13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage 13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage Rain lashed the streets in sheets, blurring taxi headlights and neon signs. The city pulsed on, unaware of the van that idled near Lina Hart's loft, its blacked-out windows nearly invisible against the storm. Inside, Bruce's rooftop dinner still lingered in her mind-the warmth, the honesty, the space that asked for nothing but truth. She turned the corner, key halfway to the lock. A sudden movement. Then- A cloth pressed over her mouth. Sharp chemical sting. Panic surged. The world tilted, then went dark. She woke to the smell of lavender and old books. Silk sheets. French doors. The sun streamed through tall windows. But the door was locked. She sat up slowly. Not a hotel. Not a hospital. Rutherford Manor. Caroline Monroe's old prison in disguise. The door creaked open. Mason entered. 10:14 < 13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage He looked wrecked-sleepless, red-eyed, wild around the edges of control. "You're safe," he said, voice thick. She didn't speak. "You fainted-collapsed outside the building. I had you brought here." Lina stood slowly. "Try again." Mason swallowed. "I had you brought here because I needed time. Time without your walls. Without Bruce." Her jaw tightened. "You drugged me." "No!" he insisted. "Just sedated. Briefly. I panicked-" She stepped back. "You *kidnapped* me." "I needed to talk to you!" "You could've called," she snapped. "Emailed. Waited." "I couldn't wait anymore," he said, pacing. "Every time I see you with him-every photo, every headline-it eats me alive. I lost you once. I won't lose you again." "You already did," Lina said coldly. He moved closer, desperate. "It wasn't real with her. Iris-she knew how to pull my guilt. She always played the fragile one. I thought I was saving her. But it was you who-" "Enough" Lina's voice cut the air. "You don't get to rewrite what happened." "I'm sorry" Mason said. "I was a coward, But I loved you, I *still* love you-" "No," she interrupted, "You loved control. And when you couldn't have it, you called it grief" Mason's face twisted. "So this is all about him? Bruce?" "This is about me," she said. "Me choosing not to be chosen last* again." He stepped forward. "Caroline-" "I'm not her anymore." 1070 215 < 13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage His hand trembled as he reached out. She didn't flinch-but she didn't move either. "Love doesn't grow in cages," she said softly. "It withers." A long silence passed. Then, in a voice barely above a whisper: "Let me go." Mason's chest rose and fell. "I can't." Her expression hardened. "Then I will." Downstairs, Bruce Chen's phone buzzed violently. Location tracker-offline. Security feed-cut. "Something's wrong," he said, grabbing his coat. Beside him, his cousin Kai-former Navy SEAL turned cybersecurity expert-already had traffic cams pulled up on his tablet. "Last signal near Rutherford property," Kai said. "And the license plate that pinged there? Stolen." Bruce's jaw clenched. "We find her. Now" Back in the manor, Lina sat calmly at the antique vanity. She'd stopped pleading. Now she observed. The locks. The layout. The timing of meals. 1014 3/6 < 13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage She wasn't trapped. She was *documenting*. Mason entered again late that night, holding a crystal tumbler and a photo album. "Remember this?" he said, voice slurring. "Your first sailing trip. You threw up twice." "I remember," she said, eyes steady. "I didn't deserve you," he whispered. "But no one else will, either." She stood. "I'm not a trophy, Mason." "You were the best part of me," he said, choking back something that might've been tears. "Don't throw it away." "I'm not. I'm setting it down." He reached for her wrist, gripping it too tightly. Something flickered in his eyes-desperation tipped toward danger. Lina held his gaze. Calm. Cold. Controlled. "Mason," she said evenly, "let go before you do something you'll never come back from." The door creaked open. A maid peeked in, startled. Mason released her. The moment passed. But the line had been crossed. And Lina Hart was done being anyone's unfinished lesson. 10.14 4/5 < 13 Chapter 13 - Gilded Cage That night, while Mason brooded in the music room, Lina quietly opened the drawer where she'd hidden a silver letter opener. Not as a weapon. But as a wedge. Freedom didn't come from waiting. It came from *acting*. And dawn was only hours away. Comment Leave the first comment for this chapter. Vote 5 Show support to the author by leaving comments when sending gift. Swipe Left To Continue > Send Gifts