Chapter 3 Escape

I jolted awake, my body drenched in sweat. My breath came in ragged gasps, my chest rising and falling unevenly as if I had just run a great distance.

Panicking, I threw off the blanket and looked down at my stomach, my trembling hands patting over my skin. There was nothing. No blood. No knife.

I froze for a few seconds, forcing myself to calm down, before finally letting out a long, shaky breath. “A nightmare,” I murmured weakly, almost as if I were trying to convince myself.

But the fear did not leave right away. The image of the knife piercing flesh, the warmth of blood, and Rafael’s empty gaze were still burned vividly into my mind.

The sound of the door opening made my body tense instantly. Reflexively, I turned toward it, and my heart dropped the moment I saw who was standing there.

Rafael.

The man from my dream stood in the doorway, his posture straight, his expression calm as if nothing had happened. Yet for some reason, the instant our eyes met, my body began to tremble. The fear surged back without warning, crushing my chest like a bitter memory forced to the surface.

“Did you have a nightmare?” he asked as he walked closer.

His steps were slow, nearly silent. He reached out and wiped the sweat from my forehead with his bare hand. The touch made my entire body go rigid. Every instinct screamed at me to pull away, but instead I froze, unable to react.

“What exactly were you dreaming about to sweat like this?” he asked again, his voice low, almost gentle.

I did not answer. I bit down on my lower lip, holding back the tremor spreading to my jaw. The image of the knife and the blood returned, too vivid to be dismissed as just a dream.

“It is probably because you are sleeping in a new place,” he said casually, as if it meant nothing at all. “Even though this room is very similar to yours, it seems it did not help much.”

He turned away, picked up a glass of water, and held it out to me. “Drink.”

I stared at the glass for a moment before finally taking it. The water was warm. Just like he used to do. Just like every morning back when he was still my bodyguard.

Rafael… even in a situation like this, he was still doing the same things. Small habits that used to make me feel safe.

“I want to take a shower,” I said after handing back the empty glass.

“I will accompany you.”

“You are insane!” I glared at him, instinctively backing away.

He let out a light laugh, sounding relaxed. “I am joking, Lady. You can use the bathroom in the corner. I designed it to resemble your own bathroom.”

My eyes narrowed as I stared at him in horror. “You are truly a pervert.”

“Hey, I only did that, you once deliberately sat on my lap-”

“Tsk, shut up!” I cut him off quickly, refusing to hear the rest of that embarrassing sentence. “Get me a towel and some clothes!”

I went into the bathroom and froze the moment the door closed behind me. What he had said was true. This bathroom was far too similar.

“He is completely insane,” I muttered softly. “How could he recreate my bathroom this perfectly?”

A knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts.

“Lady, I have placed the towel and clothes in front of the door,” Rafael’s voice came from outside.

I opened the door just enough to grab them, then locked it again immediately.

“Damn it,” I muttered, my face heating up when I saw that underwear had been prepared as well. “Why did I forget to bring these myself?”

A few minutes later, I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my reflection. I let out a heavy breath. “He will not even let me wear ugly clothes.”

My eyes roamed around the entire room. Everything was the same. Too similar. From the layout and wall colors to the tiny details that only I should have known.

That proved one thing that made my chest go cold. Rafael had been planning my kidnapping for a long time.

“How could I be fooled this easily?”

I sat on the edge of the bed, my thoughts drifting back to the first time Rafael entered my life. His polite smile, the way he always stood slightly behind me, and his voice that was calm and full of concern just for me. Now all of it felt like a dream that had never truly existed.

“Was I fooled because of his face?” I scoffed. “Yes, definitely. That damn handsome face.”

I clenched my fists. His treatment of me after kidnapping me was still the same as before. Gentle. Too gentle. And that was exactly what disgusted me, because this could all be nothing more than another trick to make me obedient again.

I had fallen for him once. And I refused to be fooled a second time.

My thoughts spun wildly, searching for an answer.

Escape… should I run?

Even though Rafael had warned me, for some reason, I did not want to obey him this time. There was something inside me that refused to submit.

I wanted to rebel. I wanted to show him that I could not be conquered so easily.

---

Before dawn.

While the sun had yet to rise and the cold air bit into my skin, I stepped outside carefully. After days of pretending to be obedient, today I broke his warning.

I slipped out through a window, scanning my surroundings with extreme caution. Security was indeed looser at this hour, as if they were certain I would not dare to leave.

I ran toward the forest, leaving behind the old building where I had been held captive.

Before going deeper, I stopped and crouched down, leaving a small mark on a tree trunk, hidden but still visible to me. I repeated it on other trees, creating a secret trail for myself so I would not get lost.

Just as I was about to move again, the sound of voices approached.

I immediately hid behind a large tree, holding my breath.

Rafael’s subordinate.

“Hey, wait.”

My chest tightened.

“What is it?”

“Do you smell this?”

My heart dropped instantly.

Perfume.

Damn it. I had worn perfume last night, and I had not expected the scent to last this long.

The two of them began sniffing the air. “You are right. It smells nice. But why?”

“That is strange. Suddenly, there is a scent here.”

“Maybe flowers?”

“But where are the flowers? It is all leaves and grass along this path.”

“Wild grass, maybe?”

“Just find where the scent is coming from.”

My body went rigid.

This was bad.

Footsteps grew closer. I did not dare breathe. The sound of boots stopped right beside me, only separated by the tree trunk I was hiding behind.

“Hm… where is this smell coming from?”

I bit my lip, my heart nearly exploding in my chest.

“Oh! So it is—”