Chapter 244
Cecilia’s pov
I suddenly stood and moved toward the window.
Sebastian was on his feet in an instant, catching my arm. “What are you doing p>
“Trying to open the window. Whatever’s in the air, I want it gone p>
He raised an eyebrow. “You really think whoever set this up would leave us a working window p>
“We have to try! How would we know if we don’t p>
Frustration boiled over. My hands were shaking. My skin burned. Logic was slipping through my fingers like water.
My patience was gone. I wasn’t thinking–just reacting.
Sebastian rubbed my back gently. “Alright, take it easy. We’ll figure it out p>
“I AM CALM! WHY WOULDN’T I BE CALM p>
The scream tore out of me before I even realized I was shouting.
I kicked him in the shin as if to prove my point.
Then froze, stunned by my own reflex.
My breath caught. My foot dropped back to the ground like it didn’t belong to me.
That wasn’t calculated. That wasn’t planned. It just… happened.
A flicker of unease curled in my stomach.
Was I losing control too?Maybe the effects were just slower on me.
Sebastian winced but kept his voice soft. “It’s okay. Just breathe. Don’t let it take over your head p>
I followed his lead, locking onto his steady, grounding gaze. The fog in my brain thinned.
“Stay here, don’t move. I’ll check the window,” he said, watching me like I might launch myself across the room again. Fair. I might have.
I nodded.
Sebastian tugged the curtains aside and tried the window. It didn’t move.
He leaned in, inspecting it. “Locked. Sealed tight p>
My disappointment barely had time to register before something else snapped in. “Then break it p>
I was already dragging a chair across the floor.
“Cece he said carefully.
I shoved the chair toward him. “Break it p>
Instead of arguing, he just smiled faintly and wiped the sweat from my forehead with his thumb.
“You hand out furniture like you’re staging a bar fight p>
I scowled, furious. What the hell was that? Flirting? Now?
He raised both hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. Valid idea. But think…if we break stuff in a place like this, what kind of consequences are we inviting p>
Consequences. Backfire. The words echoed in my hazy brain like distant sirens.
Then I saw it. A flicker of movement beyond the glass.
THUD.
A dull impact made me jump.
I pointed at the window, my whole body locking up, knees nearly giving out.
Sebastian caught me. “Easy. Sit down. I’ll check p>
I clutched his shirt like a lifeline. No chance I was letting go.
We approached the window. It wouldn’t open, so we leaned closer.
Just outside, barely visible through the glass, was a woman’s foot and the hem of a pale blue gown.
I recognized it. That was the Japanese mogul’s wife.
She’d knocked on our door earlier. Now she was p>
Falling. Or had already fallen. My mind couldn’t catch up.
I went numb.
All the heat drained from my face. My spine turned to ice.
Sebastian covered my eyes. “Don’t look p>
He closed the curtains and led me back to the sofa.
I didn’t resist. My legs folded under me like wet paper.
My heart was pounding in my throat. “Is she… is she dead p>
He didn’t answer at first.
His expression had shifted–not guilt. Not shock. Something colder. Analytical.
He wasn’t just reacting. He was calculating.
His eyes narrowed slightly, scanning the room behind me, as if fitting something into place.
Knock, knock.
The knock came again– the second time that night.
A composed male voice called through the door, “Alpha Sebastian, Miss Moore, please proceed to the central hall on the second floor. You have five minutes p>
My pulse spiked.
Someone had just fallen past our window–did no one notice? Did no one care?
Sebastian answered with calm authority. “Understood p>
Exactly five minutes later, we stepped into the corridor.
Tang and Sawyer emerged from the room next door, both visibly rattled.
I glanced over. Tang and Sawyer looked intact–no blood, no ripped clothes, no visible trauma.
Across the hall, Evelyn and Vance appeared. Evelyn’s glare could have melted glass. Vance looked like he’d been hit by a truck and emotionally run over twice.
Doors opened one by one as the rest of the guests emerged.
Some looked flushed and bright-eyed. Others were pale, trembling, or visibly angry.
The hallway filled. So did the air.
A sharp, sweet smell hit me. Made my stomach turn.
Everyone had been touched by whatever had happened.
Some more than others. And now, we were being collected again–like pieces on a board, reset for the next round.
The male guests scanned the women with thinly veiled hunger, while the women looked either numb, jumpy, or dangerously close to snapping.
The air buzzed with something unspoken and volatile.
As we moved toward the central hall, whispers began to surface.
“Did anyone else hear that thud earlier p>
“I think so… but I was… busy. I couldn’t tell where it came from p>
“I…I think I saw something p>
“Me too. A hand, through the window. It was someone. Definitely someone p>
The murmurs thickened, fear rising like steam.
Our group stayed quiet, ears tuned, eyes sharp.
My head pounded. I dropped my gaze, pressing my fingers to my temples.
When I looked up again, my eyes locked on something across the hall p>
and every hair on my body stood on end.