"No," I say again with a weak laugh. "Apparently that’s my default answer now."

His voice softens instantly.

"How’s Zane?"

"Annoying. Which means he’s alive and well."

A quiet chuckle leaves him.

"Good."

I lean against the balcony railing, staring out at the gray sky.

"We fixed the funeral date," I say quietly after a moment.

Lucas goes silent for a second.

"When?"

I tell him the date softly.

"That soon?"

"I don’t think dragging it out will help."

"No," he agrees quietly. "Probably not."l

I close my eyes briefly.

"She didn’t deserve this."

"No," Lucas says firmly. "She didn’t."

The ache in my chest returns instantly. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

God.

Margaret really is gone, even saying it in my head still feels unreal somehow.

Lucas must hear the shift in my breathing because his voice becomes gentler.

"Hey."

I swallow hard.

"I keep expecting her to walk into the kitchen yelling at somebody."

He exhales quietly.

"I know."

I wipe quickly at my face before tears can properly start again.

"I’m tired of crying."

"You don’t get to decide grief on a schedule, El."

"I know."

"You’ve been through hell these past few days."

The understatement almost makes me laugh.

Instead I stare down at the wet gardens below.

"How’s grandpa?" I ask quietly.

"He’s stable this morning."

Thank God.

At least one good thing.

"And Noah?"

"He’s downstairs arguing with security because they won’t let him bully his way into seeing Aaron."

A startled laugh escapes me.

"That sounds about right."

"Apparently threatening federal charges isn’t working."

"Shocking."

Lucas laughs softly too, and for a second things feel almost normal again.

Almost.

Then his tone shifts slightly.

"You need anything?"

I glance back toward the bedroom door behind me instinctively.

"I just need everybody alive for like five minutes."

His voice softens again.

"We’ll figure this out."

I want to believe that, I really do but lately every time things start calming down, something worse happens.

Still...Maybe hope is all we have left right now.

"I should call Noah too," I murmur.

"Tell him yourself. He’s already on his way there."

I blink.

"What?"

"He said you sounded terrible yesterday and he doesn’t trust you not to emotionally collapse."

I scoff weakly.

"That’s rude."

"He’s not wrong though."

"Traitor.

Lucas laughs again.

Then quieter now, "We’re here, okay?"

My throat tightens painfully.

"I know."

And for the first time in days...I actually believe those words.

Lucas goes quiet for a second on the other end of the line.

"What?" I ask slowly.

"You remember that thing you asked me to check some time agao ?"

Every muscle in my body stiffens immediately because I know exactly what he means and suddenly I wish I didn’t.

My grip tightens around the phone as cold wind brushes across my face out on the balcony. The thing I asked him to investigate feels stupid now, and dangerous too...especially after everything that’s happened between me and Zane these past few days.

After almost losing him, after realizing I actually do love him:..maybe some things are better left alone.

Lucas exhales softly.

"You still want to know?"

I don’t answer immediately. Because honestly? I don’t know, part of me desperately wants to hang up before he says another word but another part of me needs the trut and clarity, even if it hurts....Especiall if it hurts.

My pulse starts beating harder.

"What did you find?" I ask quietly.

"El."

I close my eyes tightly.

"Just tell me."

"You sure?"

No. Not even remotely.

But I force the word out anyway.

"Yes."

Silence stretches between us for a second too long and in that silence my mind starts spiraling immediately.

What if Zane lied to me? What if everything between us is built on manipulation? What if the feelings I’m drowning in aren’t even real to him?

God.

Why does my chest already hurt?

Behind me, I can hear faint movement inside the bedroom. Probably Zane shifting around or getting irritated that I’ve been gone longer than five minutes. The thought somehow makes this worse, because now there’s something to lose. Lucas finally speaks again, voice quieter this time.

"I checked the transfer records like you asked."

My heartbeat skips.

"And?"

"There was definitely help from the inside."

A chill crawls slowly down my spine.

"I knew it," I whisper.

"But that’s not the worst part."

My stomach drops instantly.

"Lucas."

"The order to move Aaron temporarily before the attack?" he says carefully. "It came from someone using Zane’s private authorization codes."

I freeze completely.

"What?"

