Celeste's POV
The threatening text stares at me from my phone screen.
Accidents happen so easily in foreign cities.
Belle reads it over my shoulder and goes pale. Who sent this?
I don't know. But Marcus said Sterling wants me dead. My hands won't stop shaking. He said I'm in danger now that I'm away from Damien's protection.
Then we go to the police—
And tell them what? I got a vague text? They'll think I'm paranoid. I stand and start pacing. Marcus sent evidence that my parents were murdered. That someone's been trying to kill me and Damien for sixteen years. That's why Damien's so controlling—he was trying to keep me alive.
Belle sits heavily on the couch. So all the surveillance, the isolation, the obsession... it was because of a real threat?
Maybe. I don't know. I pull up Marcus's email again, scanning the documents. But if Sterling really is trying to kill us, and he knows I'm in Paris alone...
My phone rings. I jump so hard I nearly drop it.
It's Damien.
I stare at his name on the screen. The brother I ran from. The man who controlled every aspect of my life.
The man who might have been trying to save me all along.
I answer. Hello?
Thank God. His voice cracks with relief. I've been calling for hours. Are you okay?
I got a threatening text—
I know. I've been tracking your phone since you left New York. Before I can protest, he continues urgently, Listen to me very carefully. Richard Sterling knows you're in Paris. He's had people watching you since you arrived.
My blood runs cold. How do you know?
Because I've had people watching them. He takes a breath. Celeste, I know you hate me. I know you think I'm a monster. But right now, you need to trust me. You're in danger.
Marcus told me about the murders. About Mom and Dad.
Silence. Then: He shouldn't have done that.
But it's true? Someone killed them? Tried to kill us?
Yes. His voice is barely a whisper. Sterling orchestrated the crash. We were supposed to be in the car that night. We only survived because we stayed home sick. He pauses. I've spent sixteen years making sure he couldn't finish what he started. Keeping you close. Keeping you safe. And now you're an ocean away where I can't protect you.
Guilt crashes over me. All this time, I thought he was just obsessed. But he was terrified.
Why didn't you tell me?
Because you were eight years old when they died. How do you tell a child that someone murdered her parents? That someone wants her dead? His voice hardens. I built walls around you. Yes, I went too far. Yes, I became obsessed. But you're alive, Celeste. That's what matters.
So what do I do now
Come home. Let me protect you properly
No. The word comes out firm. I'm not going back to being your prisoner.
Then at least let me send security. A team to watch you until we deal with Sterling
How do we deal with him? What's your plan?
I'm working on it. I need evidence that will hold up in court. Proof that he murdered our parents and has been embezzling from the company for years. He sounds exhausted. I've been gathering it for months. I'm close, Celeste. So close. But Sterling knows, and that's why he's coming after you now. To distract me. To hurt me.
I think about the threatening text. The feeling of being watched since I arrived in Paris.
There's something else you should know, I say quietly. I got a job. At Beaumont Luxe.
I know.
Julien Beaumont's father died because of you.
I know that too.
He hired me partly for revenge.
I know. Damien's voice is tight. Which is why you need to be careful around him too. He's using you, Celeste. Maybe not in the way I thought at first, but he's still using you.
At least he's honest about it. At least he told me the truth instead of lying to me for years—
I never lied. I just didn't tell you everything.
That's the same thing!
No, it's not. He sounds desperate now. Lying would have been easier. I could have made up stories about why I kept you close. But I didn't. I just... couldn't find the words to explain that the world was more dangerous than you knew. That I had to control everything because if I didn't, you might die.
Tears stream down my face. Because I understand now. I understand the fear that drove him. The trauma of losing his parents and almost losing me. The impossible weight of keeping an eight-year-old sister safe while running a company and fending off murderers.
But understanding doesn't excuse what he did. The surveillance. The isolation. The way he twisted protection into possession.
I can't come back, Damien. Not to that life. Not to being locked in a cage.
Then what do you want?
I want to be free. I want to make my own choices. And I want you to get help. Real help. Because what you did—the obsession, the control—that's not normal. That's not healthy.
You think I don't know that? His voice breaks. You think I don't see what I've become? I'm a monster, Celeste. I know that. But I'm a monster who kept you alive.
You're not a monster. You're a broken person who needs therapy. I wipe my eyes. If you really love me, you'll let me live my life. You'll deal with Sterling without using me as bait. And you'll get professional help for... whatever this is between us.
And if I do all that? Will you forgive me?
I don't know. Maybe someday. I take a shaky breath. But right now, I need space. And you need to respect that.
Long silence. Then: Fine. I'll send security to watch you from a distance. You won't even know they're there. And I'll handle Sterling.
How?
Leave that to me. His voice turns cold. Dangerous. He's threatened you for the last time.
After we hang up, I sit with Belle, trying to process everything.
Your family is insane, Belle says, but there's sympathy in her voice.
I know.
So what now? Do you trust Damien to handle it?
I don't know. He's kept me alive for sixteen years, so he must be good at it. I stare at my phone. But I don't trust him not to try to control me while he does.
And Julien? Do you trust him?
That's the question, isn't it?
My phone buzzes with an email. From Julien.
Subject: Dinner?
I know you must have questions about why I hired you. About my father. About what I want. Let me take you to dinner tomorrow night. I'll tell you everything. No lies. No games. Just the truth. J
I stare at the email, my heart racing.
Damien says Julien is using me.
Julien says he's giving me a real chance.
Who do I trust?
The brother who controlled every aspect of my life while claiming to protect me?
Or the man whose father died because of my family and who might want revenge?
Belle reads the email. Are you going to go?
I don't know. What if Damien's right? What if Julien is planning something?
Or, Belle says slowly, what if Julien is the only person who's been honest with you from the start? He admitted he hired you partly for revenge. He didn't have to do that.
She has a point.
I type back: Okay. Tomorrow at 7?
His response is immediate: I'll pick you up. Wear something comfortable. I want to show you the real Paris.
After I send my address, I get another text. Unknown number.
I see you're making friends. How nice. I hope Julien Beaumont appreciates what he's getting. Though I doubt he'll have long to enjoy it. See you soon, Celeste. —RS
Richard Sterling.
The man who killed my parents.
The man who's been hunting me my whole life.
And he knows I'm going to dinner with Julien tomorrow.
Which means either he's watching me very closely...
Or someone is telling him my plans.
I look at my phone, my blood running cold.
Who can I trust?
Damien, who's been obsessed with me for years?
Julien, who might be using me for revenge?
Or no one at all?
Tomorrow night, I'm going to find out.
And depending on the answer, I might not survive the week.