The lights stayed off.
Lena stood still, her heart beating fast. The sound of breaking glass still rang in her ears. She could barely see anything. The house felt too quiet now.
"Don't move," Adrian said.
His voice was calm, but firm. It scared her even more.
She heard footsteps. Not heavy. Careful. Like someone who knew the house well.
"Who is that?" Lena whispered.
"No one who should be here," Adrian replied.
He reached for her hand and pulled her closer. His grip was strong. Protective. Or controlling. She couldn't tell.
A few seconds passed. Then more footsteps. Then silence.
The lights came back on.
Lena gasped.
A glass vase lay broken on the floor. Water spread across the tiles. No one else was in the room.
"Was that… planned?" she asked.
"Yes," Adrian said.
"Yes?
Her head spun. "Planned by who?"
"Not by me," he answered.
She pulled her hand away. "I want to go home."
He looked at her. "You can't."
Her chest tightened. "You don't get to decide that."
"I do," he said calmly, "if I'm the only thing standing between you and danger."
"That doesn't make sense," she said. "I've lived my life quietly. I go to work. I go home. No one notices me."
Adrian walked to the window and looked outside. "Someone noticed you."
She hugged herself. "Who?"
"That's what we're trying to find out."
"I don't want to be part of this," she said. "Whatever this is."
He turned back to her. "You already are."
She shook her head. "Then take me home. Let me pack my things."
He was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "Your home is no longer safe."
Her breath caught. "What are you saying?"
"Someone followed you there before," he said. "Not today. Before."
Her knees felt weak. "That's not possible."
"It is," he said. "And it happened."
She stared at him. "How do you know where I live?"
He hesitated. Just for a second.
That second mattered.
"Why do you know where I live?" she asked again.
"I have people," he said. "They look into things."
Her voice rose. "You looked into me?"
"Yes."
"Without my permission?"
"Yes."
She laughed bitterly. "So you're no better than whoever is watching me."
His jaw tightened. "I'm the reason you're still safe."
She stepped back. "I don't trust you."
"I wouldn't either," he said.
That surprised her.
"Then why should I stay?" she asked.
"Because if you walk out that door," he said, "you won't make it home."
Silence fell between them.
Her phone buzzed.
She froze.
Slowly, she pulled it out. Another message. Unknown number.
You should have listened.
Leaving now would be a mistake.
Her hands shook. "They know I'm here."
"Yes," Adrian said. "That's why you're staying."
Tears filled her eyes. "I don't even know you."
"You know enough," he replied. "You know I'm your only option right now."
She hated that he was right.
A woman entered the room quietly. The same one from earlier.
"Sir," she said. "The security footage was erased."
Lena's heart dropped. "Erased by who?"
The woman looked at Adrian. "From inside the system."
Inside.
Meaning someone close.
Adrian dismissed the woman and turned back to Lena. "This is bigger than I thought."
She swallowed. "Am I in danger because of you?"
He didn't answer right away.
That scared her more than anything else.
"I need honesty," she said. "Right now."
He sighed. "Yes."
Her breath caught. "So this is your fault."
"No," he said. "But you're involved because of me."
She wiped her face angrily. "I didn't ask for this life."
"I know," he said quietly. "Neither did I."
She looked at him. Really looked at him. The confidence. The control. The shadows in his eyes.
"What do you want from me?" she asked.
"For now," he said, "I want you alive."
"That's not comforting."
"It's the truth."
She sank into the chair behind her. "What happens next?"
"You stay here," he said. "You don't go anywhere alone. You don't talk to anyone from your old life."
"That sounds like a prison."
"It's protection."
"For how long?"
He paused.
"That depends."
"On what?"
"On how quickly they make their next move."
Her phone buzzed again.
Another message.
You think he's saving you.
He's the reason you were chosen.
She looked up at Adrian, fear flooding her chest.
"What does that mean?" she asked.
Adrian's face darkened.
"It means," he said slowly, "they're not after me anymore."
Her voice came out in a whisper. "They're after me."
He nodded.
"And Lena," he added, "this is where things get dangerous."
At that moment, the front door alarm went off.
Loud.
Sharp.
Urgent.
Someone was trying to get in.
Someone has entered the house.
Someone close has betrayed them.
And Lena may be the real target.