When Emily saw Damien Blackwood in person, her breath caught in her throat. With his towering body creating a shadow that exacerbated the gloomy lighting surrounding them, his presence seemed to dominate the entire hallway. Time seemed to stop for a second as his cold blue eyes met hers.
"Ms. Chase, did you think you could find the truth and escape with nothing?" Damien's voice was velvety smooth and deep, yet it had a shivering edge that made her skin crawl. She couldn't move. As she stabilized herself, her hands trembled slightly and her pulse pounded in her ears. In-person, the intensity of his presence was overwhelming, even though she had anticipated that he would be hazardous. He was a force to be reckoned with, not just a commercial mogul. Even though her voice cracked a little, she managed to reply, "I'm not afraid of you." Her body betrayed her, and she loathed the way it sounded weak.
Damien stepped forward slowly, his eyes fixed on hers. He answered casually, "You should be," as if they were talking about the weather rather than her impending peril. "Emily, you've gone too far already. You're in my universe now. You will never comprehend this reality."
Her instincts urged her to run, to get out before it was too late, and her heart began to race. But she was unable to. No, not yet. Not with her this year. In an attempt to find some courage and resolve, Emily declared, "Until I get the truth, I'm not going anywhere."
"You can keep threatening me, but I won't give up until I know what you're concealing."
There was no warmth in the smile that curved Damien's lips. "You are stupid if you believe that I will simply let you snoop around my affairs and uncover my past. What you're dealing with is beyond your comprehension."
He moved in closer, his closeness making her feel vulnerable and insignificant. She could sense the subtle, harsh, commanding perfume of his cologne now that he was so close. Reaching up, he brushed a lock of hair out of her face while his fingers lingered close to her temple. Despite flinching, she did not retreat. His voice was now almost whispery as he asked, "Do you think you're the first person to come after me? Are you the first reporter to believe that they could just walk away after exposing me? I'll tell you what, Emily: nobody ever leaves my world unaffected."
A combination of defiance and fear made her stomach turn. She tried to catch her breath and said, "You don't intimidate me." "My experiences are worse than yours."
Damien's eyes narrowed, his face darkened. "No," he said quickly, "you haven't."
"You believe you have control over this situation, but you don't. I consider your small investigation to be a game, but you see it as a worthy endeavor. Additionally, I have the last say about how the game concludes."
Emily gripped her notebook, the only object she had left in her hands, tightly. She was trying to think of a way to reverse the situation, but her instincts told her that she was in over her head. Too strong, too cunning was Blackwood. She was caught in his web now. Even though she was terrified, she said, "You won't scare me off," her voice a little firmer now. "I'll uncover whatever you're concealing. And I will ensure that everyone is aware of it when I do."
When Damien smiled again, it was even more icy. "Do you believe you'll reveal me? Do you think the world will be interested in a man like me and his secrets? You are unaware of the challenges you face."
"You don't know what you're dealing with," was the warning Emily remembered from the enigmatic source. She had believed it to be a fanciful statement meant to intimidate her into resigning. Now, however, as she stood before Blackwood, she understood how correct they had been.
"You don't comprehend, do you?" Damien went on, his tone growing more serious. "You and I are not the only ones involved. Power is at issue. That power extends well beyond your small newspaper or your small, trivial research. Pushing forward will reveal something much larger than you may have imagined. And there won't be any way for you to stop it once it's out there. There is no way out."
With her mind racing, she swallowed. She needed to maintain her poise. She was unable to express to him how much his comments moved her. Attempting to seem confident, she added, "You're bluffing." "You would have already ruined me if you had something to conceal."
There was a sinister enjoyment in Damien's eyes. "Do you believe that I must ruin you, Emily? I don't have to take any action. I only need to permit you to continue digging. You won't be aware that you're burying yourself."
She felt a chill go down her back. At that moment, she understood that this was more than a warning. There was danger. An assurance. There was no need for him to hurt her. She would reveal herself in unexpected ways if he waited and allowed her to approach too closely.
Emily responded, "I won't stop," despite the fear that was rising within her. "I will continue to investigate until I discover the truth, regardless of what you do."
Damien's smile remained fixed. "How long that resolve lasts will be determined. You may believe that you are in charge now, but you are not. Emily, you will regret not leaving. This serves as your final caution."
They both remained silent for a moment. One could feel the tension in the air, which was thick enough to sever with a knife. Despite her heart pounding in her chest, Emily refused to back down. She was not going to give up. No, not yet. Not with her this year.
Without another utterance, Damien pivoted on his heel and left, his footsteps reverberating across the corridor. Emily's thoughts were still racing as she watched him go, but she was certain that she had entered a much darker realm than she had ever known existed.
Her phone buzzed with an incoming message just as she was about to walk away. "Get out of there, now," she read as she withdrew it, her fingers trembling. "They are on their way to you."