12. Theo
12
THEO
P ain surges through my body like wildfire, fierce and all-consuming. I groan, blinking against the blinding white light cutting through my head. What happened?
My hands are pressed against cold metal, and my face is tilted into broken glass and dirt. I feel… numb.
And then it hits me.
Grace.
I bolt upright, too fast, too soon, the world spinning as my head explodes in sharp, unbearable pain. My hands press against my skull, but it doesn’t matter.
I need to find her. The memories of the crash flood back in pieces—the impact, the way the car spun, the sickening sound of metal being crushed like a tin can.
And Grace...
I scramble, eyes wide as I search for her, but my vision swims. I see shadows moving and people shouting, but nothing is clear. It’s chaos. An acrid smell of burnt rubber, gasoline, and blood is in the air.
“Grace!” I shout, but my voice is hoarse, like I’ve swallowed glass. Panic surges through me as I push myself off the ground, ignoring the searing pain in my side, and stumble forward. Where is she?
I see a familiar figure to my right, the dark outline of Grace’s body lying motionless on the ground. My chest seizes. I drop to my knees beside her, terrified to touch her.
"Grace..." I whisper. "Come on, sweetheart, open your eyes."
For a long, breathless moment, nothing happens. The world stands still. My heart pounds, the noise of it deafening in my ears, and the terror in my chest feels like it’s crushing me. Then, with a soft groan, her eyes flutter open.
"Grace?" I exhale sharply, my voice shaky with relief. "Hey, it’s okay. You're safe."
She blinks up at me, confused, her hand weakly reaching for mine. "Theo…?"
I cradle her face with both hands, running my thumb along her cheek to reassure her—and myself—that she's okay.
“Yeah, it’s me. I’m here. Are you hurt? Can you move?”
She winces, but after a moment, she nods. “I think so.”
I let out a shaky breath, relief flooding through me. She’s alive. She’s okay.
Before I can say anything else, Tad appears behind me, his face tight and worried. "Theo, we’ve got her secured. Security’s already on it, tracking the bastard. We’ll get him."
I nod, trying to focus through the throbbing pain in my skull. “Where is he?”
Tad’s jaw clenches, and he looks away for a second. “They lost him. He’s gone.”
Gone. How? How could they lose him?
“We’re taking this seriously, Theo,” Tad growls. “But if I’m being honest, I don’t think this guy’s after her physically. Not yet. I think he just wants her to know he can still get to her. He wants to scare her.”
I can feel the rage building in my chest, a storm I can’t control. “He’s already done more than enough. He ran into us, and you think that he doesn’t want to hurt her?”
Tad sighs. “We’re not going to let him get close again. We’ll beef up the security at the house. For now, let’s get both of you to the hospital.”
“I’m not going to a hospital,” I snap, shaking my head. “We’ll have the doctor come to the house, but I’m not leaving Grace alone.”
Tad doesn’t argue, and I know he understands. I don’t give a damn about the hospital. I need to make sure Grace is okay, and I need to be there for her.
I tried to give her something normal, something safe; this bastard takes it from her. It’s infuriating.
My driver is being helped up by another member of the security team, who is groaning but conscious, which is a relief. He waves me off when I ask if he’s okay, and I almost laugh at how stubborn he is.
Just like me.
“Let’s go,” I say, rising to my feet and pulling Grace gently to hers.
She’s still shaky, still pale, and I can see the lingering fear in her eyes. My chest tightens at the sight. I couldn’t protect her like I promised. I couldn’t keep her safe.
The ride back to the estate is tense and quiet. I keep checking on her, making sure she’s not in pain, but she doesn’t say much.
Her hand grips mine tightly like she’s holding on for dear life, and I squeeze back, trying to comfort her.
But I can feel the weight of everything that just happened pressing down on us both.
When we finally pull into the driveway, the doctor is already waiting, a small team in tow. They rush to check Grace first, and I can see the tension in her shoulders and the way she winces when they touch her.
