Chapter 6

The ride back to the Whitmore mansion passed in silence.

Serena stepped out of the car with a smile she couldn't quite hide. Even though Damien had ruined her little escape, the thought of him calmly chasing after her instead of losing his temper still amused her.

She glanced over her shoulder as she climbed the front steps.

"You know," she said, "for someone who's supposed to be my bodyguard, you're surprisingly annoying." Damien closed the car door behind her.

"I'll take that as a compliment." She laughed under her breath before disappearing into the mansion.

Damien watched the front door close behind her, but his thoughts stayed behind in the coffee shop.

Something about the man Serena had spoken to refused to leave his mind.

It wasn't the smile. It wasn't the conversation. It was the way the stranger kept scanning the room instead of focusing on Serena, almost as though he had been waiting for someone to arrive.

Pulling out his phone, Damien stepped away from the entrance and dialed a number.

"I need the surveillance footage from Brookside Mall," he said when the call was answered.

"Focus on the coffee shop between two and four this afternoon. I want everything on the man who approached Miss Whitmore." He listened for a moment before ending the call.

Whether the man was harmless or not, Damien intended to find out.

Later that evening, Serena climbed the stairs to her bedroom after dinner. Humming softly, she pushed open the door and walked inside.

She had barely taken two steps before something caught her eye.

A white envelope rested neatly in the middle of her bed. She stopped. The smile on her face disappeared.

She was certain that bed had been empty when she left an hour ago.

Slowly, she walked closer and picked up the envelope with trembling fingers.

There was no name. No stamp. Nothing. She pulled out the folded paper inside.

The moment she read the first line, the color drained from her face.

You can hide behind him for now. Sooner or later, you'll be alone. And when that day comes... you'll be mine.

The paper slipped from her fingers and floated onto the bed. Her heartbeat pounded painfully against her ribs.

Someone had been inside her room. Someone had walked through the one place she had always believed was safe.

Without wasting another second, she hurried out of the bedroom and almost collided with Damien at the top of the stairs.

He caught her by the shoulders before she could lose her balance.

"Serena?" She couldn't find her voice. Instead, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward her room.

The letter still lay on the bed where she had dropped it. Damien picked it up and read it once.

Then he read it again. His jaw tightened.

"When did you find this?"

"Just now."

"Did anyone come into your room today?" She slowly shook her head.

"Not that I know of." For a long moment, Damien said nothing. He folded the letter carefully and slipped it into his pocket.

"Stay here." Before Serena could ask where he was going, he was already speaking into the earpiece hidden beneath his collar.

Within minutes, the quiet mansion came alive.

Security guards spread through every floor while Damien searched Serena's room from one corner to the other. He checked the windows, examined the balcony, and inspected every possible way someone could have entered without being seen.

Downstairs, he questioned the house staff one by one. Every answer was the same. No one had seen a stranger. No one had entered Serena's room. No one had noticed anything unusual.

That answer unsettled Damien more than any confession could have.bWhoever had left the letter knew exactly how to get inside the Whitmore mansion without drawing attention.

Hours later, the mansion finally grew quiet again.

Damien stood alone in the security room, his eyes fixed on the surveillance monitors as another guard replayed the footage from earlier that afternoon.

Most of it showed nothing but servants moving through the hallways.

Then, a figure appeared. A man dressed in a maintenance uniform walked calmly past the corridor leading to Serena's bedroom.

Damien leaned closer to the screen.

"I don't recognize him." One of the guards quickly checked the staff records before looking back at him.

"He's not one of ours." The room fell silent. The stranger disappeared from the camera only seconds later and never appeared on another screen.

Damien kept his eyes on the frozen image.

His voice was quiet, but every word carried the weight of a promise.

"Whoever you are..." He stared at the stranger's blurred face.

"...you're not getting anywhere near her again.”

……

The mansion was quiet, but Serena couldn't sleep.

She lay awake, staring at the ceiling while the threatening words from the letter replayed over and over in her mind.

You can hide behind him for now.

Every little sound made her heart race. The wind brushed against the balcony doors, and the branches outside scraped softly against the glass.

She squeezed her eyes shut. What if someone was already inside?

She quickly sat up and looked around the room. Everything was exactly where it should be, yet the uneasy feeling refused to leave.

After a long moment, she threw the blanket aside and walked to the door. Taking a deep breath, she opened it.

Damien was standing exactly where he had been since dinner, his hands loosely clasped in front of him.

He looked up the moment he saw her.

"Is something wrong?" Serena hesitated. Asking for help had never come easily, but tonight her pride wasn't stronger than her fear.

"I..." She looked away for a second before meeting his eyes again. "Would you stay in my room tonight?" His expression softened almost imperceptibly.

"You don't have to stand outside the whole night," she added quietly. "You can stay inside instead."

Without another question, Damien gave a small nod.

"If that's what makes you feel safe." He stepped into the room and checked the balcony door and windows one last time before walking over to the couch near the window.

"I'll stay here." Serena climbed back into bed and pulled the blanket over herself.

For a while, neither of them spoke. She turned her head slightly and found him sitting on the couch, his eyes fixed on the bedroom door, alert as ever.

"You don't have to stay awake all night," she murmured.

"I know."

"But you will anyway."

"I will."Serena felt the tightness in her chest ease.

She closed her eyes, and before long, sleep finally claimed her.

Damien remained where he was, keeping watch over the room until the first light of morning crept through the curtains.