Aveline slid into the car, her gaze trailing Alaric until he was safely inside. Just as relief settled, her eyes caught a man in the crowd and froze.

Damien Ashford!

Her eyes widened, not with fear, but disbelief. He was supposed to be in prison.

He didn't look anything like the young master of the Ashfords. He wasn't in a tailored suit or polished shoes. There was no air of privilege. Just a worn jacket, ordinary shoes, hair longer than usual, and a face with stubble. His weight had reduced, stripped of his charm, his radiance long gone.

'He can't be out of prison… Can he?'

Unsure if her mind was imagining him, she kept staring at him as the car moved. Then he moved, his eyes narrowed at her, and he smirked, a vile one.

"Sunshine?" Alaric's voice pulled her attention as she turned around.

She wasn't sure what to believe, her sight or her knowledge of him being in prison. "I…" She hesitated out of disbelief. "I saw Damien…" Her voice was low, shaken with shock.

She pointed her thumb toward the crowd they left behind. "...in the crowd."

Alaric's head snapped toward her. He pulled the car aside without hesitation. For a moment, he considered the possibility of her misidentifying someone as Damien. But her tone, her expression said otherwise. She was speaking after considering the possibility.

"Should we go back?" He offered to take a look.

Aveline shook her head, still in confusion. "I don't know. I'm sure I saw him, but how could he be out?"

She pressed her temples, trying to force the thought away, but she was certain it was Damien. "Could you confirm if Damien Ashford is still behind bars?"

"Definitely." His hand rose, warm and assuring, brushing over her hair.

He could see her more unsettled than she was showing him. So he immediately grabbed his phone and dialed Ezra's number.

His voice was steady while instructing Ezra, "Confirm Damien's prison status and get me the footage from the entrance of Marston & Co." He ended the call when something caught in his memory.

A round hat and the tall frame of the man from Marston & Co.

He had seen it before, but where?

His eyes darkened a shade, recalling the picture Ezra had shown him while taking down Damien.

Simon Cladwell?

"Sunshine," he turned to her, "the man you signed papers with, who was he?" he asked suddenly.

"Theodore Marston," she answered without hesitation. "Chairman of Marston & Co."

Alaric let the thought slide, taking it as a coincidence. "Aren't you hungry?" he asked lightly as he started driving.

Aveline hummed in response instead of her usual mischievous responses.

Alaric glanced at her, he could see her still affected by Damien's possible appearance. Either way, he thought about learning the situation first.

He soon pulled into a quiet place for breakfast before heading to Ivory Towers.

Most of the things from the penthouse were being moved to Aveline's apartment due to renovation work.

Alaric invited her to NexGuard as he had some work, but Aveline chose to go to the Laurent mansion with Scarlett.

....

At NexGuard,

Ezra reported some of the work before he came to the point. "The footage." He placed the pen drive on the desk and continued, "Saturday visiting slots were full," so he wasn't able to visit Damien.

"According to our sources, Damien Ashford is in prison. And I have confirmed with Ms. Lancaster, no lawyer could appeal for Damien as he was caught by the Department of Justice for manipulating legal papers and trying to disbar a lawyer."

Alaric connected the pen drive and watched the video. It was security footage captured from across the road. It wasn't clear enough. "Marston & Co.'s security footage?"

"No cameras were there," Ezra responded.

Alaric dismissed Ezra and watched the video three times, but didn't find anything suspicious. He sent the video to Aveline and informed her via voice message about Damien being in prison.

....

At Laurent Mansion,

When her mobile beeped with two messages from Alaric, Aveline excused herself from her grandmother and Scarlett and went upstairs to her bedroom.

The grainy video played again and again, but every time, her eyes landed on the same thing. Nothing was clear. Only heads, black jackets, men's backs, and shadows were visible in the video from the camera's angle.

Her stomach tightened, feeling restless. 'Was it really him? Or is my mind forcing Damien into every stranger's face?

She had no answer to her questions.

After evening snacks and tea, she and Scarlett left the mansion. The road curved through the quiet forest, the air heavy and cold with dusk. Then…

'Screech…'

Aveline slammed the brakes.

