Reborn in the Enemy's Embrace Chapter 5

Four nights remained before the incident unfolded.

Trembling uncontrollably, I stood in the alley dressed in a red one-piece gown.

"Act natural." Damien's voice echoed through the earpiece in my ear.

I paced back and forth across the alley several times. Yet, no suspicious figure appeared.

"Damien, maybe the killer has no interest in her?"

"Haha! Not even a killer wants anything to do with her."

Mocking chuckles from Damien's friends rang out in the earpiece.

With tears welling in my eyes, I sank to the ground. A powerful impulse to sob loudly surged within me.

That evening, the killer failed to take the bait.

I figured they'd release me then, but no such luck.

Three nights prior to the incident, they forced me to pace Serenity Lane repeatedly. Still, I couldn't draw out their target.

Two nights before the incident, Juliet approached me.

"Sophia, I'm sorry. I got it wrong before. It wasn't Serenity Lane."

"I believe I was tailed in Sunset Alley instead. Damien wants you heading there after work tonight. We'll have an ambush ready, so shout if trouble arises."

Trusting her words, I headed to Sunset Alley post-shift.

This time, a figure truly began shadowing me.

"Hello? Anyone there? Someone's following me, I think."

Terror and anxiety gripped me as I whispered urgently into the earpiece.

"Anyone..."

Playful noises filtered through the earpiece, but nobody paid me any heed.

Sensing something amiss, I dialed Damien's number repeatedly.

At last, he answered, snapping irritably, "Sophia, enough already? Why not just drop dead?"

"You confronted Juliet yesterday, claiming a marriage pact with me and demanding she back off, didn't you? Hear this: if Juliet comes to harm, your life's forfeit!"

Frozen in fright, I stopped short, desperate to clarify.

But abruptly, hands clamped over my mouth and nose.

My phone slipped from my grasp. I thrashed wildly, yet to no avail. Darkness soon claimed me.

On the day of the incident, I awoke dazed inside a massive wooden crate, the type for delicate goods.

A narrow gap allowed a glimpse of the exterior.

As I struggled to rise, a towering hooded man's silhouette entered from outside.

His face came into view.

Pale-skinned with disheveled hair, even partially obscured, it stunned me.

Of course, attractiveness wasn't a term for killers.

Yet his light blue eyes gleamed, features sharply chiseled, dark hair pure, skin ghostly white—clearly mixed heritage.

An ominous deathly presence emanated from the killer.

Terror-struck, I stayed utterly silent.

He seemed to hunt for an item, rummaging about before seizing an axe and hauling it away.

Clasping my mouth in horror, I stealthily slipped from the crate, intent on fleeing.

But before escaping far, a blow from behind felled me unconscious to the floor.

In my final moments of awareness, I glimpsed the axe he'd dragged and his hand.

"You're the most perfect piece of art I've ever seen."

His voice grated roughly, as if scarred by injury.

"You're different from the others. I want to keep you forever... I won't let anyone find you, and you'll be mine forever, always accompanying me."

The man was an utter madman.

Consciousness faded gradually as every last drop of blood ebbed from me, my heart ceasing to beat.

Death's brink proved surprisingly serene.

My soul trailed Damien to his home. He rarely visited the Coleman residence, preferring solitary living most days.

I'd often dreamed of stepping inside. I imagined it as our shared home post-wedding.

This place filled me with longing.

"Damien, did you find Sophia?" Juliet dashed to embrace him the moment we crossed the threshold.

Clad in nightwear, she'd clearly resided here for some time.

Damien cradled Juliet, soothing her softly, "I don't know what tricks she's up to again."

I sneered derisively, eyeing the home's furnishings.

This house was theirs all along.

They'd cohabited the entire time.