chapter 49
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Elena didn't open the curtains the next morning.
The light felt too sharp. Too exposed.
There was something in the air—a pressure under her skin, crawling down her spine.
She checked her phone again.
No new messages. Just those two from the unknown number.
> Don't trust him.
Don't be alone with him again.
She should've been afraid.
She should've blocked the number.
But instead, she kept rereading them.
Clutching the phone like it was his hand.
Like maybe, just maybe, Luca was still trying to protect her.
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But Liam wasn't done.
He was never done.
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She was heading home after class when his car pulled up beside her.
"Get in," he said calmly, like it was normal. Like they were still friends.
She shook her head.
He leaned over the passenger seat. "You shouldn't be walking alone, Elena."
"I'm fine."
"It's dangerous out here," he added. "Especially in your condition."
Her heart stopped.
He smiled. "See? I did notice."
She turned to walk away, faster now.
But the tires screeched as he pulled the car in front of her again.
"I'm not the enemy," he said, rolling the window down. "He left you."
Her voice cracked. "You don't know anything."
"I know you're carrying the child of a ghost," he muttered. "And when he disappears for good, who do you think will be left picking up the pieces?"
She stepped back. "Liam, leave me alone."
His smile twitched, something cold flashing in his eyes. "That's not how this ends."
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She ran all the way home. Her lungs burned. Her hands shook.
And when she reached her door…
It was already open.
Not wide. Just cracked.
Like someone had been there—and wanted her to know.
Inside, everything was the same.
Except one thing.
A single black glove.
On the counter.
She picked it up with trembling fingers.
It was Luca's.
She remembered it clearly—the way it fit over his hand, the way he always wore it when it was cold. The right hand only. Always.
And underneath the glove…
a piece of paper folded tight.
> "He touches you again, and he dies."
No signature. No name.
Just a message.
A warning.
A promise.
She sat down on the kitchen floor, clutching her stomach, her chest aching.
He was watching.
He knew.
And he was getting closer.
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That night, thunder rolled in again.
Rain tapped at the window like fingers.
And for the first time since the party…
Elena whispered his name into the dark.
"Luca…"
And somewhere, out in the city—
He heard her.
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