laughter when I confessed Lucas’s cheating. Or Nadya, Julian’s ex, whose obsession could drive her to madness. Or someone else entirely, someone tied to the secrets Julian’s keeping his revenge against Lucas’s family, the accident that took his parents.

Julian creeps toward the back door, Asher at his side, their movements silent but tense. I clutch the blanket tighter, my heart pounding so hard I’m sure they can hear it outside. The knock comes again, sharper this time, and I flinch, my breath catching. Julian glances back at me, his blue eyes fierce with a promise to protect me, but I see the flicker of doubt in them, the weight of a man who knows he’s facing something bigger than himself. “Sophia, stay low,” he says, his voice a lifeline in the chaos.

Before he can reach the door, a deafening crash shakes the cabin, the front wall splintering as a blast of heat and light erupts from the direction of the living room. I scream, ducking lower, as debris rains down, wood and glass biting into the floor. Julian lunges back, pulling me into his arms, his body shielding mine as the helicopter’s roar drowns out everything. “They’re breaching!” Asher shouts, his gun raised, his arm bleeding from a graze he took earlier. My mind spins breaching? Who are these people? Mercenaries? Lucas’s hired guns? Or someone worse, someone with a deeper grudge?

Julian drags me toward the back of the cabin, toward the service exit leading to the garage. “We’re getting out,” he says, his voice steady despite the chaos. Asher covers us, firing a shot at the shadows moving outside, but the intruders are too many, their silhouettes dark and precise through the shattered windows. I stumble after Julian, my bare feet slipping on the debris, my heart in my throat. The helicopter’s light sweeps over us, pinning us like prey, and I hear a voice cold, commanding bark, “Target’s in the house! Move in!”

We reach the back door, and Julian yanks it open, revealing the dark garage where the SUV waits. But before we can move, a figure steps from the shadows, their face hidden behind a tactical mask, a pistol gleaming in their hand. My breath catches, my body freezing as their eyes glinting with malice lock on mine. “Going somewhere, Sophia?” they ask, their voice muffled but chillingly familiar. I know that voice, but I can’t place it not Lucas, not Emily, not Nadya. Someone else, someone who’s been watching, waiting.

Julian steps in front of me, his blade raised, his voice a low growl. “Back off, or you’re done.” The figure laughs, a sound that sends ice through my veins, and cocks the pistol. Asher’s behind us, his gun trained on the intruder, but I see the hesitation in his eyes he’s wounded, outnumbered, and we’re running out of time.

“You’ve made a lot of enemies,” the figure says, their tone dripping with satisfaction. “And now it’s time to pay.” They raise the pistol, and I brace myself, my hands clutching Julian’s arm, my mind screaming for a way out. But before they can fire, a second explosion rocks the cabin, flames licking at the walls, and the floor beneath us groans, splintering. I scream as a hidden trapdoor swings open, a dark tunnel yawning below, and something,someone grabs my ankle, their grip cold and unyielding.

“Julian!” I cry, my hands scrabbling for his as I’m yanked downward, the darkness swallowing me. His fingers slip from mine, his shout of my name echoing as I’m dragged into the tunnel, the trapdoor slamming shut above me. The air is damp, musty, the walls tight and suffocating. I thrash against the grip on my ankle, my hands scraping against rough stone, my heart pounding with terror. “Let me go!” I scream, but the figure pulling me is relentless, their strength overwhelming.

The tunnel stretches endlessly, the faint sound of the helicopter fading above, replaced by the echo of my own ragged breathing. My captor’s grip loosens slightly, and I twist, catching a glimpse of their silhouette tall, cloaked, their face obscured by a hood. “Stop fighting, Sophia,” they say, their voice low, almost gentle, but it sends a chill through me. “You’re only making this harder.”

“Who are you?” I demand, my voice shaking but defiant. “What do you want?” My hands clutch my stomach, protecting my baby, the only thing keeping me from collapsing into panic. I think of Julian, fighting above, of Lucas, whose obsession might have driven him to this, of Emily, whose jealousy could have turned deadly. But this feels bigger, more calculated, like a chess game I’ve been pulled into without knowing the rules.

The figure doesn’t answer, dragging me deeper into the tunnel, their steps sure, as if they know this place. My mind races, piecing together fragments the photo, the laser dot, the voice outside the safehouse. Whoever this is, they’ve been planning this, watching me, waiting for the perfect moment. The tunnel opens into a wider chamber, dimly lit by a single flickering bulb, and I see crates stacked against the walls, weapons glinting inside. A safehouse beneath a safehouse,a secret even Julian didn’t know.

The figure stops, turning to face me, and my breath catches as they pull back their hood, revealing a face I never expected.

The flickering light catches their features, and my heart stops as I recognize them not Lucas, not Emily, not Nadya, but someone I thought was an ally, someone I trusted. Their smile is cold, triumphant, as they raise a syringe, the needle glinting with a clear liquid. “This is for your own good, Sophia,” they say, stepping closer, and I scream, backing away, only to find the tunnel sealed behind me, no escape, as the needle descends, and darkness threatens to claim me. Who is this betrayer, and what do they plan to do with me and my unborn child?