LOGINCHAPTER 148Adrian's POVI hadn’t slept. Not even for a minute.Every time I closed my eyes, Lara was there. Her smile. The way her eyes crinkled when she laughed. The soft way she’d looked at me that night and said she’d move in with me soon. That one word kept echoing in my head—soon. She had smiled so big when she said it. Now I didn’t even know if she was okay. If she was scared. If she was hurt. If she’d eaten anything.The thought made my chest feel like someone was squeezing it with iron hands. I couldn’t breathe right. Couldn’t think straight. All I knew was that I had to find her. I had to bring her home.I stood outside the interrogation room with Ken and Vincent, staring through the one-way glass. Inside, a middle-aged man sat at the table, looking nervous as hell. He was one of Rafael’s old associates, not a big player, just some guy who ran errands for cash. But right now, he was our only real chance.Ken folded his arms next to me. “You need to stay calm, Adrian.”“I am
CHAPTER 147AUTHOR'S POVThe silence inside the abandoned building was almost unbearable. The only sound was the faint hum of an old light overhead and the distant creak of rusted metal somewhere beyond the walls.Lara sat perfectly still. Her heart still raced, but the panic that had overwhelmed her when she first woke had slowly begun to settle into something else. Determination. She forced herself to take slow breaths. Adrian was looking for her. She believed that with every part of her being.The heavy door opened..Footsteps echoed across the room. Rafael walked inside, a smug smile playing on his lips."So…you've calmed down."Lara didn't answer. She simply stared at him. His smile widened."I like that. It means we can actually have a conversation.""I have nothing to say to you," Lara replied quietly."No?" He folded his arms. "I think we have quite a lot to discuss."Lara remained silent. The less she said, the better. Rafael studied her for a long moment before giving a small
CHAPTER 147ADRIAN'S POVEvery second felt like an hour. Every minute without Lara felt like a knife twisting deeper into my chest.My phone hadn't left my hand since Vincent called to say they had found her phone.Found it…not with her. Just... found. The words haunted me.I stared out the car window as Vincent drove through the city at a speed that would normally earn us several traffic tickets. Ken sat beside me in silence.He had nothing to joke about. No one did."Lara's phone was recovered near one of the mall's service exits," Vincent reported from the driver's seat. "It appears to have been discarded shortly after she disappeared."I closed my eyes."So it's useless.""I'm afraid so, sir."She couldn't be tracked anymore. Whoever had taken her knew exactly what they were doing.My jaw tightened."Rafael..."Ken glanced at me."We don't know that yet.""I do.""I don't.".His voice remained calm."And until we have proof, we're treating every possibility seriously."I looked at
CHAPTER 145AUTHOR'S POVDarkness was the first thing Lara felt. Then came the pounding headache.A dull ache throbbed behind her eyes as consciousness slowly returned. Every part of her body felt unusually heavy, as though she'd been asleep for days.She frowned. Where... was she?nHer eyelashes fluttered open. At first, everything was blurry.A single light bulb swung lazily overhead, casting long shadows across what looked like an abandoned room. The air smelled of old wood and dust.Lara blinked several times, trying to steady her vision. Her heart skipped a beat. She wasn't in the mall anymore.bPanic flooded her chest.She instinctively tried to stand, but she couldn't. She looked down.Her wrists were secured to the arms of a weathered wooden chair. Her ankles were restrained as well, leaving her unable to move more than a few inches."No..."She pulled desperately against the restraints."No... no... no..."The chair creaked beneath her. Her breathing became erratic."Help!" Her
CHAPTER 144Sadie’s hands were shaking so badly she could barely hold her phone. The store security had cordoned off the restroom area, and paramedics were now attending to the two injured female agents. Sirens wailed faintly in the distance. She dialed Adrian’s number, tears streaming down her face.It rang only once before he picked up.“Adrian…” Her voice broke instantly. “It’s Lara. She’s gone. Someone took her. We were shopping and she went to the restroom and… and there was blood and fighting and she’s just *gone*.”On the other end, the silence lasted less than a second before Adrian’s voice sharpened with raw panic. “What do you mean she’s gone? Sadie, where are you? Which mall? Talk to me!”Sadie gave him the address between sobs. “Please hurry. I don’t know what to do. She was screaming, Adrian. I heard… I think I heard her scream before everything went quiet.”Adrian didn’t waste another second. He grabbed his jacket and barked at Ken, who was already moving. “Lara’s bee
CHAPTER 143AUTHOR'S POV Lara stepped out of the office building with a lightness in her step she hadn’t felt in days. She had a shopping date with Sadie so she told Adrian to leave without her. She also had her guards up knowing how dangerous it could be for her. The late afternoon sun painted the city streets in warm gold. A sleek black Mercedes stopped before her. She knew it was Adrian's driver so she got in.In under ten minutes, she got to the luxurious mall. Sadie was already waiting by the entrance, scrolling through her phone with one hand while balancing two iced lattes in the other.“Shopping therapy, incoming!” Sadie sang, thrusting one of the cups toward Lara as she saw her. “You look like you need it. Spill. What’s going on in that head of yours?”Lara took the drink with a grateful smile. “Let’s walk and talk. There’s… something I remembered. About Adrian.”They fell into step together, walking inside the mall. As they wove through the mall crowd, Lara recounted the l
CHAPTER 33Adrian’s POVSomeone was watching her.The thought repeated itself in my head like a curse long after Vincent left the hospital room.Lara sat quietly against the pillows, her fingers gripping the edge of the blanket tightly. I could see the fear she was trying to hide.And I hated it.I
Chapter THIRTY-TWOLara’s POVI woke up to the smell of coffee.For a moment, I forgot where I was.Then the pain in my leg reminded me immediately.I winced softly and slowly opened my eyes.Morning sunlight spilled into the luxurious hospital ward, making everything look warmer than it had the pr
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHTADRIAN’S POVI still could not believe he had asked Lara out. Not indirectly. Not professionally.Actually asked her out.The realization had followed me the entire evening like an irritating shadow.Because i did not do dates.I barely tolerated people for longer than necessar
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN LARA’S POV It was 6:35 a.m., and I was supposed to be getting ready for work. Instead, I had been standing by my window for almost ten minutes, staring at the sunrise slowly stretching across the city skyline. The sky looked beautiful. Soft orange melting into pale pink. C