"There’s more," he says grimly. "Whoever did it knew details that only a very small number of people should’ve known...that’s Zane’s very close confidants."

My thoughts immediately start racing.

The staff break, the security rotations.

Aaron’s location. Everything.

Someone clos....Someone close enough to destroy all of us from the inside. And suddenly I feel sick.

"Do you think it was someone working for him?" I ask shakily.

"I don’t know yet."

"But?"

Lucas hesitates and that hesitation terrifies me more than anything else.

"But," he says slowly, "there’s one thing bothering me."

I grip the railing tighter.

"What?"

"The codes used that night weren’t just Zane’s."

I stop breathing.

"What do you mean?"

Another pause.

Then quietly:

"They were yours too."

"What the fuck do you mean my codes?" I whisper.

My voice comes out thin, like all the air just got punched out of my lungs on the other end of the line, Lucas exhales heavily.

"El, calm down first."

"How am I supposed to calm down?" I snap quietly, immediately lowering my voice again when I realize I’m almost shouting. I glance back toward the bedroom door instinctively. "What do you mean my authorization codes were used?"

"The system logs showed both yours and Zane’s access signatures around the same timeframe."

"That makes no sense."

"I know."

"No, Lucas, seriously. That literally makes no sense." My heart is beating so hard now it almost hurts. "I don’t even know how to use half the security systems in this house."

"I’m aware."

"Then how the hell would my codes even be involved?"

"That’s what I’m trying to figure out."

I start pacing the balcony now, barefoot against the cold stone floor. My free hand grips the back of my neck tightly while panic starts spreading through my chest like wildfire.

This is bad. Very bad.

Because if someone has access to both my security credentials and Zane’s...Then this goes way deeper than we thought.

"Oh my God," I breathe.

"El."

"What if they’re trying to frame me?"

"They are."

I stop pacing immediately.

"What?"

Lucas’s voice hardens.

"That’s exactly what this looks like."

A cold chill crawls slowly down my spine.

"But why?"

"Because whoever’s behind this is smart."

Too smart...The realization settles heavily in my stomach, everything lately feels calculated.

Aaron escaping, the timing of the attack, the staff being gone, the codes and that call earlier. Nothing about this feels random anymore.

Then suddenly another thought hits me.

"Mia."

Lucas goes quiet for half a second and immediately I know.

"What about Mia?" I ask sharply.

"El..."

"No, don’t ’El’ me. Tell me."

I hear papers rustling faintly on his end before he finally speaks again.

"That thing you asked me to look into regarding Mia..."

My stomach twists harder.

"What about it?"

"It doesn’t look like Zane did it."

I blink Completely stunned.

"What?"

"The more I dig into it, the messier it gets." Lucas sounds frustrated now. "At first glance it pointed toward him too perfectly. Almost suspiciously perfect."

I lean harder against the railing.

"What does that mean?"

"It means somebody put a lot of effort into making sure all roads led back to Zane."

My thoughts start scrambling immediately.

"But... why would someone do that?"

"To put a target on him."

Lucas’s answer comes instantly.

"To destroy trust around him. To make sure everybody close to him eventually turns against him maybe?"

I stare blankly out at the rain-covered estate below. Suddenly my chest feels unbearably tight.

Because if Lucas is right... Then Zane’s been telling the truth this entire time and I doubted him.

God.

I doubted him. Guilt crashes into me so hard I almost feel sick.

Inside the bedroom behind me, I can faintly hear him in the background Meanwhile I’m out here finding out someone may have been systematically destroying his life from the shadows.

"Lucas," I whisper shakily. "Do you know who it is?"

A pause. Then carefully:

"I have an idea."

My heartbeat jumps instantly.

"Who?"

"I’m not saying yet."

"What? Why not?"

"Because suspicion isn’t proof."

"Lucas..."

"El, listen to me." His voice sharpens slightly. "If I accuse the wrong person right now, it could blow everything apart."

"But if you know something...."

"I said I have a theory."

Frustration burns through me immediately.

"Well tell me the damn theory!"

"No."

I nearly choke.

"No?

"You get emotional and reckless."

I gasp dramatically.

"That is so rude.

"And accurate."

"Lucas!"

"I’m serious."