The glass shattered on the floor, its content spreading across the floor like a dark stain.
"No!" Ethan wished his guess wasn't correct.
"What do you mean she is meeting Morrison in Dubai?" He questioned even though he had a good guess, his voice was deadly quiet.
Lucas was already on his phone, fingers flying across the screen.
"They are scheduled to meet at the Burj Al Arab at nine AM. That is about... twelve hours from now." He informed Ethan after checking his watch.
"Fuck!" Ethan slammed his fist on the desk.
"She must have known. Somehow, she knew about Dubai." He stated through gritted teeth.
"It is possible." Lucas admitted, his shoulders slumping in defeat.
"God dammit! How? I know she is cunning and all but just when does she start being on top of the game? How the hell is Lila Montgomery a step ahead of me?" Ethan yelled angrily. He was livid.
"I understand how frustrating this is but please calm down. We still have leverage—" Lucas was saying calmly but got interrupted.
"Do we?" Ethan raised a questioning eyebrow and laughed bitterly.
"If she is meeting him in Dubai, chances are she has got something bigger than what we have. So, how do we have leverage now?" He yelled in exasperation.
Lucas heaved a heavy sigh.
"There will always be a way for us." He said lowly but confidently and those words seemed to calm Ethan's nerves.
A knowing look appeared on his face and he straightened up.
"Of course, I am Ethan Black. No one can bring me down. Not after what I have endured to get this far..."
"I break people... They won't dare break me!" He snarled and Lucas had an approving look on his face.
~~~~~~~~~~
The following morning, Nora arrived at the office earlier than usual, her mind still burdened from yesterday's encounter with Lila.
"I need to find it before Mrs. Thompson arrived..." She mumbled under her breath as she made her way to the records room, her heart pounding with anticipation.
"Or anybody else." Nora added as she searched through the shelves, desperately looking for any trace of her parents' file.
"It has to be here somewhere. Mrs. Thompson couldn't have moved everything."" She muttered, rummaging through another stack of folders.
"What is going on? I saw the file just two days ago – Lawrence and Stella Hayes, written in yellow ink on a folder. How come I can't find them anymore?" She gritted out in frustration as she searched many boxes to no avail.
"Looking for something specific?" A cold voice said from behind her.
Nora jumped, nearly dropping the files in her hands.
She spun around to find Ethan Black standing in the doorway, his expression cold and unreadable as usual.
"Mr. Black! I... I was just..." She stuttered, not knowing what to say.
"Just what? I don't recall sending you here." Ethan said, his voice dangerously low.
"I wanted to... arrange the place." Nora blurted out as she clutched the files to her chest.
Ethan scoffed in annoyance.
"Arrange the place? Interesting." He stated then took a step closer, and Nora stepped back instinctively.
"Tell me, how did you even know about this room? You have barely been here a week." Ethan pointed out, staring intently at her face.
Nora swallowed hard.
"What should I say? Oh God!" She wondered inwardly in desperation.
"I... I actually wanted to thank you. For the black card. My grandmother got her surgery and—" Nora blurted out as she finally thought of something to change the subject quickly.
Ethan scoffed again afterwards, a smirk made its way onto his face.
"Stop! If you think this act will work on me, you are sadly mistaken." He told her firmly, his voice cutting through her lies like a knife.
Then he approached her menacingly.
"Whatever you think you are doing, whatever you are trying to dig up... I suggest you stop. For your own good." He warned her.
Nora swallowed hard.
"What do you mean?" She managed to inquire without stammering.
"Just know this – some things are better left buried. Don't go looking for what might end up harming you." He added firmly.
The threat in his voice was unmistakable. And without waiting for her response, he turned and left, leaving Nora biting her lip nervously.
~~~~~~~~~~
Later that night, Nora paced her empty living room, holding Lila's business card.
"Should I call her?"
"What does she knows?"
"What if I dig out something dreadful enough to put myself in harm's way?" Nora contemplated as Ethan's warning replayed in her mind.
After what felt like hours of internal debate, she finally pulled out her phone and dialed the number with shaking fingers.
"Well, well... I must say, I'm surprised by your eagerness to know about Lawrence and Stella Hayes." Lila's smug voice came through the speaker after Nora introduced herself.
"Just tell me what you know." Nora replied tightly.
"Okay, but are you ready to pay the price for this knowledge?" Lila asked coldly.
Nora closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Her grandmother's words echoed in her mind – sometimes the truth comes at a terrible cost.
"Yes, I will do anything." She assured her.
"Anything? Very well." Lila said, sounding satisfied.
"Your parents were freelance junior partners for a special project at Black Industries." She began divulging.
"The project was almost complete when they had their... accident." Lila paused dramatically.
"But here is the interesting part – that car accident? It wasn't really an accident at all." She revealed.
Nora's heart sank. Her knees weakened, and she sank onto her couch.
"What do you mean?"
"Someone high up in the company orchestrated the whole thing." Lila said.
"Who?" Nora's voice trembled. Her free hand gripped the couch cushion tightly, her anger gradually building as she thought of the injustice against her parents.
Lila clicked her tongue.
"Well, that is another piece of information entirely. And it will cost you." She maintained.
"What is the price?" Nora inquired.
"It's quite simple, really. I want to kill someone... and you're going to help me." Lila informed her, her voice deadly serious.
"What the h-?" Nora gasped in shock.