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"Hi, Milly! You're up early—don't tell me you're already breaking the doctor's rest⁠—"

"Hi, Alexis."

The voice isn't soft. It isn't warm, or familiar. It’s smooth, icy, and drenched in a dark satisfaction.

My blood turns to absolute ice. The smile vanishes from my face instantly, my whole body locking up in a second flat.

"Nolan," I whisper, the word burning like acid in my throat.

"Your grandmother is completely safe for the moment, Alexis," Nolan Devlin says calmly, the faint rustle of wind through trees static over the line.

"Though I have to admit, Cain Kavanagh's little fortress is quite impressive."

A cold, agonizing panic slams into my chest, cutting off my air completely. My heart hammers against my ribs like a trapped bird.

"If you touch her⁠—"

"Listen to me very carefully," Nolan cuts in, his tone hardening. "You are going to get out of that house, get into your car, and drive to the old, abandoned grain silo by the northern docks. You come completely alone. No Cain, no bodyguards, no signals. If I see a single Kavanagh car trailing you, or if my men at the safe house report even a whisper of movement from Cain's guards... your grandmother dies before you even put your car in park."

"Nolan, please⁠—"

"You have thirty minutes, Alexis. Don't be late."

The line goes dead with a quiet click.

I sit up so fast my head spins, tearing the covers off my legs as my phone slips from my trembling fingers onto the mattress, my chest heaving in absolute terror, making it impossible to draw a full breath. Every instinct screams at me to dial Cain, to let him tear the world apart until Milly is safe. But Nolan’s cold, absolute warning rings loudly in my ears: If my men report even a whisper of movement, your grandmother dies.

If I call Cain, his reaction will be immediate, loud, and fatal for Milly. I can't take that risk.

Then my eyes fall on my wrist. The sleek metallic band of the bracelet Cain gave me sits heavy against my skin.

A panic button.

My trembling fingers reach over and press firmly into the hidden notch on the clasp, holding it down until the tiny, imperceptible pulse vibrates against my pulse point. Cain will get the signal. He'll know exactly where I am without me ever making a call that Nolan's men could intercept.

I throw on the nearest jacket, snatch my keys, and sprint down the grand staircase.

As I burst into the driveway, one of Cain’s main security drivers steps forward, reaching for the door of the car. "Miss Alexis? Mr. Kavanagh instructed us to⁠—"

"I'm fine," I cut him off, keeping my voice as steady as my terrified mind allows while holding up my keys. "I'm just running down the road to get some fresh air and pick up breakfast. I'll be right back."

Before he can question me further or reach for his radio, I dive into my car, hit the ignition, and speed out past the iron gates.

The GPS leads me out of the city, toward an abandoned, overgrown luxury riverfront property tucked behind decaying iron gates.

When I park the sedan on the cracked gravel driveway, the high silence of the river wraps around the secluded grounds. I step out into the damp air, my heart hammering against my ribs, and push through the towering double doors of the main hall.

Nolan Devlin stands at the far end of the marble foyer, dressed in a sharp coat, surrounded by at least six heavily armed soldiers with rifles resting at their chests.

My eyes frantically scan the shadows, searching for a wheelchair, a stretcher—anything. "Where is she? Where is my grandmother?!"

Nolan lets out a slow, bitter laugh, taking a few steps toward me while his men close off the exit behind me. "She's at her safe house, sleeping peacefully under the watchful eyes of Kavanagh's guards. Did you really think I'd waste time lugging an old woman across state lines, Alexis?"

A cold realization hits me like a bucket of ice water. Milly was never here. It was a bluff—a cruel, precise trap meant to draw me out alone.

"You," I whisper, backing up a step until the wall stops me. "You just wanted me."

"Of course," Nolan snaps, his voice suddenly dropping its polite veneer, twisted with pure, poisonous rage. "I thought you were just a victim. You looked me in the eye and let me believe you weren’t ready for a man. And then I watch you on national news at the gala, smiling, holding his hand, proudly standing beside the man who murdered my family!"