The Warm Algorithm

Chapter 25: The Call That Burned

The vibration of his phone sliced through the quiet morning like a blade. Lucien froze, staring at the screen. He didn't need to check the number to know who it was. His chest already tightened the moment it buzzed. But he looked anyway. Her.

"I need to take this." 

His breath hitched, the warmth of Calixta's apartment suddenly suffocating. He slipped out the door quickly, the latch clicking behind him. The cool air outside hit his bare skin. Without thinking, he reached for the shirt still hanging from last night's rain, stiff with dampness. He pulled it over his head, jaw tight, and answered the call.

Before he could speak, her voice coiled into his ear, low, taunting, edged with danger.
"This mouth will spill the truth if it didn't taste you."

Lucien's teeth clenched. He swallowed back a curse, his voice dropping into a hard, steady growl.

"Where are you?"

"You know where I am, Kael." A small laugh trickled through the receiver, soft and cruel.

It's pulling him back into the shadow he had been running from.

He hung up without another word, shoving the phone into his pocket. His steps carried him faster, every muscle in his body wired with tension. He boarded the bus, sinking into the last seat by the window, his reflection staring back at him in the glass.

The city blurred past in streaks of gray and gold as his thoughts churned. Calixta's warmth lingered on his skin, but the pull of the other woman's voice dragged him into a darker current he couldn't ignore.

When the bus finally stopped, Lucien rose, stepping out into the crisp air. His gaze lifted.

The condo towered above him, silent, watching. He exhaled slowly, bracing himself. Then he walked toward the place he had hoped never to return to. Each step toward the entrance felt heavier, like walking back into a trap he'd barely escaped.

The doorman glanced at him briefly but said nothing, only nodding as though he already knew why Lucien was here. That familiarity sent a chill through him. He pressed the elevator button, the metallic hum filling the silence, and stepped inside.

The ride up was suffocating. His phone buzzed once more, a single message lighting up the screen: "Don't keep me waiting. You know what I'll do."

Lucien's grip tightened around the phone. He slipped it back into his pocket, his reflection in the steel doors staring back at him, hard, tired, conflicted.

When the elevator dinged, the hallway stretched out before him, lined with identical doors. But he didn't need numbers. He already knew which one was hers.

And as he approached, he could already hear her voice, muffled but sharp, singing softly like a warning:

"Kael! it's been ages." she purred, lips curling in a smile that never quite reached her eyes. "Do you know how long I've been waiting for you?"