The next morning, Isabella woke to a text:
"You're mine, Izzy. No one else. No one touches you. No one will. You can run, but I will catch you."
Her hands shook. She pressed the phone to her chest.
"I… I can't…" she whispered.
Someone knocked at the door. Strong, decisive.
Sebastian's voice called through: "Open the door. It's time we stop running from each other."
Her breath hitched. She pressed herself against the wall.
"I… I don't want this!"
"You don't get to decide," he said, calm, cold, and unrelenting. "Not anymore. Not after what's coming."
The words hung in the air.
She knew he was right. She couldn't hide.
And she couldn't fight him.