Chapter 004
Ethan's POV
"You have no say on the distance I'm ready to travel to keep her safe."
Olivia's voice sliced through the stillness like a razor, piercing and shaking with hardly controlled wrath. She was a few steps away, her green eyes burning and her hands curled into fists at her sides. She seemed like a force to be reckoned with, a mother who would do everything for her kid, despite the obvious raw dread carved into her face.
I looked at her, not backtracking. "And you don't get to shut me out of this," I shot back. "Amelia is my daughter too, regardless of your preferences."
Her chuckle was icy and sour, but it faltered at the margins, exposing the fragility she was so anxious to suppress. Ethan, you are not able to play the father card right now. Not when you were not there to help her.
"You didn't give me the opportunity," I shot, stepping forward. Though the irritation still flared in my breast, my voice grew softer. "I had no idea, Olivia." Should I have—"
"Don't," she said, shaking her head. "Don't pretend you would have behaved otherwise. You were too busy creating your empire and too busy shattering my heart.
The allegation stung, but I couldn't let it trip us. Not immediately. Not when each second drew us closer to permanently losing Amelia.
"Fine," I answered, sounding low yet strong. "Hate me for everything you seek. Share with me all of the blame. We have time for nothing but this, though. Should we not ascertain the preferences of these individuals—"
Her tone faltering, she replied, "They said I have something." But I have no idea what it is. I promise Ethan, I do not—"
Then we'll find out, I murmured, cutting her off as I got closer. We will sort things out together. But you really have to believe me.
Her chuckle was hollow, a sour echo in the tight air between us. "Trust you." Following all of this? Ethan, it is a large task.
Her comments stayed with me, weighty and relentless, but I couldn't let them divert me. The stakes were too great, the clock running down on whatever sick game these folks were engaged in. Though I wanted to reach for her and narrow the space between us so she would believe I was here for both of us, I refrained. not yet.
Rather, I looked toward the laptop on the desk, the blurry still picture from the movie frozen on the screen. My hands tightened at my sides as Amelia's wide, terrified eyes turned back at me.
"We need leverage," I murmured, my voice firm even if the fury inside me was blazing. " Whoever these folks are, they believe you have something worthwhile. Something worth bringing a youngster for. Consider Olivia. Has something unexpected happened lately? Everybody fresh in your life?
She stopped, her brow wrinkling as she fixed her eyes on the floor. She answered at last, her voice almost above a whisper: "I don't know." "I have been utterly preoccupied with Amelia, with work... I didn't think...
Her speech stopped, and I could sense the uncertainty slinking in, the weight of the circumstances down on her. Though the fact was I didn't know if we could, I wanted to convince her it wasn't her fault and we would work through this.
"What about the notes?" I pressed, my voice more pointed than I had meant. "The ones you have been consistently getting. What did they say?
She raised her head, her eyes flickering with a mix of terror and resentment. "You believe I had not previously gone over them a hundred times? They are imprecise, obscure; half of them didn't even make sense.
I waved my hand and yelled, "Show me."
She hesitated, clutching her phone as her jaw tightened. "What good will it bring about?"
I pushed my voice to soften and continued, "Maybe something you missed will stand out to me." Tell Olivia, please. Allow me to be of assistance.
She grumbled, dragging up the messages and giving me the phone, so momentarily I feared she might reject me. My gaze went over the books; every one of them seemed more disturbing than the next.
We watch.
You know our desires.
Running out of time is evident.Who sends these types of messages without considering what they wish for? Mumbled more to myself than to her.
"Exactly," she responded, crossing her arms. They seem to be engaged in some twisted game.
"Or they're trying to scare you into making a mistake," I added, frowning as a notion occurred to me. "And regarding your work? Is there something related to your clients?
She blinked, her eyes expanding just slightly. "I... I'm not clear. Maybe? Recently I have worked with some well-known individuals, but nothing appeared unusual.
"Think harder," I said, my voice cutting edge. We are lacking something. something quite significant.
She turned aside, her teeth sliding into her bottom lip—a behavior I too well recalled. Seeing that set something in me—a great anguish I could not ignore no matter how hard I tried. She was so near, yet there was a gulf between us that seemed insurmountable.
She questioned unexpectedly, her voice kind but tinged with mistrust: "Why are you doing this?" "Why do you even care?," asos
"Because I lost you once," I muttered, words flowing out before I could stop them. And I cannot lose you once again.
Her breath stopped, and for a time she simply gazed at me, her eyes looking for something. Apologetics? Accuracy I wasn't sure what I had to provide or whether I possessed it.
However, the moment broke.
The apartment resonated with a tremendous smash, then clearly heard heavy footsteps. Panic widened Olivia's eyes, so I grabbed her arm and dragged her behind me while I groped for the closest object—a weighty lamp.
Her voice quivering, she said, "They're here."
"Stay behind me," I commanded, my voice devoid of any margin for debate.
The door opened, and two men—masks covering their faces—charged in. One of them lifted a rifle, and I immediately acted without thinking. The bulb knocked into his arm, sending the weapon clattering to the ground.
"Run!", Heart hammering, I lunged toward the second man and yelled to Olivia.
Olivia stopped momentarily, her eyes fixed on me, then turned and ran for the rear door. Driven by adrenaline, I battled the invader with everything I had. Then, though, I heard a scream.
Olivia screams.
My blood raced cold, and I whirled around just in time to see a third man I had not even noticed dragging her out the rear door. The door closed with a bang, and the air filled with tire squealing.
"Olivia!!" I screamed, my voice unvarnished and frantic.
But she had vanished.
The door closed, and the street reverberated with tire squealing. Everything else vanished for a moment—the room, the broken glass on the floor, the man groaning beneath my control. Olivia's scream was all I could concentrate on; it still seemed to me like an alarm.
Pulling the man from the floor, I slammed him into the wall with such force that shook the framed pictures hanging close by. His mask slide slightly to show a split lip and dark, angry eyes.
"Where did they grab her?" I hissed, my voice harsh enough to pierce across steel. My hand twisted in his shirt, dragging him toward our faces barely apart. "Answer me!,"
He spat at my feet, his attitude tough in spite of the blood running out of his mouth. You are already much too late.
Red-hot fury shot through me, and this time I shoved him harder against the wall. I hissed, "wrong answer." "Do you know who you are messing with?"
He laughed grimly, the sound low and unpleasant. "Exactly who you are, Sinclair, we know. We also know what you have been hiding.
His comments chilled me to death. From what I have been hiding? Though there was little time to linger on it, the allegation twisted in my belly like a dagger.
"What do you desire?" I insisted, my voice like a whip. "Is this money?" Influence? Tell me, and perhaps I won't leave you bleeding on this floor.
His fangs stained with blood, he grinned. It has nothing to do with money. It's concerning leverage. Not too far off will be revealed.
I could not restrain myself any more. My fist made contact with his jaw, the force felt down my arm. Groaning, he slumped against the wall, but I was not done. "You're going to tell me everything," I said, my tone fatal. "Or I will make you wish you had."
I looked down to find my phone buzzing on the table when a loud beep cut off me. On the screen a fresh message had shown, the words sending shivers down my spine.
Bring what we want to the ports. nighttime. On your own. She either passes away or dies.
I snarled, "Damn it," releasing the man while my mind flew. nighttime. At the docks. And not sure what they were looking for either.
I looked back to the man, but his smile had evolved from benign to nasty. tick-tock, Sinclair. Better still, save time from being wasted.
As I grabbed my jacket and sprinted for the door, the knot in my chest tightened. Time was running out and I knew nothing about what they were truly pursuing or how to save her.