“You’re safe.”
This time she laughed louder—a fractured, hysterical sound. The fury, the pain, the twenty-two years of hell she’d lived with all flared to life at once.
“Are you serious?” She met his dark gaze, not flinching.“Twenty-two years ago, I thought the same damn thing.”
He went still. For a second—just a second—something like confusion flickered across his face. And then… nothing.
His eyes were empty again.
God, how she hated him. His voice. His stare. His very existence. She wanted to hit him. To scream. To finally let the rage out.
“Get out. We have nothing to talk about.”
Nina turned and headed for the door, hoping to slam it shut before he could follow. But he moved faster. His foot wedged into the doorway right as she tried to close it. She gasped when the door flew open and he stepped inside as if he owned the place.
She stumbled back. Too late—he was already in her home.
Jasper shut the door behind him calmly, like this was the most normal thing in the world. Like he had the right. Like this house somehow belonged to him.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she snapped, breathless with fear.“I’ll call the police.”
He let out a short, skeptical sound, surveying the entryway.
“Go ahead. But we’re going to talk. Tonight.”
He took a step toward her. Her back hit the wall. Nowhere to run.
The cold plaster pressed into her spine, and a tight knot formed in her chest. Jasper towered over her, filling the space with his presence. Too close. Too overwhelming. The air seemed to thin around her.
Her body reacted faster than her mind—palms sweating, breath stuttering. Panic surged, drowning everything.
She was back there.
The locked room.
The trap.
Fragments of memory flashed like blades—sharp, vivid, unhealed wounds. She flinched hard.
“Nina,” his voice sounded… different. Softer.
But she couldn’t hear him.
Her brain screamed one thing—run. She pushed off the wall, bolting sideways, but he was faster again. When he lifted his hand—just a gesture—she jerked so violently her heart slammed against her ribs.
He froze.
A deep crease formed between his eyebrows. He looked at her… differently. He took a step back.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Nina didn’t answer. She could barely breathe. She clung to the edge of the wall like it could save her.
Jasper’s eyes sharpened, scanning her face. His shoulders tightened, jaw flexed. He looked… irritated.
Then something shifted. The tension drained from his posture. His voice dropped, slow and careful.
“I’m not here to hurt you,” he said, as if trying not to startle her.“I’m actually here to talk.”
