You are a monster
A knock echoed sharply against the heavy hotel suite door. Alexander, still dressed in the same black button-down from the night before, crossed the marble floor to open it. His assistant, Jared, stood with two shopping bags in hand, his expression carefully neutral but his eyes sharp as ever.
"Is she awake?" Jared asked, stepping in.
Alexander took the bags without replying. The first one, he dropped on the nearby couch. The second, he walked over to Elena with, offering it to her without a word.
"Change into this," he said coolly.
Elena sat on the edge of the bed, still wearing the bathrobe she'd been wrapped in since the night before. Her face was pale, her lips slightly chapped, and her eyes had the distant look of someone barely holding herself together. She hesitated, then took the bag and stood.
Without glancing at either man, she disappeared into the bathroom.
As soon as the door closed, Jared dropped the neutrality in his voice. "It's confirmed. William paid for her delivery."
Alexander's jaw clenched. "I already figured that out."
, he didn't look surprised.
"He arranged everything—the location switch, the sedation, the trafficking. She was the gift."
Alexander didn't answer. He poured himself a drink instead—neat whiskey, two fingers—and downed it in one motion.
"Do we have William?" he asked.
"No. He left the country this morning. Private jet. No filed destination. But we're watching his assets."
Alexander nodded once. "Anything else?"
"The traffickers are being hunted down. One's already in custody. The police want a statement from the girl."
Alexander glanced at the bathroom door. "They'll wait."
Jared paused. "There's more. Her father—he's alive."
Alexander turned slightly.
"They found him at a rundown clinic on the west side. He was bleeding badly—chop wound to the neck. The nurses said someone dumped him near their back door. They stitched him up and stabilized him."
Alexander was silent, absorbing the information.
"Is he talking?" he asked.
"Not yet. But he's conscious."
The bathroom door clicked open. Elena stepped out wearing the clothes Alexander provided—a soft cashmere sweater, fitted jeans, and flat boots. She looked better, but her expression was unreadable, distant.
Alexander's eyes scanned her briefly, noting the tension in her face, the fire building just beneath the surface.
"You said something about my father?" she asked Jared, though her eyes never left Alexander.
"He's alive," Jared replied. "In a small clinic. He's recovering."
Elena blinked. Her shoulders sagged a fraction, but the relief was fleeting.
"I want to see him," she said. Her voice was tight with restrained emotion. "Now."
"You can't," Alexander replied without hesitation.
Elena's eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"
"You'll go when I say it's safe," he said, stepping toward her. "The men who took you haven't all been caught. Step outside unprotected and you'll disappear again—only this time, I may not be there to stop it."
Her chest rose and fell quickly. "So you're in control of everything again."
Alexander didn't flinch. "Someone has to be."
she whispered. "Do you even feel anything? At all?"
He tilted his head slightly. "Feelings don't fix things. Action does. Your father's alive. You're alive. That's because of me. You don't have to like it."
Elena's hands clenched into fists at her sides.
"You destroyed my father's company. You humiliated him. Everything that's happened is your fault."
Alexander's eyes darkened. "Your father made the mistake of trusting the wrong people. He played in waters he couldn't survive in. That wasn't my doing."
She stepped forward and struck his chest with both fists, the blow weak but emotionally charged. "Liar! You ruined us! If anything happens to him—I swear—"
He caught her wrists, firm but not painful. His expression didn't change.
"You won't like threatening me," he said coldly. "I don't respond well to them."
She wrenched her hands free and backed away, her body trembling. "You're a monster."
Alexander turned to Jared as if her words didn't touch him. "Have her father transferred to a private hospital. Quickly and Quietly."
"Yes, sir."
"Security on both of them. Unmarked cars. Minimal staff."
Jared nodded. "Understood."
Alexander returned his gaze to Elena. "You'll see him soon. You'll give your statement to the police when I say so. And you'll stay under protection until this mess is cleaned up. Whether you like it or not."
Elena didn't reply. She simply turned and walked to the window, her back stiff, her arms crossed tightly across her chest.
Jared slipped out, leaving the suite in silence.
Alexander watched her in the reflection of the glass. A broken girl with too much pride and too little control. He didn't pity her. But she was part of this now.
And if William thought he could run after what he did, he'd learn just how cold Alexander Knight could be.