It takes everything in me not to push them away and tell them I’ll take care of her. But I don’t. I stand back, my fists clenched, as they examine her, asking if she’s in pain and checking for any signs of injury.
“She’s fine,” the doctor says after a while, looking at me. “A few bumps and bruises, maybe a mild concussion, but nothing too serious. Just keep an eye on her for the next few days.”
I nod, but I’m not convinced.
She’s not fine. None of this is fine.
When it’s my turn to be checked over, I barely listen to the doctor’s questions. I don’t care about the cuts on my arms or the pounding in my head.
I care about the fact that this man—this monster—keeps slipping through our fingers. I care about the fear in Grace’s eyes.
“You’re lucky,” the doctor says as he finishes up. “No broken bones, no major injuries. Just some soreness and a nasty headache. Rest is all you need.”
“Thanks,” I mutter, barely paying attention. My mind is somewhere else entirely.
Grace is sitting on the edge of the couch, her hands folded in her lap, staring at the floor. She’s so still, so quiet, and it tears me apart to see her like this. I sit down beside her, reaching out to take her hand again.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I ask softly.
She nods, but I can see the doubt in her eyes. “Yeah… I just… I didn’t expect him to come after me like that. Not now.”
“I know.” My voice is low, filled with the frustration and guilt that’s been building since the moment I realized we were under attack. “I promised you I’d keep you safe and failed.”
Her eyes snap to mine, wide and full of emotion. “You didn’t fail, Theo. You were right there. You?—”
“I should have done more,” I interrupt, my jaw tight. “I shouldn’t have let him get so close.”
“You couldn’t have known. Neither of us could have,” she says, her voice shaky but firm.
“He’s playing games, and he wants me scared.
I can’t let him win.
He could have... he could have killed both of us today.”
I stare at her, amazed by how strong she is despite everything. But I still can’t shake the feeling that I’ve failed her.
This was supposed to be a night of normalcy, where she could relax and not have to worry about her stalker. And now… this.
“I knew we should have stayed here.”
She leans into me, resting her head on my shoulder. I wrap my arm around her, pulling her close. The warmth of her body against mine is the only thing keeping me grounded right now.
I kiss her hair, closing my eyes for a moment, trying to calm the storm raging inside me.
“We’re going to stop him,” I murmur. “I swear to you, Grace, I’m not going to let him take anything else from you.”
She doesn’t respond, but she doesn’t need to. The way she holds onto me, the way she trusts me, is enough for now. But deep down, I know this isn’t over. Not by a long shot.
The next day, we wake up to a storm.
Not an actual storm—though that might’ve been easier to deal with. No, this is worse.
A tabloid article. Front-page news. Photos of us leaving the boutique, entering the restaurant, me hovering close to her like a bodyguard.
They suggest I have a new mystery woman and that I’m controlling and abusive. Then they talk about the accident.
It’s like they don’t realize Grace is the woman with me and that they don’t realize I was the man with her.
Man, these people are ridiculous.
"Fuck," I mutter under my breath, tossing the paper onto the kitchen counter.
Grace stands beside me, her face pale as she stares at the article. "How did they even?—"
"Someone must’ve snapped some pictures," I say, already running through the list of people I need to call to make sure this story dies down as quickly as possible.
But the damage is done.
And now, the media is swarming. Reporters are camping outside the estate gates, tabloids speculating about the “mysterious woman” I’ve been hiding away. Grace can’t leave.
Hell, I barely feel like I can go.
We hole up in the house, the two of us trapped together by the outside world.
At first, it’s tense. The pressure of media attention, and the fear of the stalker still looming over us. But after a while, we start to settle into a strange kind of rhythm.
We watch movies, play board games, and laugh at how competitive we get over something as simple as Monopoly.
It’s easy, being with her like this. Easier than I ever thought it could be.
And somewhere along the way, the tension between us shifts.