Lucien stopped walking.
Seraphina took two more steps before realizing he was no longer beside her.
She turned around and found him standing near the entrance of Alexandria Corporation, staring through the glass doors.
His expression had completely changed.
The faint amusement that had been there moments ago was gone.
His jaw was tense, and his eyes moved slowly across the street as if he were searching for someone hiding among the crowd.
Seraphina followed his gaze.
People were walking along the pavement.
Cars passed by.
A few employees were leaving the building.
Nothing looked unusual.
“What is it?” she asked.
Lucien didn’t answer.
“Lucien.”
His eyes finally moved toward her.
“Stay close to me.”
Seraphina frowned.
“I am close to you.”
“Closer.”
She stared at him.
“Why?”
“Because I said so.”
That answer immediately irritated her.
“You don’t get to order me around just because you’re my bodyguard.”
Lucien looked back toward the street.
“Tonight, I do.”
Something about his voice made her stop arguing.
They continued toward the elevator, but Seraphina noticed that Lucien kept looking behind them.
She had never seen him like this.
Not even when they were surrounded by darkness during the contract.
Whatever he had sensed outside was different.
And it frightened him.
The next few hours passed strangely.
Seraphina tried to focus on work, but Lucien remained near the office door.
He barely spoke.
Every sound in the hallway seemed to catch his attention.
Eventually, Seraphina put down her pen.
“Okay. Enough.”
Lucien looked at her.
“Enough what?”
“This.”
She pointed at him.
“You’ve been acting strange since we came back.”
“I am fine.”
“You’re lying again.”
Lucien leaned against the wall.
“You seem very confident about that.”
“I’ve been watching you.”
His eyebrow lifted.
“Have you?”
Seraphina immediately realized how that sounded.
“I mean—I’ve been watching what you’re doing.”
A faint smile appeared on his face.
“Of course.”
She ignored him.
“Who was outside?”
The smile disappeared.
“I don’t know.”
“But you sensed someone.”
“Yes.”
“Who?”
“I don’t know.”
Seraphina stood up.
“Then why are you acting like we’re about to be attacked?”
“Because whoever was watching us wasn’t ordinary.”
She crossed her arms.
“What does that mean?”
Lucien was silent for a moment.
“It means they knew what to look for.”
Seraphina looked down at her left hand.
The black cross was hidden beneath her sleeve.
“You mean the cross?”
Lucien nodded.
Her expression hardened.
“So your enemies know about me now?”
“May?”
Lucien pushed himself away from the wall.
“Seraphina, there are things about my past you don’t understand.”
“Then explain them.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because knowing too much about me will put you in more danger.”
She stared at him.
“You’re already putting me in danger.”
Lucien said nothing.
“You appeared in my life, my cross somehow ended up on my hand, and now someone is watching me because of you.”
“I didn’t choose this.”
“Neither did I.”
Her voice became quieter.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Lucien looked at her.
“I know.”
The anger in Seraphina’s face softened slightly.
It was the first time he had admitted it.
That evening, Lucien insisted on taking her home himself.
Seraphina sat in the passenger seat, staring through the window.
“You know,” she said, “you’re not very good at being a guardian.”
Lucien kept his eyes on the road.
“You’re alive.”
“That’s your standard?”
“Yes.”
She sighed.
“You need to learn about feelings.”
“I’ve lived for centuries without needing them.”
“That’s sad.”
“It’s practical.”
Seraphina turned toward him.
“Do you ever get lonely?”
His hands tightened slightly around the steering wheel.
He didn’t answer.
She watched him for a moment.
“That’s a yes.”
“No.”
“You hesitated.”
“I was thinking.”
“About being lonely?”
“About how annoying you are.”
She laughed.
“There you are.”
Lucien glanced at her.
“What?”
“You’re finally acting normal again.”
His expression softened for half a second.
Then his eyes returned to the road.
Neither of them noticed the black car that had been following them from a distance.
When they reached the house, Lucien walked Seraphina to the front door.
She turned toward him.
“You’re coming inside?”
“Yes.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“You’re getting comfortable.”
“I’m protecting you.”
“Right.”
She opened the door.
The house was quiet.
Too quiet.
Seraphina stepped inside and switched on the lights.
Everything looked normal.
She dropped her bag onto the sofa.
“I’ll be upstairs.”
Lucien nodded.
She took a few steps before stopping.
“Lucien?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
He looked at her.
“For what?”
“For today.”
His expression softened.
She smiled before heading upstairs.
Lucien remained downstairs.
He stood near the window and looked outside.
The street was empty.
But he could still feel it.
Someone was there.
Watching.
Waiting.
His eyes narrowed.
“Show yourself.”
Nothing happened.
Then a faint movement caught his attention.
Across the street, between two buildings, a dark figure stood completely still.
Lucien’s eyes widened.
The figure disappeared.
Not walked away.
Not ran.
It simply vanished.
Lucien’s expression changed.
“That can’t be…”
Upstairs, Seraphina stood in front of her bedroom mirror.
She removed her jacket and slowly looked at her left hand.
The black cross remained beneath her skin.
She touched it.
A strange warmth spread through her palm.
She frowned.
“What are you?”
A sudden movement outside the window caught her attention.
Seraphina froze.
She slowly turned her head.
Across the street, she saw someone standing in the darkness.
A tall figure.
Completely motionless.
Watching her.
Her heart began beating faster.
She stepped toward the window.
“Hello?”
The figure didn’t move.
Seraphina reached for the curtain.
The moment her fingers touched it—
The figure disappeared.
Her breath caught.
She stepped backward.
The bedroom door suddenly opened.
Lucien stood there.
“What did you see?”
Seraphina turned toward him.
“There was someone outside.”
Lucien’s eyes immediately moved toward the window.
“Where?”
“Across the street.”
“What did they look like?”
“I couldn’t see their face.”
Lucien walked toward the window.
Seraphina followed.
“Do you know who it was?”
He remained silent.
“Lucien?”
His face had become pale.
She had never seen him look like that.
“Who was it?”
He slowly turned toward her.
“Someone from my past.”
“An enemy?”
Lucien shook his head.
“No.”
“Then who?”
His eyes returned to the empty street.
“Someone who should have been dead.”
Seraphina’s heart skipped.
“What do you mean?”
Lucien’s voice dropped.
“I mean they’ve found me again.”
A cold silence filled the room.
Seraphina looked down at the cross on her hand.
For the first time, she wondered if the accident had not been an accident at all.
And somewhere in the darkness outside, someone was already watching the house.