Elena couldn’t sleep.
The house was too quiet.
She lay beneath the covers, staring at the ceiling while the events of the past few days replayed in her mind.
The mysterious woman.
The threats.
The photograph.
And Damien.
No matter how hard she tried to convince herself that she didn’t care about him, her heart refused to listen.
A faint sound suddenly came from the hallway.
Elena sat up.
Her heart began beating faster.
She listened carefully.
Nothing.
Then—
Creak.
The floorboard outside her bedroom moved.
Someone was there.
Elena slowly reached for the lamp beside her bed.
Before she could turn it on, the bedroom door opened.
She froze.
A dark figure stood in the doorway.
“Who are you?”
The figure didn’t answer.
Elena grabbed the nearest object she could find.
“Stay away from me!”
The figure stepped forward.
Then the hallway light revealed his face.
Elena released the breath she’d been holding.
“What are you doing?”
Damien closed the door behind him.
“I heard something.”
“So did I.”
His eyes immediately became alert.
“What did you hear?”
“Someone walking outside my room.”
Damien moved toward the door and carefully examined the hallway.
“Did you see anyone?”
“No.”
He looked back at her.
“Stay here.”
Elena frowned.
“Where are you going?”
“To find out who was here.”
She grabbed his arm.
“Don’t go.”
Damien stopped.
For a moment, they simply looked at each other.
Elena quickly released his arm.
“I mean…
you shouldn’t go alone.”
A faint smile appeared on Damien’s face.
“You were worried about me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself.”
“You’re a terrible liar.”
Elena rolled her eyes.
“Just go check the hallway.”
Damien opened the door.
Before stepping out, he looked back at her.
“Lock the door behind me.”
Elena nodded.
But as Damien disappeared into the darkness, she noticed something on the floor near the window.
A small white envelope.
Her heart dropped.
She walked toward it slowly.
There was no name on it.
Only one sentence written across the front.
FOR ELENA.
Her fingers trembled as she picked it up.
She opened the envelope.
Inside was a single photograph.
Elena stared at it.
Her face went pale.
It was a picture of Damien.
But he wasn’t alone.
Standing beside him was the mysterious woman.
And on the back of the photograph were four words:
ASK HIM ABOUT HER.
Elena’s heart pounded.
For the first time, she wondered if the greatest danger wasn’t outside the mansion.
Maybe it was the secret Damien had been hiding from her all along.