Chloe stood in the master bathroom. She turned the brass faucet and splashed freezing water onto her pale face. She gripped the edges of the porcelain sink, trying to shock herself into reality.
Drops of water slid down her chin and hit the basin. She took a deep, shuddering breath, staring at her reflection. She turned and walked out of the bathroom.
Behind the thick wall of the master bedroom, in a hidden surveillance room, the real Axel Sterling sat in a massive leather office chair. His sharp, predatory eyes were locked onto the glowing monitors.
Axel watched Chloe walk across the room in her conservative pajamas. His gaze was full of cold suspicion. His long index finger tapped a steady, rhythmic beat against the polished mahogany desk.
His assistant, Benjamen, stood next to him. Benjamen handed over a highly classified background check on Chloe. The crisp sound of turning pages cut through the quiet hum of the server racks.
Axel scanned the lines detailing how the White family forced her into this marriage. He let out a dark scoff and tossed the file onto the metal desk.
He didn't buy the innocent victim act for a second. He was convinced Victoria planted Chloe here to spy on him and confirm if he was truly a vegetable.
On the screen, Chloe walked back to the medical bed. She picked up a warm, damp towel from a basin. With surprising gentleness, she began to wipe the back of the stand-in's hand.
Axel watched the soft, pitying look on her face. His brow furrowed. A strange, irritating sense of wrongness twisted in his gut.
Chloe leaned over the stand-in. She muttered that the people in this house were cold-blooded monsters, and that only the two of them were the same kind. The hidden microphone picked up every word and fed it directly into Axel's earpiece.
Axel's tapping finger froze. A complex, dark emotion flashed in his deep eyes. He quickly buried it under a layer of intense paranoia.
He refused to let an unknown variable occupy his personal space. He pressed the intercom button on his desk and ordered Benjamen to execute the swap immediately.
On the monitor, Chloe let out a soft yawn. She walked over to the small velvet sofa in the corner of the room. She curled her body into a tight ball, pulled a thin blanket over her shoulders, and closed her eyes.
Axel waited until her breathing slowed into a deep, steady rhythm. The bookshelf on the shared wall let out a faint, mechanical whir.
The hidden door slid open. Two men dressed in black tactical gear slipped into the master bedroom. Without making a sound, they expertly detached the stand-in from the sensors and carried him out, leaving the actual medical equipment completely undisturbed.
Axel stood up from the leather chair. His legs were perfectly fine. His tall, heavily muscled frame radiated a suffocating, dangerous energy.
He walked through the hidden doorway. His custom leather shoes sank into the thick carpet, absorbing all sound.
He stopped next to the sofa and looked down at Chloe. A thin sliver of moonlight slipped through the curtains, illuminating her unguarded face.
He noticed the damp tear tracks drying at the corners of her eyes. A sharp, unfamiliar sting hit his chest. He immediately dismissed it as a glitch in his focus.
Axel turned and walked to the massive bed. He lay down flat. Benjamen moved in quickly, attaching the real monitoring sensors to Axel's chest.
Benjamen expertly applied the silicone burn scars to Axel's neck and jaw. He secured the silver mask over the top half of Axel's face, hiding his striking features.
The machines resumed their steady, rhythmic beeping. Axel closed his eyes. He slowed his heart rate and breathing, slipping flawlessly into the role of a man in a coma.
Benjamen and the guards retreated into the hidden room. The bookshelf slid shut, sealing perfectly.
Hours later, the first light of dawn crept into the room. Chloe shivered on the sofa. She slowly opened her eyes and stretched her stiff back.
She rubbed her aching neck and walked over to the bed to check on her husband. Her eyes fell on his arm resting outside the blanket.
She tilted her head. The muscles in his forearm looked thicker, more defined than they had yesterday. She frowned in confusion.
Chloe reached out to check his forehead for a fever. The second her fingertips brushed against his warm skin, a jolt of electricity shot up her arm.
Axel felt the soft pressure of her fingers. The muscles under the blanket instantly locked tight. He had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from swatting her hand away.
Chloe felt the hard tension beneath his skin. She snatched her hand back, her eyes going wide as she stared at the man.
She reached for the edge of the blanket, determined to pull it back and see what was going on. Just as her fingers gripped the fabric, three loud knocks hammered against the bedroom door. Axel let out a slow, silent breath of relief.
