Chapter 27: The Call From Inside the Lie

By the time Allison and Simone returned to Lucian’s house, the sky had turned the color of steel.

It matched Allison’s mood perfectly.

The car had barely stopped before Simone leaned toward her and said, "Okay. Before we go in, I need you to know something."

Allison glanced at her. "What?"

"That woman was not normal."

Allison let out a humorless laugh. "Vivienne?"

"Yes. Her. Champagne dress. Poison smile. ’I give warnings because I’m bored’ energy."

"She was testing me."

"She was baiting you," Simone corrected. "And you were one sentence away from politely removing her head."

Allison smiled faintly. "But I didn’t."

"Growth," Simone said. "Terrifying growth."

The driver opened the door. Allison stepped out first, her face calm, but her eyes sharp. Simone followed, still dressed in her fitted crimson dress, heels clicking against the stone like punctuation.

Inside, the house was not quiet.

Voices drifted from the study.

Lucian’s low, controlled tone.

Theo’s lighter voice, though even he sounded less playful than usual.

And then another voice Allison knew too well.

Her father.

Allison slowed.

Simone looked at her. "Your dad is here?"

"Apparently."

"Good. I was hoping someone terrifying would be available."

They entered the study together.

Lucian stood near the fireplace, one hand in his pocket, his expression unreadable until his gaze landed on Allison. Then something in him shifted—barely, but enough for her to see it.

Relief.

Theo sat sideways in one of the leather chairs, relaxed in posture but alert in the eyes. Elias stood near the bar cart, tablet in hand.

Adrian Croft sat behind Lucian’s desk like it had offended him into temporary ownership.

He looked up at Allison.

"You’re late."

Allison blinked. "Hello to you too."

Simone leaned toward her and whispered, "Is that his love language?"

"Yes," Allison said. "Unfortunately."

Adrian’s gaze moved to Simone. "Simone Laurent."

Simone straightened. "Mr. Croft."

"You’ve been with my daughter?"

"All day."

"Good."

Simone paused, then looked at Allison. "That felt like both approval and a background check."

"It was," Allison said.

Lucian stepped closer, his attention moving over Allison quickly. Not obvious. Not possessive. Just checking.

"Are you alright?"

Allison opened her mouth.

Simone answered first. "Physically, yes. Spiritually, we met a woman who dresses like a diplomatic incident."

Theo’s brows lifted. "That sounds promising."

"It was not," Simone said. "It was hostile but moisturized."

Elias muttered, "I like her."

Adrian’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Explain."

Allison set her bag down, then crossed her arms.

"We ran into someone today," she said. "Vivienne Laurent-Cassel."

The effect was immediate.

Lucian went still.

Not dramatically.

But Allison saw it.

Theo saw it too.

Adrian’s expression did not change, but the temperature of the room seemed to drop by two degrees.

Simone looked between them. "Okay. So everybody knows Poison Barbie except us?"

Lucian’s gaze returned to Allison. "What happened?"

"She approached me in a boutique," Allison said. "Not accidentally. She knew exactly who I was."

"She called Allison by name," Simone added. "Very dramatic. Very ’I’ve been waiting for this moment by a window.’"

Allison continued, "She said she’d seen the footage from the dinner. Claimed I handled myself well. Then she started talking about the world I’d ’stepped into.’"

Theo’s mouth curved faintly. "Bad opening."

"I told her I was born into it," Allison said.

Adrian’s mouth twitched once.

It was almost a smile.

Almost.

Simone pointed at him. "You liked that."

"I approve of accuracy," Adrian said.

Allison looked back at Lucian. "Then she mentioned Anthony."

His jaw tightened. "In what context?"

"She said he wasn’t someone who fades quietly."

"And then," Simone said, stepping forward because apparently she had decided she was now part of the war council, "she mentioned you."

Lucian’s gaze sharpened.

Allison watched him carefully. "She said you don’t involve yourself lightly. Then implied that because I’m near you, I’ve disrupted some kind of dynamic."

No one spoke for a second.

Allison’s voice lowered. "Lucian, who is she?"

Lucian exhaled once through his nose.

Not nervous.

But displeased.

"Our families know each other," he said. "The Laurent-Cassels and the Calloways have moved in the same circles for years."

Simone lifted a brow. "That was beautifully vague."

Theo leaned back. "He does that when the truth is annoying."

Lucian gave Theo a look.

Theo smiled. "Am I wrong?"

Allison didn’t smile. "How well do you know her?"

Lucian met her eyes.

"Well enough to know she doesn’t approach people without purpose."

"That’s not an answer."

"No," he admitted. "It isn’t."

A tense silence followed.

Then Lucian said, "Vivienne and I grew up adjacent. Same events. Same family alliances. She has been... interested in a closer alliance between our families."

Simone stared. "Translation: she wants you."

Theo coughed into his hand. "Efficient."

Lucian ignored them both.

Allison’s face stayed calm, but her eyes cooled. "And does she think she has some claim?"

"No," Lucian said immediately.

No hesitation.

That helped.

A little.

"But she may think Allison is in the way," Adrian said.

Lucian’s gaze shifted to him. "Yes."

