Chapter 5 5

Alex Pov

I drove back to the penthouse with my hands gripping the steering wheel so tight my knuckles turned white. Caroline's words echoed in my mind: I have cameras watching your penthouse, too.

The elevator couldn't move fast enough. Every second felt like an eternity.

When I burst through the door, Sophia looked up from the couch, her face pale but relieved. "Alex! Thank God you're back. Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," I lied, forcing my voice to stay steady. "How are you? Did anyone try to contact you?"

She shook her head, then her expression shifted to something more troubled. "Actually, I got a call from Dad. He and Marcus can't make it back today. There's a major issue with the company's overseas contracts. They might be stuck in London for another week."

My stomach dropped. Another week of keeping Sophia safe while Caroline watched our every move.

"They said they're sorry, but business comes first." She tried to smile, but I could see the disappointment in her eyes. "Guess it's just us for a while longer."

Just us. If only she knew how dangerous that was becoming.

"What about the blackmailers?" she asked quietly. "Did you... did you handle it?"

"It's resolved," I said, the lie tasting bitter on my tongue. "You don't need to worry about it anymore."

Relief flooded her features. "Good. I was so scared..." She stood up, running her hands through her hair nervously. "Actually, there's something I need to do. I need to go back to my penthouse to get my suitcase-the one I left when I... when I caught Ethan." Her voice caught slightly. "I know you got me new outfits, and I'm so grateful for that, but I have important files in that suitcase. Work documents I can't replace."

Every alarm bell in my head started ringing. "Sophia, I don't think that's safe..."

"It's fine," she interrupted. "Ethan can't hurt me anymore. Besides, I'll be quick. Just grab some clothes and personal things."

The drive to her penthouse felt like driving toward a cliff. I sat in the backseat beside Sophia, watching her fidget with her hands. My driver, James, kept his eyes on the road, but I could see him checking the mirrors occasionally.

"I'll escort you up," I said as we pulled up to her building. "

"No, Alex." Her voice was firm but gentle. "I need to do this alone. If Ethan sees you or anyone with me, it'll just make everything worse. Please. Just give me fifteen minutes."

Against every instinct screaming at me, I nodded reluctantly. "Fifteen minutes, Sophia. Not a second longer."

She smiled and squeezed my arm. "I'll be fine."

I watched her disappear into the building, then sat in the car, counting every second. James glanced at me through the rearview mirror, sensing my tension.

Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then fifteen.

At eighteen minutes, I couldn't take it anymore. I bolted from the car and ran into the building, taking the stairs three at a time to her penthouse floor.

The door was unlocked.

That was the first warning sign that made my blood freeze.

I pushed it open slowly, and that's when I heard it, the sound of glass shattering, followed by Sophia's voice, high and desperate.

"Stop it, Ethan! Just stop!"

I ran toward the sound, my heart hammering against my ribs. In the living room, I found them. Sophia was backed against the wall near the window, tears streaming down her face, while Ethan stood inches from her, his fist raised as if he was about to strike.

"You destroyed everything!" he was screaming, his face contorted with rage. "Five years, Sophia! Five years down the drain because you can't forgive one mistake!"

"One mistake?" Her voice was broken, desperate. "I found you in our bed, Ethan! In our bed with her!"

"It meant nothing! She meant nothing!" His voice was getting louder, more violent. "But you... you run straight to him, don't you? To your precious Alexander Kane!"

That's when he grabbed her wrist, twisting it cruelly. "You think he actually cares about you? You're just another conquest to him!"

"Let go of me!" Sophia cried out in pain.

Something primal and savage exploded in my chest. I didn't think. I didn't hesitate. I launched myself at Ethan with the fury of a man protecting the only thing that mattered in his world.

My fist connected with his jaw with a sickening crack, sending him crashing into the coffee table. Glass scattered everywhere as he hit the ground, but I wasn't done. I grabbed him by his shirt and hauled him up, my vision red with rage.

"You put your hands on her?" I snarled, drawing back for another punch. "You hurt her?"

"Alex, stop!" Sophia's voice cut through my fury, but the protective instinct was still roaring in my veins.

I shoved Ethan hard against the wall, my forearm pressed against his throat. "If you ever, ever, touch her again, I will end you. Do you understand me?"

Ethan's eyes were wide with terror now, blood trickling from his nose and mouth. "I... I wasn't going to..."

