Blood Ties
1449 Words
The office suddenly felt too small.
Too quiet.
Too dangerous.
Ava sat frozen behind her desk as Marcus Whitmore closed the door behind him.
The soft click echoed through the room.
And somehow sounded like a warning.
Marcus smiled.
The same warm, professional smile he’d worn for years.
The same smile that had earned trust from employees, investors, and board members alike.
Today, it felt different.
Today, it looked like a mask.
“Ava.”
His voice remained calm.
Pleasant.
Almost friendly.
Yet Ava’s pulse continued to rise.
Because she knew something now.
Something she wasn’t supposed to know.
And Marcus clearly understood that.
“I wasn’t expecting a visit.”
The words sounded steadier than she felt.
Marcus chuckled.
“Neither was I.”
His eyes drifted toward the photograph resting on her desk.
Just for a second.
But it was enough.
He’d seen it.
Ava quickly covered the photograph with a folder.
Marcus noticed.
Of course he did.
For several moments neither spoke.
A silent battle unfolding between them.
One testing.
One waiting.
Both careful.
Finally Marcus sighed.
The sound carried years of exhaustion.
Years of secrets.
Years of regret.
“You’re a smart young woman.”
Ava said nothing.
“You’ve done well for yourself.”
Still nothing.
“And Ethan trusts you.”
The statement wasn’t a compliment.
It was an observation.
A dangerous one.
Ava’s stomach tightened.
“Why are you here, Mr. Whitmore?”
The older man looked toward the window.
Toward the city.
Toward the life he’d spent decades building.
Then he answered.
“Because some truths destroy people.”
The words sent a chill through Ava.
Marcus slowly turned back toward her.
And for the first time, the smile disappeared.
“You care about Ethan.”
Ava’s heart skipped.
Before she could answer, he continued.
“If you truly care about him…”
His voice softened.
“…you’ll let this go.”
Silence.
Ava stared.
Trying to understand.
Trying to make sense of what he was saying.
“Let what go?”
Marcus laughed sadly.
“The investigation.”
The room became still.
“The accident.”
Still.
“My friendship with his mother.”
Ava’s pulse quickened.
“Because if Ethan keeps digging…”
Marcus hesitated.
For the first time appearing genuinely conflicted.
“…he’ll discover things that will destroy him.”
The words hung heavily between them.
Ava swallowed hard.
“What things?”
Marcus didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he reached into his jacket pocket.
And removed a sealed envelope.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like it weighed a hundred pounds.
He placed it on the desk.
Directly in front of her.
“If he finds out what’s inside here…”
Marcus whispered.
“…he’ll never forgive either of us.”
Ava frowned.
“Either of us?”
A flash of regret crossed Marcus’s face.
Then vanished.
Too quickly.
Ava noticed.
And suddenly she realized something.
Marcus wasn’t afraid for himself.
Not entirely.
He was afraid for Ethan.
Which somehow made this even more confusing.
Before she could ask another question, her office phone rang.
Loud.
Sharp.
Unexpected.
Both looked toward it.
Ava hesitated.
Then answered.
“Hello?”
The voice on the other end sounded frantic.
Terrified.
“Ava.”
Her blood turned cold instantly.
Because she recognized the voice.
Vanessa.
“Vanessa?”
The woman sounded breathless.
As though she were running.
“Ava, listen to me carefully.”
Fear tightened inside Ava’s chest.
“What’s wrong?”
Vanessa’s voice broke.
“He’s coming.”
Silence.
Ava glanced toward Marcus.
Who now looked equally confused.
“Who?”
Vanessa’s answer came in a whisper.
A terrified whisper.
“The man behind everything.”
Ava stopped breathing.
“The man Sophie worked for.”
Silence.
“The man Daniel worked for.”
More silence.
And then—
“The man who killed Ethan’s mother.”
The room froze.
Marcus’s face lost all color.
Completely.
Because whatever name Vanessa was about to say…
Marcus already knew it.
“Ava.”
Vanessa was crying now.
Actually crying.
“You have to get Ethan.”
“Why?”
A loud crash sounded through the phone.
Followed by a scream.
Then static.
Then silence.
The call disconnected.
Ava slowly lowered the phone.
Her hands shaking uncontrollably.
Across from her, Marcus looked genuinely terrified.
Not guilty.
Not defensive.
Terrified.
