Lucian stands now—not abruptly, but with enough quiet force to make even Gideon pause. “You’ve made your point.”
Gideon grins, unbothered. “And you’ve made yours.” He turns toward the door, stopping only once to look over his shoulder. “Do tell your daughter how fond I am of her. She’s been quite the… conversation starter lately.”
The door shuts behind him with a soft click.
Lucian exhales, the kind of breath that sounds like it’s holding back murder.
My heart’s hammering, but my voice doesn’t waver. “He’s awful.”
Lucian doesn’t look at me, just stares out the window. “He’s worse than that.”
And for the first time, I’m not just worried about finding Isobel. I’m worried about who might find her first.
19 ONE MONTH
Luca
From the first look into her eyes, I was mesmerized.
I didn’t want to admit it but I swear my heart skipped a beat. It was hard to follow Jace and think of her as “the enemy”. But overtime, she wasn’t just some girl. She was the flame and I was the moth. She stayed strong regardless of everything we threw at her. She stood tall and threw it right back in our faces.
Now I keep searching for those eyes everywhere we look.
And nothing.
That night, Noah and I made it to the rendezvous point without too much trouble. We agreed that within five minutes, we would go and look for Isobel and Dakota.
When I saw Dakota walking up, disheveled and bleeding from a cut on her cheek, her brows furrowed with worry. My stomach dropped through my ass.
I swear it would’ve fallen out if it could’ve.
It’s been a month, and we have nothing. No sightings, no talks of Daniel moving. No taunts. No negotiations.
Noah throws his glasses onto his desk, running his hands through his hair again. He rubs his eyes, turning away from the screen.
“New blue light glasses aren’t helping?”
“No, nothing helps when you spend every moment looking at a screen.” His voice is hoarse. He reaches for the energy drink on his desk and chugs it, crushing the can and tossing it towards the overflowing trash can in the corner.
I sit up on the couch and sigh.
“What if we don’t find her?”
“Don’t you dare.” My head snaps up at him.
“She barely survived Daniel last time!” Noah stands up and begins to pace.
“Don’t you think I know that?” I grit my teeth. “We have to keep thinking positively. I refuse to think of any other alternative. We. Will.Find.Her.”
Noah exhales sharply, dragging both hands down his face before collapsing back into his chair. The light from the monitors washes over him, painting him in tired shades of blue and gray.
The silence that follows feels like punishment. The kind that lingers, gnaws, and makes you question every decision that brought you here.
I stare at the floor, my jaw tight. “She’s out there somewhere. Maybe she’s hurt, but she’s alive. I’d feel it if she wasn’t.”
Noah doesn’t answer. His fingers twitch over the keyboard, running another trace, another dead end.
I push myself up and walk to the window. The city below looks indifferent. Busy. Unmoved by the fact that someone like her could vanish into it.