Simone crossed her arms. "Fantastic. Another rich woman with unresolved feelings and too much free time."

Allison frowned. "She wasn’t alone."

That made Lucian look back at her.

"She was with Sharon," Allison said.

The room changed again.

Theo sat forward.

Adrian’s eyes sharpened.

Lucian’s voice dropped. "Sharon Morrison?"

"Yes."

Simone nodded. "And Sharon looked scared. Not guilty-scared. Like ’I accidentally joined a murder documentary’ scared."

Allison remembered Sharon’s pale blue dress, her hand over her stomach, the way she had looked back before leaving.

"She barely spoke," Allison said. "Vivienne did most of the talking. But Sharon was watching everything."

Adrian leaned back slowly. "Vivienne has made contact with Anthony’s household."

"Clearly," Allison said. "And if she brought up Anthony and Lucian to me, she wanted me to know she’s connected somehow."

Lucian turned to Elias. "Find out if any new money has moved toward Morrison accounts since last night."

Elias was already typing. "On it."

Theo’s voice was quieter than usual. "If Vivienne is funding Anthony, she won’t do it directly."

"No," Lucian said. "She won’t."

Allison looked between them. "So she’s backing him?"

"We don’t know yet," Lucian said.

Adrian’s eyes remained on Allison. "But we’re going to assume she is until proven otherwise."

Simone rubbed her arms. "I hate how calm everyone is about this."

"That’s how you know it’s bad," Theo said.

Before anyone could answer, Allison’s phone rang.

The sound cut through the room.

Every person looked at it.

Unknown number.

Allison stared at the screen, something cold sliding down her spine.

Simone moved closer. "Don’t answer it."

Adrian stood. "Put it on speaker."

Lucian stepped to Allison’s side, close enough that she felt him without needing to look.

She answered.

"Hello?"

For a second, there was only breathing.

Fast.

Shaky.

Then—

"Allison?"

The voice was barely above a whisper.

Allison went still.

"Sharon?"

The room sharpened.

Lucian’s expression turned dangerous.

Adrian’s jaw locked.

On the line, Sharon let out a broken breath. "Please don’t hang up."

Allison didn’t speak immediately.

Every memory of Sharon’s smirk, her cruelty, her soft voice in Anthony’s office, her hand on his arm in the ballroom—all of it flashed through her.

Then she heard something else.

Fear.

Real fear.

"What do you want?" Allison asked.

Sharon’s voice cracked. "Help."

Simone’s face hardened instantly.

Allison’s fingers tightened around the phone. "That’s a bold thing to ask me for."

"I know," Sharon whispered. "I know what I did. I know what I said. I know I helped them hurt you."

"Then why are you calling me?"

A pause.

Then Sharon said, "Because they’re going to get rid of me."

Silence dropped over the study.

Allison’s eyes flicked to Lucian.

His face had gone cold.

Adrian stepped closer. "Ask her who."

Allison repeated, "Who is going to get rid of you?"

"Anthony," Sharon whispered. "And Vivienne."

Simone mouthed, I knew it.

Allison’s stomach tightened. "Vivienne?"

"She’s helping him," Sharon said quickly, like she was afraid she wouldn’t get another chance. "Money. Plans. I don’t know all of it, but I heard enough. She wants you unstable. She wants Lucian away from you. Anthony wants revenge."

Lucian’s eyes darkened.

Allison looked at him once, then forced herself back to the call. "Where are you?"

"At the Morrison house. In the bathroom near the east hall. I locked the door."

Her voice trembled.

"Allison, Martha hit me today."

Simone’s face shifted despite herself.

Allison closed her eyes for half a second.

Of course she had.

"And Anthony?" Allison asked.

"He’s worse." Sharon’s breathing hitched. "He’s not sleeping. He’s drinking. He keeps saying you ruined him. He grabbed me earlier and I thought—" She stopped.

A small sound escaped her.

"I’m pregnant," Sharon whispered. "I’m scared he’ll hurt the baby."

The anger in Allison’s chest twisted into something more complicated.

Not forgiveness.

Not yet.

Maybe not ever.

But recognition.

Because fear had a sound.

And Sharon was drowning in it.

"You said you’ll confess," Allison said.

"Yes," Sharon said immediately. "Anything. Everything. The false marriage. The office affair. What Martha did. What Anthony knew. What I knew. I’ll sign whatever you need. I’ll record a statement. I’ll testify. Just please get me out before they realize I called you."

Adrian held out his hand silently for the phone.

Allison didn’t give it to him.

Not yet.

"Why should I trust you?" she asked.

Sharon cried then.

Quietly.

Ashamed.

"You shouldn’t," she said. "But you can use me."

That answer stopped Allison cold.

Sharon continued, voice shaking. "I know I don’t deserve your mercy. I’m not asking you to forgive me. I’m asking you to be smarter than them. I can help you hurt them back."

Theo’s expression changed.

Interested now.

Lucian’s voice was low when he spoke beside Allison. "Ask if she has proof of Vivienne’s involvement."

Allison repeated the question.

"Yes," Sharon said. "I recorded some of it. Not all. But enough. I panicked and started recording after I heard Vivienne say Anthony was being paid to create noise around you."

