Elena opened the door slowly.
There was no one there.
The hallway was empty and silent. For a brief second, she wondered if she had imagined the knocking altogether.
Then she looked down.
A bouquet of roses sat neatly on the floor, dark red petals still fresh, almost mocking in their perfection. Nestled between the stems was a small black card.
Her fingers tightened slightly as she bent down and picked it up.
She slid the card free and read the single line written in clean, confident handwriting.
"Next time I'll come in."
The card wasn't signed, but Elena had a strong suspicion who it was from.
"Maddox." She murmured.
How the hell had he found her place? Had he been following her?
A smirk curled on her lips. Maddox thought he could intimidate her. He couldn't. If anything, he amused her.
She straightened, bouquet still in hand. In fact...he had just given her a wonderful idea.
She shut the door slowly, then walked over to her laptop, already formulating a plan. She wasn't the kind of woman who waited around for things to happen to her—she made things happen. She logged into a social media platform under one of her many fake accounts, one no one could trace.
Then she opened her social media feed.
Her face was everywhere.
Videos from the shoot. Slow-motion edits. Screenshots. Fan pages already multiplying.
The internet was devouring her whole.
Elena typed calmly beneath one of the trending posts, using the troll account.
"I know where this beauty lives."
She paused.
Then she pasted the address.
Her real address.
And hit post.
Once.
Twice.
Again.
She sent it everywhere.
All social media platforms. Threads. Fan forums. Comment sections. Group chats. Anywhere her name appeared, the address followed.
Then she leaned back and watched.
Notifications exploded almost instantly.
Shares. Replies. Screenshots. Heart emojis. Fire emojis. Questions. Threats. Worship.
Her smile widened as the numbers climbed.
By 7:45 a.m., she could hear it.
Noise.
At first, it was distant.. Like traffic swelling too early.
Then it grew louder.
Shouts. Cheers. Screams.
She walked to the window and looked down.
The street below her loft was filling fast.
People pressed against barricades that hadn't existed yesterday. Phones raised. Signs scribbled in a hurry. Someone climbed onto a car just to get a better view of her building.
By eight a.m., the scene downstairs was nothing short of a nightmare.
Elena peeked through the window again, her eyes widening as she saw hundreds of people crowding the street, chanting her name. They were screaming. Some were even banging on the doors of the building, desperate to get inside. She could hear the faint sound of police sirens in the distance.
More people were pouring in. The street was flooded with faces. Fans. Paparazzi. The curious and the obsessed. All of them, drawn to the address she had leaked.
A laugh escaped Elena's lips. This… this was better than she had imagined. She had expected it to be big, but not this massive. She had manipulated the entire situation, turned the tide in her favor, and now the power was in her hands.
She picked up her phone and dialed Harper.
"Harper," She sobbed the moment the line connected, her voice shaking perfectly. "Oh my God—Harper, I'm so scared."
There was a sharp inhale on the other end. Harper sounded groggy, hungover from all the alcohol and drugs from last night, but she sobered up the moment she heard Elena's voice.
"What happened?"
"My address was leaked," Elena cried. "Fans..They're everywhere. They're screaming, they're trying to get in—I already called the police, but I don't know what to do. I'm terrified."Elena's voice trembled just enough to sound believable.
There was a long pause.
Then Harper's voice hardened.
"What the hell?" she snapped. "Send me your address. Now."
Elena did.
"I'm coming to get you," Harper continued. "Pack your things."
"Harper—" Elena choked. "Please bring security. There are so many of them. I don't think you'll get through otherwise."
"I'll handle it," Harper said coldly. "Just stay inside. Don't open the door for anyone."
The line went dead.
Elena lowered the phone, her eyes glittering, already imagining the look on Harper's face when she arrived. Harper would do anything for her now—she was too valuable. Elena had played her perfectly, and now it was just a matter of letting the situation unfold.
"All I have to do now," she whispered, "is wait."
---
Thirty minutes later, the street changed. The sound of heavy engines rumbled outside her building. Elena peeked out again.
A convoy of black SUVs rolled in.
Seven men dressed in black stepped out first. Four of them openly armed. Their presence alone forced the crowd to part without a single word spoken.
Then Harper emerged.
Gold sunglasses. Perfect hair. Controlled fury in every step.
The fans screamed louder.
Elena opened the door just as Harper reached the top floor.
She threw herself into Harper's arms the moment she saw her.
"Oh God," Elena cried. "Thank you. I didn't know what to do—I was so scared."
Harper stiffened, then pushed her back slightly, assessing her like an asset.
"I'm not letting anything happen to my top model," she said coolly. "Now pack your things. We're leaving."
Elena nodded obediently and grabbed her suitcases.
With Harper leading the way, they moved through the crowd, the security team keeping them safe from the desperate hands trying to touch, photograph, or grab at them. Elena felt the eyes on her, the screams of fans echoing in her ears. Phones flashed. People screamed her name like a prayer.
They slid into the SUVs, doors slamming shut.
As the convoy pulled away, Elena let out a quiet breath.
"That was insane," she murmured.
Harper, sitting across from her, didn't look fazed. She was already touching up her makeup, reapplying lipstick with an air of indifference. "Get used to it. You're a star now. This is how people react to stars. You'll learn to love it."
Elena hesitated, then spoke softly.
"Where am I supposed to go now?" she asked. "My dad arranged that loft for me. I'm scared to stay anywhere else. A hotel… a new place… it doesn't feel safe."
Harper paused.
She thought for a long moment.
"You're right," she finally said. "A hotel isn't secure enough. Too many eyes." She snapped her compact shut. "You'll come stay with me. At the family estate."
Elena turned to her slowly.
"Your family estate?"
"It's private land," Harper said. "Gated. Guards. No press. No fans. My parents won't mind."
Elena smiled.
A real smile.
"That's a wonderful idea," she said warmly. "Thank you, Harper."
Harper smirked. "Anything for my top model. You're going to make me very, very rich."
Elena looked out the window as London blurred past.
Her smile darkened.
"Oh," she said softly, almost to herself, "I plan to give you everything you deserve."