Scarlett yelped, clutching the dashboard. "What are you doing?"

Aveline's eyes were wide, locked onto the man beside the tree. The same black jacket, worn-out shoes. And him.

Damien Ashford.

Aveline was already unbuckling her seatbelt with one hand while the other was on the door handle. "I saw someone. I'll take a look and come back," she said.

Scarlett's hand shot out, gripping Aveline's wrist tight. "Linnie, wait. What's wrong?"

Aveline pointed to the tree. "Look at that tree…"

But the spot was empty. The branches only swayed with the wind, shadows stretching with the fading sun.

Scarlett's gaze swept the area but found nothing. "There's no one, Linnie. Just the forest."

Aveline's chest heaved. She was sure she had seen Damien.

Yet now, there was no one.

"Behind the tree…" Aveline didn't get to finish.

Scarlett cut in, "Linnie," her voice firm, tugging Aveline's hand back from the door. "It's not safe. And it's getting dark. Let's go." With the Astors' downfall drawing media attention to Aveline, Scarlett didn't want to take any chances.

Aveline bit her lip, her heart racing. Scarlett was right. It wasn't safe to wander out. And if Damien really was free…

Her hands gripped the wheel tighter as she forced the car forward.

Habit made her glance at the rearview mirror, and her blood froze.

Through the shadows, a figure stepped out of the woods.

'No. No. It can't be. He's in prison. He's supposed to be in prison.' Aveline repeated to herself.

But the smirk she had seen in the morning made her doubt everything.

Her throat was dry. She swallowed hard, unsure if she was losing her grip on reality or if someone was truly playing with her.

The rest of their journey was oddly quiet. Scarlett noted Aveline's uneasiness, but Aveline told her nothing when she asked.

Reluctant to let Aveline go alone, Scarlett offered, "Why don't you come upstairs? Alaric will pick you up."

"I'm fine. I'm just exhausted, I'll go and rest." Aveline refused and drove away.

....

At Ivory Towers,

When she returned to her apartment, Alaric was already there, lounging on the couch with an iPad in his hand. "Sunshine…" he called out. But Aveline felt too exhausted, not physically, but mentally.

"I'm tired. I'll shower and go to bed." With that, she disappeared into her room.

Martha, who was in the kitchen, stepped out to find no Aveline. She glanced at Alaric and resumed cooking.

Alaric went into the bedroom. She had dropped her bag, coat, and clothes on the floor and was in the shower. He put them away and waited for her.

When she stepped out, she looked pale, sleepy, and tired. "Eat something before bed."

Aveline shook her head, trying to blow-dry her hair.

Alaric took the hair dryer from her hands and helped her. Before he was done, she was asleep, leaning against him.

When he tried to wake her up, she just whined and chose to sleep.

In the middle of the night, she gasped awake, breathing heavily, beads of sweat rolling down her neck.

Alaric woke up to her abrupt movements. He turned the lights on and quietly helped her drink water first.

Then he asked, "Sunshine, tell me what happened."

Aveline felt her head throb. She tried really hard to get rid of Damien's thoughts, but she just couldn't. She wasn't able to believe everything as her imagination.

"You won't believe me," she said helplessly.

"Try me." He stayed patient, but he knew it was about Damien again.

"I don't believe it myself. Why would you believe me?" She sighed, desperate to get Damien out of her mind.

"I saw him. Again. On our way back to the city." But she shrugged. "When I tried to show him to Red, poof… nobody was there. I feel like somebody is playing with my mind."

Alaric pulled her into his arms. He didn't brush it off or tell her it was her imagination. "We will visit Damien on Monday."

He heard her hum and coaxed her to sleep. Once she dozed off, he called Ezra, "I need an eye on Damien in prison and security for Aveline."

Though Ezra took the instruction, he knew keeping an eye on Damien was difficult. But he couldn't understand how Aveline was seeing Damien.

Somebody playing with her?

He looked at her tightened brows, her fingers clutching the duvet so tight her knuckles were pale. He gently caressed her head, hoping to ease her. But a thought gnawed at him.

If her eyes weren't deceiving her, then the prison had already lost its hold on Damien Ashford.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.