The room went utterly still.

Elias looked up from his tablet. "There it is."

Adrian’s voice was quiet. "Ask her if anyone knows."

"Does anyone know you recorded them?" Allison asked.

"No. I don’t think so. But Anthony saw me outside the study. He knows I heard something. He’s pretending he believes me, but I know he doesn’t."

A loud knock sounded through the phone.

Sharon gasped.

"Sharon?" Allison said sharply.

Another knock.

Then Anthony’s muffled voice came through.

"Open the door."

Sharon’s breathing turned frantic. "Please."

Allison’s body went cold.

Anthony knocked again.

Harder.

"Sharon. Now."

Adrian turned to Elias. "Locate the call."

"Already working," Elias said.

Lucian had his phone out. "I’m sending security."

Adrian looked at him. "Mine are closer."

"Send both," Lucian said.

For once, Adrian didn’t argue.

Allison spoke into the phone, voice steady and firm in a way that surprised even herself.

"Sharon, listen to me."

"I’m listening."

"Do not open the door."

"He’ll break it."

"Then get away from it. Is there a window?"

"A small one. It opens to the side garden."

Simone stepped closer. "Tell her to climb."

Allison repeated it.

"I can’t," Sharon whispered. "I’m pregnant, and it’s high—"

"Then stall him," Allison said. "Put the phone down but don’t hang up. Tell him you’re sick. Tell him anything."

Sharon sobbed once. "Allison—"

"You wanted help," Allison said, voice hardening. "Then stay alive long enough to receive it."

Silence.

Then Sharon whispered, "Okay."

The phone rustled.

Then her voice changed, louder and shaky. "Anthony, I’m sick."

"Open the door," Anthony snapped.

"I’m throwing up."

"I said open it."

Allison’s hands curled into fists.

Lucian’s voice came beside her, low and lethal. "Security is two minutes out."

Adrian spoke into his own phone. "No sirens. Silent extraction. Get her out alive and secure the recording device."

Simone stared at Allison, her earlier humor gone. "This is bad."

Allison didn’t look away from her phone.

"I know."

Through the speaker, Anthony’s voice lowered.

"Who were you talking to?"

Sharon said nothing.

The door handle rattled.

Anthony hit the door once.

Hard.

Sharon screamed.

Allison’s pulse spiked.

Lucian stepped closer, his hand hovering near her back but not touching, as if he wanted to steady her and knew better than to break her focus.

Adrian’s voice cut through the room. "Status."

Elias looked at his screen. "Team is at the side gate."

On the phone, Anthony’s voice turned cold.

"Sharon, if you did something stupid, I promise you—"

Glass shattered somewhere in the background.

Sharon cried out.

Then another voice burst through the phone.

A man’s voice.

"Move away from the door!"

Chaos exploded.

Shouting.

Footsteps.

Anthony cursing.

Sharon sobbing.

Allison held the phone so tightly her fingers ached.

Then a new voice spoke clearly into the line.

"Miss Croft, we have her."

Allison’s breath left her.

Sharon sobbed in the background. "Allison?"

"I’m here," Allison said.

"I’m sorry," Sharon cried. "I’m so sorry."

Allison closed her eyes.

Not forgiving.

Not forgetting.

But hearing her.

"We’ll talk when you’re safe," she said.

The line shifted as the security agent took over. "We’re transporting her now."

Adrian gave a short nod to Elias, who was already moving.

Lucian looked at Allison. "She needs to come here."

Adrian’s eyes cut to him. "No."

Allison opened her eyes. "Dad."

"No," Adrian repeated. "This house is already a target."

Theo spoke for the first time in minutes, voice calm but sharp. "Put her in one of Lucian’s secondary properties. Controlled access. Unknown to Morrison staff."

Lucian nodded once. "Done."

Adrian looked at Theo, then at Lucian.

"Fine."

Simone exhaled. "So we’re rescuing the mistress now?"

Allison looked at her.

Simone softened immediately. "I’m sorry. I know. Pregnant woman. Danger. I’m just trying not to panic."

Allison nodded.

"I know."

Her phone buzzed with an incoming file.

Unknown sender.

A voice memo.

Sharon.

The room went silent again.

Allison looked at the screen.

Then at Lucian.

Then at her father.

Adrian’s voice was cold as winter.

"Play it."

Allison pressed play.

Vivienne’s smooth voice filled the study.

"You create noise. Legal distractions. Public pressure. Enough instability that Lucian starts questioning whether keeping Allison close is worth the trouble."

Anthony’s voice followed, low and bitter.

"And if Sharon talks?"

Vivienne again.

"Then she becomes a liability."

The recording ended.

No one spoke.

Not for a long moment.

Then Lucian turned away, jaw tight, eyes like steel.

Allison watched him carefully.

"You know her," she said softly.

Lucian looked back.

"Yes," he said. "And now I know exactly what she is."

Adrian adjusted his cufflinks.

It was a small movement.

Controlled.

Dangerous.

"Good," he said. "Then we stop reacting."

His gaze moved from Allison to Lucian, then to Theo, then back again.

"Now we hunt."