Chapter 4~

 Chapter Four

Shadows Behind the Door

The mansion was too quiet.

Not the peaceful quiet of a home.

The kind that makes you feel like the walls are listening.

I woke before sunrise again, staring at the ceiling, replaying the warehouse over and over in my mind. The gunshot. The blood. The calm look on Lucifer’s face.

My stomach twisted.

Why was I still here?

I swung my legs off the bed and walked to the window. Outside, fog rolled slowly across the massive gardens. The gates in the distance looked even more intimidating in the pale morning light.

A prison.

A luxurious one—but still a prison.luxurious one—but still a prison.

I changed into the black clothes Mara had left for me and stepped into the hallway.

Empty.

The floor was so polished I could see my reflection.

I walked quietly, unsure where I was going.

Honestly, I just needed air.

The hallway stretched endlessly with tall doors on both sides. Most were closed. Some locked.

Mara’s warning echoed in my head.

Never enter locked rooms.

Naturally, that made me more curious.

I turned a corner and froze.

The door at the end of the hall was slightly open.

Light spilled through the gap.“…she shouldn’t be here,” a man said.

“I didn’t ask for your opinion,” Lucifer replied.

My heartbeat jumped.

“I’m saying this for your protection,” the man continued. “Weakness gets people killed.”

Silence.

Then Lucifer spoke again, his voice colder than ice.

“Do I look weak to you?”

“No.”

“Then don’t question my decisions.”

Footsteps.

I panicked.

There was nowhere to hide.

The door swung open.

Lucifer stepped out.His eyes immediately found me.

Of course they did.

They always did.

“How long were you standing there?” he asked.

My brain stopped working.

“I… just came.”

A lie.

A terrible one.

His gaze narrowed.

The other man stepped out behind him. Tall. Scar across his eyebrow. He looked at me like I was a problem that needed to be solved.

“This is the girl?” he asked.

Lucifer didn’t look away from me.

“Yes.”The man folded his arms.

“She looks like she’d faint if someone raised their voice.”

“I already tested that,” Lucifer said calmly.

My face burned.

The man smirked.

Lucifer finally walked toward me.

Slow.

Controlled.

Dangerous.

“Didn’t Mara tell you not to wander?” he asked.

“She did.”

“And yet here you are.”

I looked down at the floor.

“I couldn’t sleep.”

A pause.

Then unexpectedly—

“Come with me.”

I blinked.

“What?”

Lucifer turned and walked down the hallway.

I hurried after him.

The scarred man stayed behind, still watching me suspiciously.

We walked through another part of the mansion I hadn’t seen before.

This area felt different.

Quieter.

More personal.

Lucifer stopped in front of a large wooden door.

“This,” he said, opening it, “is the only place in this house where people tell the truth.”

Inside was a library.

Huge.

Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Ladders. A fireplace. Large windows letting in soft morning light.

I stared in awe.

“You like books?” he asked.

“Yes.”

Something in his expression softened again.

“Good.”

He walked to a shelf and pulled one out, placing it in my hands.

“You’re giving me homework?” I asked.

“Consider it training.”

“For what?”

“For understanding people.”

I looked at the book.

Philosophy.

Heavy stuff.

“You read this?” I asked.

“Many times.”

I studied him carefully.

“You don’t seem like the reading type.”

One eyebrow lifted.

“And what type do I seem like?”

“A dangerous criminal.”

Lucifer laughed.

Actually laughed.

It changed his entire face.

For a moment he didn’t look like a terrifying crime lord.

He looked human.

“Both can exist,” he said.

Silence settled between us.

Then I noticed something strange.

A piano in the corner.

“You play?” I asked.

Lucifer followed my gaze.

“Yes.”

“Can I hear?”

He stared at me like no one had ever asked him that before.

Then slowly, he walked to the piano and sat down.

His fingers hovered over the keys.

For a second, the dangerous man disappeared.

And someone else took his place.

The music started softly.

Sad.

Beautiful.

Lonely.

The kind of music that feels like someone’s hidden pain.

I forgot to breathe.

This was the same man who ordered someone to be killed yesterday.

Yet here he was, playing something that sounded like heartbreak.

When the music stopped, the room felt different.

Quieter.

More fragile.

“Why are you really here, Divya?” Lucifer asked without turning around.

“My grandmother is sick,” I said honestly. “My family needs money.”

“And if I told you to leave right now?”

I hesitated.

“I can’t.”

Finally, he looked back at me.

Our eyes locked.

“Good,” he said softly.

“Because you’re becoming a problem for me.”

My heart skipped.

“What does that mean?”

Lucifer stood.

He walked closer.

Too close.

Close enough that I could see the faint scar near his collarbone.

“You’re not afraid of me in the way you should be.”

“I am afraid.”

“Not enough.”

His voice dropped.

“And that makes you dangerous.”

My chest tightened.

“I’m just a girl trying to survive.”

Lucifer’s gaze darkened.

“No,” he said quietly.

“You’re the girl who’s going to change everything.”

And for the first time since I entered that mansion…

I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing.

Or a very terrible one.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***