Page 76 of Claimed By the Damned
They aren’t sidelining me. They’re setting boundaries for the baby's sake, and mine. Reluctantly, I understand. The anger cools, just a little.
Hours later. The compound is quiet—too quiet. The adrenaline's gone, leaving bone-deep exhaustion and unease simmering under my skin. Ethan stands rigid before the security console. His fingers fly over the keyboard, eyes glued to the data streams flashing across the screen. The tension in his posture makes it clear—he is piecing together something that doesn’t sit right.
"We got lucky," he mutters, mostly to himself. "Really lucky. If I hadn’t set up the secondary alarm system last week, we would have been caught completely off guard. That early warning saved our asses."
Ryker folds his arms, his expression unreadable. "And the main system?"
Ethan’s jaw clenches. "That’s the problem." He turns, meeting their eyes—mine included. "One of the perimeter defense systems was disabledbeforethe attack. That shouldn’t have happened."
Ryker stiffens, his fingers twitching at his side like he wants a weapon. "Are you saying what I think you’re saying?"
Ethan exhales abruptly. "Someone inside disabled it. I think we might have a rat."
Silence drops, thick and suffocating.
Bastian, who had been standing quietly in the corner, steps forward. "That means whoever it was knew exactly how to bypass our systems without triggering an alert. This wasn’t a lucky break for them—it was planned."
My stomach twists. Fear I thought I'd buried slithers cold up my spine. For a second, it almost has me—but then I force it down. No. I am not going to break. Not again. I am tired of feeling powerless. This isn't just about survival anymore. It is about taking back control.
"Who had access?" Bastian asks, his voice dangerously calm.
Ethan scrolls through security logs, his eyes darkening. "Only a handful of people. The three of us, Grim, and… four others assigned to rotation."
Ryker lets out a low, humorless chuckle. "So, someone we trusted just put a damn target on all our backs."
I clench my fists. Action. We need action. "Then we find them. And we make them talk."
Bastian nods, his expression unreadable. "We tighten security. No one goes anywhere alone. Until we know who the mole is, we trust no one outside this room."
Ethan glances at me. "That includes you. You don’t go anywhere without one of us or Grim. No exceptions."
I want to argue, but I know they are right. This isn’t just about me anymore.
Later, we're gathered around the large oak table in the dining room. The discovery hangs heavy between us. The air is thick with tension, heavy with unspoken frustrations. Their expressions are bleak, and mostly unreadable.
Grim sits at the head, face carved from stone, arms crossed as he takes us all in. No one speaks, the weight of the ambush and the mole pressing down on us.
"We need to lay down some ground rules," Bastian finally says, his voice steady, but with an edge of command that brooks no argument. "From now on, Lila isneverto be left alone. Only Ethan, Ryker, myself, or Grim accompanies her. No exceptions."
My hackles rise. "I can take care of myself."
Ryker lets out an abrupt breath, shaking his head. "Lila, no one’s saying you can’t. But we’re not taking chances. Especially now. We all have more than just ourselves to think about, okay Baby Girl."
Ethan leans forward, fingers steepled. "We’re vetting everyone. We have a rat, and until we find them, we trust no one beyond this room. We got too relaxed, and it nearly got us killed tonight."
Grim gives a single nod, his gaze flicking between us. "We start with those who have access to the security systems. I’ll personally interrogate each one."
"No," Bastian cuts in, firm. "We don't want spook them. If they know we’re onto them, they’ll either bolt or feed us misinformation. Ethan will run background checks first, then gothrough records and see what turns up. Let’s not tip our hand yet."
The way they talk about strategy, security checks, it all revolves around protectingme, keeping me contained, managing the situationaroundme. The control in Bastian’s tone, the focus on logistics… it feels like I’m the unstable element they have to handle carefully, the weak point they have to manage, not a partner in this fight. I won't be sidelined.
"You’re all talking like I’m some liability," I snap, pushing back in my chair. "I am not a fucking liability. I aminthis, whether you like it or not."
"Lila, we already agreed," Ethan interjects, his tone firm but fair. "You’re involved. But you also have to trust us on this immediate security protocol."
I exhale hard, forcing myself to rein in frustration. They aren’t dismissing me; they are responding to a direct threat. I need to remember that. My shoulders slump slightly, the fight draining out, leaving behind that familiar, awful feeling of helplessness. Tears prickle behind my eyes, born of frustration as much as fear.
"I... I'm sorry," I whisper, hating how small my voice sounds. "I just... I hate feeling useless and weak." I look down at my hands, twisting in my lap. "You're right. I know you're right about the security. I just..." I trail off, unable to properly articulate the storm inside.
