Ep 7 — What She Was About to See
755 Words
Zara didn’t speak.
Her eyes moved between Liam and Ethan.
Both of them had gone still.
That alone told her the message mattered.
“You both know what this means,” she said.
Neither answered.
That silence confirmed it.
“Say it.”
Liam exhaled.
“It means last night wasn’t random.”
“You’ve said that,” Zara replied. “I want what you’re hiding.”
Ethan stepped in.
“You don’t need to chase this. Drop it.”
“That’s not happening.”
She lifted her phone.
“What was I about to see?”
No answer.
Her patience snapped.
“Fine. I’ll figure it out myself.”
She turned toward the door.
Liam moved instantly.
“Where are you going?”
“Back there.”
“No,” both men said at once.
Zara paused.
That reaction told her everything.
“Exactly,” she said quietly.
Ethan stepped closer.
“You’re not going anywhere.”
“You don’t control me.”
“I’m trying to keep you alive.”
That hit differently.
Zara held his gaze.
“Then tell me the truth.”
Ethan hesitated.
Liam stepped forward.
“She saw something.”
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
“Stop.”
“No,” Liam said. “She deserves to know.”
Zara’s heart pounded.
“Saw what?”
Liam looked at her.
“You went somewhere you weren’t supposed to.”
“Where?”
“A private section behind the venue.”
Zara frowned.
“I don’t remember that.”
“I know.”
“What was there?”
Liam hesitated.
Ethan cut in.
“Nothing you need to be involved in.”
“That’s not an answer.”
Liam spoke quietly.
“People.”
“What kind of people?”
“The kind that don’t want to be seen.”
Zara’s chest tightened.
“That doesn’t explain anything.”
“It explains enough,” Ethan said.
“No, it doesn’t,” she snapped. “Someone followed me. Someone tried to stop me. Now I’m getting messages about what I was about to see.”
She stepped closer.
“So tell me.”
Silence.
Then Liam said it.
“You weren’t supposed to notice them.”
Zara’s stomach dropped.
“Notice what?”
“A meeting.”
The word settled heavily.
“What kind?”
“Private. Controlled.”
Zara’s grip tightened.
“And I just walked into it?”
“You weren’t meant to,” Ethan said. “That’s the problem.”
Zara looked at him.
“For who?”
He didn’t answer.
That told her enough.
“For them,” she said.
Liam didn’t deny it.
Zara exhaled slowly.
“So I saw something I shouldn’t have.”
“Yes.”
“And now they know.”
Silence.
Answer enough.
Zara stepped back.
“So the messages… the call…”
“They’re not random,” Liam said.
Zara looked between them.
“And you both knew.”
Ethan spoke.
“I was trying to keep you out of it.”
“By lying?”
“By keeping you away.”
“That didn’t work.”
“No,” Liam said quietly.
Zara’s thoughts raced.
“So what did I actually see?”
Both men hesitated.
That hesitation said everything.
“It’s that bad?” she asked.
“Yes,” Liam answered.
Zara looked down at her phone.
“They want me to remember.”
“No,” Ethan said. “They want to know how much you do.”
Zara looked up sharply.
“That’s why they’re messaging me?”
“Yes.”
Her heart pounded.
“So this isn’t over.”
“No.”
Zara took a breath.
Then made her choice.
“I’m going back.”
Ethan stepped forward.
“No.”
“I need to see it.”
“You won’t make it out this time.”
Liam spoke.
“He’s right.”
Zara frowned.
“You too?”
“Yes. But that doesn’t mean you stay blind.”
“What does that mean?”
Liam held her gaze.
“It means if you go back…”
He paused.
“…you won’t be alone.”
Ethan’s expression darkened.
“That’s not happening.”
Zara looked between them.
For the first time, it felt like a real choice.
Stay in the dark.
Or face whatever was waiting.
Her phone buzzed again.
She opened the message.
A location.
The same place.
One line underneath.
“Finish what you started.”
Zara’s breath caught.
This time, she understood.
They were waiting.
- Writer
