جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 156

Jaxen Sleep had finally won the battle against my restless mind, though it wasn't peaceful. Every dream seemed determined to remind me of the people I wanted to forget. One minute I was standing in front of Jackson while he laughed in my face, the next Viktor was calmly asking me to marry him as though he'd just invited me to dinner. Somewhere in between, Charles kept calling my name, but no matter how hard I tried to reach him, something always pulled me away. By the time I jerked awake, my heart was pounding so violently that for a split second I couldn't tell whether I was still dreaming or if someone had actually entered the apartment.The sound of the front door opening answered that question.Every muscle in my body tensed.Without thinking, I threw the blanket aside and reached for the kitchen knife I'd hidden beneath the coffee table earlier that afternoon. My fingers wrapped tightly around the handle as I crept toward the entrance, careful not to make a sound. Whoever was co

CHARLESIvan was never the type to ask me to meet him unless something serious had happened. That was why, the moment his text came in asking me to meet him at a quiet park on the edge of the city, I knew it wasn't going to be good news. The park itself was almost empty when I arrived. A few elderly men sat on distant benches playing chess, children chased pigeons near the fountain, and joggers passed by every now and then without paying attention to anyone else.It looked peaceful, but the tightness in my chest refused to ease. Ivan was already waiting near one of the benches with both hands buried inside the pockets of his jacket. The moment he saw me walking toward him, he didn't smile. That alone told me whatever he had discovered wasn't something either of us wanted to hear."I've been here for almost fifteen minutes," I remarked after stopping in front of him. "You sounded urgent over the phone.""I was.""What happened?"Ivan looked around cautiously before m

Charles I had never been the type to go through drawers without a reason.Today, I had one.The study was quiet except for the faint hum of the air conditioner and the occasional clicking sound as I pulled one drawer after another open. I wasn’t looking for anything specific anymore. It had started with a missing document, but somewhere along the way, instinct had taken over. Something about this house had felt… wrong ever since Jaxen disappeared.I slid open the last drawer of the mahogany cabinet.A black phone stared back at me.I frowned.That wasn’t mine.I picked it up, turning it over in my hand. No scratches. No case. It looked almost brand new. Pressing the power button only confirmed my suspicion.Encryption.Not the standard passcode either. This was military-grade security—custom software, hidden operating system, the kind of phone people carried when they didn’t want to be found.“What the hell…”Who in this house had been using a burner phone?And why was it hidden here