"Sophia, we et again."
"Uncle—when did you get here?"
Aiden gave her a casual smile. "Actually, quite a few people are here tonight. You just haven’t noticed."
"Oh, really?" she replied coolly.
"Have a drink?" he offered, handing her a glass.
Sophia arched a brow. Aiden wouldn’t dare try anything in public—not with so many eyes watching.
Her guard lowered slightly.
"I need to speak with Lucas about sothing," Aiden said smoothly. "You enjoy yourself."
Sophia nodded. As she turned, she noticed Harper being called over to where William was standing. She was about to walk that way when—
"Sophia."
Ethan suddenly appeared out of nowhere, stepping right in front of her.
"Don’t touch ," she snapped, jerking her arm away—
But the next mont, a wave of dizziness hit her hard.
"Sophia..."
Ethan wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close as her strength began to fade. The drug was fast and strong—her limbs felt heavy, her mind hazy.
The instant she realized what was happening, her heart clenched.
Aiden.
She’d fallen right into his trap.
No—fight it.
Her blurry gaze fell on the wine glass beside her. Summoning what little strength she had left, she swung her arm.
Crash!
The glass shattered across the marble floor, the sharp crack drawing everyone’s attention.
People turned their heads, startled. Shards glittered everywhere.
Lucas frowned from across the room. Sophia?
She’d been there just a second ago.
"Lucas."
Aiden suddenly stepped in front of him, blocking his view with that sa easy smile.
"What are you doing here?" Lucas asked coldly.
"I was invited, of course," Aiden said lightly. "I thought I’d stop by."
The air around Lucas turned sharp and dangerous. The temperature seed to drop several degrees.
He moved to leave, but Aiden caught his arm.
Lucas’s expression darkened instantly. He hated being touched.
Aiden quickly released him, forcing a laugh. "Co on, Lucas, can’t an uncle have a word with his nephew?"
"The will’s been read," Lucas said flatly. "You got your ten million. What is there left to talk about—how my leg miraculously healed? Or maybe how you tampered with my car that day?"
Aiden froze for half a heartbeat, his smile faltering.
"Lucas, what are you talking about? You were in an accident! I’d never—"
"Oh, it was an accident, all right," Lucas cut him off, his voice low and dangerous. "But you’d better be careful, Uncle. I still have the evidence. Maybe one day, when I’m bored enough, it’ll end up sowhere... public."
He leaned in just slightly, his tone almost conversational.
"When that day cos, don’t expect family ties to save you. Smart n know when to stay in their lane."
He smiled—but his eyes were pure ice.
Aiden’s jaw tightened. There was no mistaking it now—Lucas was threatening him.
Everywhere Lucas went, people watched him closely. But as his gaze swept the room again, he realized sothing—
Sophia was gone.
Monts later, Harper hurried over, scanning the crowd. "Lucas! Have you seen Sophia?"
"She’s not with you?"
"No! She was here just a mont ago. Then she disappeared. I checked the bathroom and backstage—nothing."
Lucas’s frown deepened. His eyes flicked to the spot where he’d heard the glass shatter.
A broken glass... but no one nearby.
Behind that area was an exit.
He strode quickly toward it. The glass shards had already been swept away.
He stopped one of the staff. "Do you know who broke the glass?"
"Mr. Hilton, sir, we didn’t see anyone," the cleaner said nervously.
Lucas walked further, scanning the empty corridor. Nothing.
Am I imagining this?
He turned to leave—and his shoe hit sothing hard.
Looking down, his gaze locked onto a familiar object. A watch.
He crouched to pick it up, his mind instantly flashing to the slender wrist that always wore it.
Sophia.
He snatched it up and turned to Harper. "Look at this. Is it hers?"
Harper froze, her eyes widening. "Yes! That’s definitely hers—it’s the one I gave her!"
A six-million-dollar watch. There was no reason it should be lying on the ground.
Lucas’s expression darkened, his voice like steel.
"Sothing’s wrong," he said. "She’s in trouble."
...
Sophia was thrown hard onto the bed.
Her vision swam; she tried to push herself up, but Ethan shoved her right back down.
"Where do you think you’re going?" he sneered. "Sophia, I’ll treat you right. I don’t care that you’ve been with Lucas."
"Ethan, let go!" she gasped, her voice soft and trembling—so much so it almost sounded like a plea. "If you dare touch , I swear I’ll make you regret it!"
He chuckled darkly. "Regret it? Perfect. Then you’ll never be able to forget ."
He slipped off his jacket and lood over her, his shadow swallowing her whole.
"Ethan! Get off !"
Sophia fought back with every ounce of strength she had, clawing at his arm, her heart pounding wildly.
"Nobody’s coming to save you tonight," Ethan murmured, his tone disturbingly tender. "No one even knows where you are. No one will interrupt us."
His fingers trailed along her cheek, his voice thick with obsession.
"Don’t worry, baby. I’ll take good care of you."
Sophia’s cheeks burned, her consciousness fading in and out as the drug clouded her mind.
Of course—it was Aiden.
That cunning old fox.
And as always, he played the dirtiest tricks.
"You... you’re working with Aiden," she rasped.
Ethan smiled, his eyes glinting. "Aiden’s got his own score to settle with Lucas. He doesn’t care what happens between us—in fact, he likes it. So he’s helping .
No one knows I ca to City Y. By the ti anyone notices you’re gone, it’ll be too late. Don’t worry, Sophia... we’ll go back to how we were six years ago—the perfect couple everyone envied."
"If you dare touch ," she hissed, "I’ll cut you into pieces."
Ethan laughed, low and twisted. "If you cut , who’ll keep you warm for the rest of your life?"
Sophia’s eyes darted to the side—and froze.
A phone was set up on a tripod, its cara pointed directly at the bed.
"You see that?" Ethan smirked. "It’s just in case you decide not to behave. Don’t worry—if you’re good, it’ll stay between us. Just a little... private video."
His hand moved to her collar.
Sophia’s eyes snapped open. In a flash, she grabbed his wrist and bit down—hard.
"Ah—damn it!"
Ethan jerked back in pain. Sophia kicked him square in the stomach with every ounce of strength she had left.
"Ugh!" He crumpled, groaning.
Sophia stumbled toward the door, her vision blurring, legs shaking. She could barely make out the handle when—
"Ah!"
Her hair was yanked back. Ethan slamd her against the wall, his face twisted with rage.
"Bitch! You think you can run? You really think you can get away from ?"
Sophia’s elbow shot backward, but he caught both her wrists, pinning her in place, their faces inches apart.
"Now that you’re in my hands," he hissed, "where do you think you’re going?"
"Touch , and I’ll kill you!"
"Oh, sweetheart," he growled, leaning closer, "let’s see if you can."
He was inches from her lips when—
BANG!
A thunderous crack echoed through the room.
Ethan froze. His eyes barely had ti to widen before a tal rod ca crashing down on his head.
He hit the floor with a dull thud—out cold.
"Sophia."
Sophia blinked through her haze and saw him—Lucas—standing there, shoulders tense, eyes burning red.
She collapsed against his chest, trembling, her tears spilling freely now that she was safe.
"You... you’re so late," she whispered, her voice breaking.
Lucas’s arms tightened around her. He glared over Sophia’s shoulder at Harper, who had frozen in the doorway.
"What?" he said icily. "Planning to watch?"
Harper’s face flushed. "No—no, sir!" She shut the door in a hurry.
Inside, the world shrank to just the two of them.
They stumbled, half-falling, half-clinging, across the room. Clothes hit the floor in a trail.
And beside the bed—
Ethan lay unconscious, forgotten, as the storm raged on.
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