"You raised your hand to her," I growled, pressing harder. "I saw you."

"Alex, please!" Sophia's voice was desperate now. "Please, stop!"

I looked at her, saw the fear in her eyes, not of Ethan, but of what I was becoming. Slowly, I released my grip on Ethan, who collapsed to the floor, gasping.

"You have three days," Sophia said to Ethan, her voice shaking but determined. "Three days to get your things and get out of my penthouse. Don't contact me. Don't come near me. Just... go."

"Sophia, please," Ethan begged, blood still on his lip. "We can work this out. Don't let him turn you against me. He's not your brother, he's not your family, he's nothing but a stranger who's been pretending to care about you."

Something snapped in Sophia's expression. When she spoke, her voice was ice-cold.

"Alex is a better man than you will ever be. Don't you dare compare yourself to him. Not ever."

She turned and walked toward her bedroom, leaving Ethan staring after her in shock.

I grabbed her suitcase and dragged it toward the door, then stopped in front of Ethan. "If you value your career, your reputation, your entire future," I said quietly, "you'll stay away from her. Because if I see you near Sophia again, I won't just ruin you. I'll destroy you so completely, you'll wish you'd never been born."

The elevator ride down was silent except for Sophia's shaky breathing. She stared at the floor numbers, her whole body trembling.

The moment we got into the backseat of the car, she broke down completely. Deep, wrenching sobs that seemed to come from the very core of her being. I immediately pulled her against me, and she buried her face in my chest, her tears soaking through my shirt.

"I'm sorry," she whispered between sobs. "I'm so sorry you had to see that. I'm sorry you had to... to fight him because of me."

"Shh," I murmured, stroking her hair gently. "You have nothing to be sorry for. Nothing."

James drove in respectful silence, giving us privacy while I held Sophia as she cried out five years of pain and betrayal.

"It's going to be fine," I whispered into her hair. "Everything's going to be just fine."

But even as I held her, Caroline's words echoed in my mind. I was trapped in an engagement that would keep me from Sophia forever, and now Ethan was another threat to worry about.

I drove her to a private facility outside the city, somewhere the media couldn't find us. We got ice cream, went skating, watched a movie, anything to put a smile back on her face. And slowly, throughout the afternoon, I saw glimpses of the real Sophia returning.

On the drive home, she fell asleep in the backseat, her head resting against the window. I carried her up to the guest room, laying her gently on the bed and pulling a blanket over her.

As I turned to leave, her voice stopped me.

"Thank you," she whispered, her eyes still closed.

I smiled, my heart breaking and healing at the same time. "Sleep well, Sophia."

As I closed her door, Caroline's earlier threat echoed in my mind: I have cameras watching your penthouse, too. My jaw clenched with determination. Not anymore.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number I kept for emergencies. "Marcus, it's Alexander Kane. I need your best security sweep team at my penthouse. Now. Full electronic surveillance detection and removal. I don't care what it costs or what time it is."

Within an hour, three men in black suits arrived with equipment cases. They worked silently, methodically, sweeping every room, every corner, every possible hiding spot. I watched anxiously, waiting for them to find Caroline's surveillance devices.

But after two hours of thorough searching, the team leader approached me with a puzzled expression.

"Mr. Kane, we've swept the entire penthouse twice. There are no surveillance devices anywhere. No cameras, no listening devices, nothing."

My blood ran cold. "That's impossible. Check again."

"Sir, we've used the most advanced detection equipment available. If there were any electronic surveillance devices in this apartment, we would have found them."

As they packed up their equipment, the terrible realization hit me like a physical blow. Caroline had been bluffing. There were no cameras. She'd played me perfectly, making me believe she was watching when she wasn't, forcing me into panic and submission with nothing but empty threats.

I'd walked straight into her trap, and now I was engaged to a woman who'd outmaneuvered me without even trying.

But as I stood there in the aftermath of my own foolishness, my phone buzzed with another message: Touching scene tonight, darling. I do hope you enjoyed your little ice cream date. Such a shame it will be your last. Tomorrow, everything changes.

Caroline. And this time, attached to the message was a photo of me carrying Sophia into the building tonight.

I stared at the image, ice flooding my veins. Whatever Caroline was planning, tomorrow would bring consequences I wasn't prepared for.

The question was: how far would she go to keep me trapped?