And that scared Ava more than anything.
Because if Marcus Whitmore was afraid…
Then the person behind all this had to be far more dangerous than they imagined.
The call ended.
But the silence it left behind was worse.
Ava stared at her phone.
Her heart pounding so hard it hurt.
Vanessa had sounded terrified.
Not dramatic.
Not emotional.
Terrified.
And then there had been the crash.
The scream.
The sudden silence.
Something had happened.
Something bad.
Marcus Whitmore looked equally shaken.
For the first time since entering her office, the powerful executive appeared vulnerable.
Human.
Afraid.
“We need to find Ethan.”
Ava was already grabbing her bag.
Marcus nodded immediately.
“No arguments.”
For once, they agreed on something.
Less than thirty minutes later, they were inside Ethan’s penthouse.
The atmosphere was tense from the moment they arrived.
Ethan stood in the living room, reviewing documents from the archives.
The second he saw Ava’s face, he knew something was wrong.
“What happened?”
Ava didn’t waste time.
“Vanessa called me.”
The color drained from Ethan’s face.
“What?”
Ava quickly explained everything.
The panic.
The warning.
The mention of Sophie and Daniel.
The mysterious mastermind.
The scream.
The disconnected call.
Every detail.
By the time she finished, Ethan looked ready to tear the city apart.
“We need to find her.”
Before anyone could respond, Ethan’s phone rang.
The police.
He answered immediately.
“Blackwood.”
The detective on the other end sounded grim.
“Mr. Blackwood, we’ve located Miss Montgomery’s vehicle.”
Everyone froze.
Ethan’s voice hardened.
“Where?”
“Abandoned near the waterfront.”
Silence.
“And there’s something else.”
Ava’s stomach tightened.
“What?”
The detective hesitated.
“We recovered security footage from a nearby warehouse.”
The room became still.
Ethan immediately looked at Ava.
Then Marcus.
Then back toward the phone.
“Send it.”
Five minutes later, the footage arrived.
The four of them gathered around Ethan’s laptop.
Watching.
Waiting.
Praying.
The grainy video showed the exterior of an old warehouse.
Dark.
Rain-soaked.
Isolated.
Then a car entered the frame.
Vanessa’s car.
A few moments later, Vanessa stepped out.
Alive.
Ava released a breath.
At least she had survived the call.
But then another vehicle arrived.
A black SUV.
The driver’s door opened.
A man stepped out.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Dressed entirely in black.
His face remained hidden initially.
Vanessa immediately backed away from him.
Fear obvious even through the poor-quality footage.
She knew him.
And she was terrified.
The man moved closer.
Vanessa shook her head repeatedly.
Begging.
Pleading.
Trying to escape.
Then the man grabbed her arm.
The footage blurred briefly.
The camera angle shifted.
And suddenly his face became visible.
For one horrible second, nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Nobody spoke.
Because Ethan recognized him instantly.
“No.”
The word escaped his lips.
Ava turned toward him.
“Ethan?”
His face had gone completely white.
Marcus looked equally horrified.
“What is it?”
Ethan stared at the screen.
Unable to look away.
Unable to believe what he was seeing.
Finally—
“That’s impossible.”
The room remained silent.
Ava’s pulse raced.
“Who is he?”
Ethan swallowed hard.
Then answered.
“My cousin.”
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Ava blinked.
“What?”
Ethan continued staring at the screen.
As though the image might change if he looked long enough.
“It can’t be.”
Marcus slowly lowered himself into a chair.
Looking suddenly ten years older.
Because he knew exactly who the man was too.
And judging by his reaction…
This was worse than anyone imagined.
Ava’s voice barely worked.
“Ethan.”
The room felt cold.
Dangerously cold.
“Who is your cousin?”
For several seconds, nobody answered.
Then Ethan whispered the name.
And the world seemed to stop.
“Lucas Blackwood.”
Ava frowned.
The name meant nothing to her.
But judging by Marcus’s expression…
It should.
Because Marcus looked terrified.
Not surprised.
Terrified.
Then he whispered something that made Ethan’s blood run cold.
A sentence he’d hoped never to hear.
“We buried Lucas fifteen years ago.”
Silence.
Dead silence.
Ava stared.
Her heart nearly stopped.
Because there was only one thing more terrifying than discovering your enemy was family.
Discovering your enemy was supposed to be dead.
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