Chapter 5 Shades and Shadows

Maya had never been to Adrian's apartment before. It was tucked away in a quiet part of the city, an old building with creaky floors and tall windows. He said it was the only place he still felt belonged to him, untouched by his father's influence.

When she stepped inside, the silence pressed in like fog.

Adrian locked the door behind her. "You'll be safe here tonight," he said.

She glanced around. The walls were lined with books-philosophy, science, history-but scattered between them were fragments of someone lost. A broken watch, framed photos with faces cut out, a drawer full of letters never sent.

"Do you live here alone?" she asked, her voice low.

He paused. "Yes. I used to live here with her, but I moved everything of hers out months ago."

Her.

Maya didn't ask more. Not yet.

She settled into the couch while Adrian made tea. When he returned, she took the cup but didn't sip.

"Why didn't you tell me you were married before?" she asked.

Was it necessary to keep it s secret?

He didn't flinch.

"Because I was ashamed. Because she wasn't just someone I married ,she was someone my father chose."

Maya looked up.

Is marriage something you let someone else make the decision on who it should be?

"She came from one of the old families," Adrian explained. "They're all connected "

You know this web of powerful people tied to my father's world. She was meant to keep me tied to it. And when I pulled away, she... lost control."

"But you did love her right?"

He hesitated. This is where I need you to listen to me,he peered in to her eyes before he continued .

"I wanted to". But it always felt like I was loving a stranger who already had a knife behind her back."

What if I got stabbed?

Maya stared into her tea.

"I should've told you sooner," he said. "I just didn't want you to look at me like you're looking at me now."

Her eyes met his. "I don't know how I'm looking at you."

"Like you're trying to decide if I'm worth trusting."

There was a silence between them, thick and sharp.

Finally, Maya whispered, "You are."

And for the first time in weeks, she saw his shoulders relax.

They sat quietly, the kind of quiet that's fragile and filled with questions neither wanted to ask. But then Maya leaned forward and said, "There's something else I haven't told you."

Adrian nodded. "Go on."

"I think I'm pregnant."

The words hung in the air like thunder.

Adrian froze, blinking once. Twice.

Then, softly, "You think...?"

"I took a test," she said quickly. "It wasn't clear. But I've been... feeling different. I'm going to the clinic tomorrow to be sure."

Adrian swallowed hard. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"Because I didn't know what it would mean. I still don't."

He looked like he had a hundred things to say, but instead he nodded. "Whatever happens, I'm here."

Maya wanted to believe him. She really did.

But her gut kept twisting.

And that night, as she tried to sleep in his apartment, she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching.

She got up at 3 a.m., drawn to the window. The street outside was empty, but something caught her eye. A piece of paper, folded neatly and placed at the front gate.

She slipped on her coat and tiptoed out.

The paper was damp with dew, but the ink was fresh.

You think he's safe. He's not. You think you're in love. You're not. He'll destroy you like his father destroyed mine.

The note wasn't signed. Again.

But this time, Maya noticed a smear of lipstick on the edge of the page-dark crimson. And a fingerprint.

She took a photo of it before returning inside.

Adrian was awake when she walked back in, eyes wide.

"You went outside?"

"I found this."

She handed him the note.

His jaw clenched. "It's her. She's watching again."

"She said your father destroyed hers."

Adrian's eyes narrowed. "That doesn't make sense..."

"Unless your father had a hand in something bigger-something personal. A betrayal, maybe. Or a woman."

Adrian looked away, visibly disturbed.

"I need to talk to someone," he said. "Someone who used to work for him. A cleaner-one of his old men. He disappeared after my mother died, but I know where he hides now. Maybe he knows more."

"Will it be safe?"

"No," Adrian said. "But at this point, we don't have a choice."

Maya reached into her pocket and pulled out one last note from her father's notebook. "Then let's go together. My father wouldn't want me running anymore."

As they packed up, neither of them noticed the small red laser dot that blinked once across the window pane, then vanished.

They weren't alone.