His Hidden Wife

The Choice

Chapter Fourteen

The Choice

For almost a minute, Arielle and Damian remained frozen in front of the open compartment.

The message on Damian's phone seemed to glow in the dim study, the words far more threatening now that they had been followed by a deadline. Choose which one of you dies. Arielle read it again, hoping that somehow the words would change if she stared at them long enough. They didn't. Her fingers felt cold, even though the room was warm, and the only sound was the faint hum of the air conditioner above them.

"Don't react," Damian said quietly.

She looked at him.

"How am I supposed not to react to that?"

"Because that's what they want."

He placed his phone face down on the desk.

"They want us frightened. They want us making decisions without thinking."

Arielle looked at the photograph of Emeka again.

"He's alive."

"Yes."

"He has been alive this entire time."

"We don't know how long that photograph has been there."

"It's recent."

"How do you know?"

She pointed at the background.

"The building behind him."

Damian leaned closer.

"I've seen that building."

"Where?"

"Apapa."

Arielle's eyes narrowed.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. It's one of the old Meridian storage facilities."

She looked back at the photograph.

"Then that's where they're keeping him."

"Maybe."

She turned toward him.

"Why do you keep saying maybe?"

"Because every time we assume something, they give us something that makes us question it."

He was right.

That was what frightened her.

The person behind all of this wasn't simply hiding information. They were controlling the information Arielle and Damian received, feeding them pieces at exactly the right moment and watching them follow the trail.

It was like being led through a maze by someone standing above it.

"Then we stop following their trail," Arielle said.

Damian looked at her.

"We make our own."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"That's the first sensible thing you've said tonight."

She stared at him.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"You've been insulting me since we met again."

"I'm keeping you humble."

"I don't need your help."

"Clearly."

She folded her arms.

"You know what? Maybe I'll let you go find your mysterious organization alone."

He stepped closer.

"You wouldn't last ten minutes."

Her eyes widened.

"Are you calling me helpless?"

"No."

"Then what?"

"I'm calling you stubborn."

"That's not better."

"I didn't say it was."

Despite everything, she laughed.

The sound surprised both of them.

Damian looked at her for a moment, and the teasing expression on his face softened.

"I like hearing you laugh."

Arielle's smile faded slightly.

"So do I."

The words hung between them.

Then Damian looked away.

"We need to leave."

"Where?"

"Apapa."

Her stomach tightened.

"Tonight?"

"Before whoever sent that message realizes we've figured out where the photograph was taken."

Arielle shook her head.

"That's exactly what they want."

"Maybe."

"You just told me not to follow their trail."

"I'm not following it."

He picked up the folder.

"I'm checking whether the trail is real."

---

They left the apartment less than twenty minutes later.

The drive toward Apapa was tense. Lagos looked almost deceptively normal outside the windows. Traffic crawled along the roads, buses squeezed through narrow spaces, headlights flashed in the darkness, and people moved through the city as though nothing had changed.

Arielle watched everything from the passenger seat.

She couldn't stop thinking about Emeka.

Alive.

Somewhere.

For five years, she had mourned him.

She had cried for him when nobody was watching. She had carried his death like a stone inside her chest and learned to live around it.

Now she was being told that all those years of grief had been based on a lie.

She wasn't sure whether hope was better than grief.

Hope could hurt more.

"You're quiet," Damian said.

"I'm thinking."

"About Emeka?"

She nodded.

"Do you know what the worst part is?"

"What?"

"I stopped imagining what it would be like if he were alive."

Damian glanced at her.

"Why?"

"Because every time I did, I felt stupid."

She looked down at her hands.

"I thought I was keeping myself from breaking."

He reached across the console and briefly touched her fingers.

"You don't have to do that anymore."

Arielle looked at him.

"You don't know that."

"No."

His eyes returned to the road.

"But I'm here."

Her chest tightened.

She looked out the window again.

After a moment, she smiled faintly.

"You know, for someone who claims not to be romantic, you say things like that."

He glanced at her.

"Who said I'm not romantic?"

"You."

"I was lying."

She laughed.

"Of course you were."

His mouth curved into a smile.

"You're still smiling."

"Drive."

"Yes, ma'am."

---

The Meridian storage facility stood behind a tall concrete wall near the industrial waterfront.

Most of the surrounding buildings were dark. A few security lights illuminated the entrance, but several had stopped working, leaving sections of the compound hidden in shadow.

Damian parked several streets away.

"We walk from here."

Arielle nodded.

They were accompanied by Marcus and two security men, but Damian insisted that they keep their distance.

The night air was humid, carrying the smell of diesel, saltwater, and damp concrete. Somewhere nearby, a ship sounded its horn, the deep noise rolling across the waterfront.

Arielle pulled her jacket tighter around herself.

"This place hasn't changed."

"You remember it?"

"Not clearly."

She looked at the warehouse.

"But my body does."

Damian looked at her.

"What does that mean?"

"I feel like I shouldn't be here."

He reached for her hand.

"Then stay close."

She looked down at their hands.

"You really like holding my hand lately."

He smiled.

"You really like noticing."

"Maybe."

"Maybe."

They continued walking.

Halfway to the facility, Marcus raised his hand.

Everyone stopped.

"What?" Damian whispered.

Marcus pointed toward the road.

A vehicle had just passed the entrance.

Black SUV.

No headlights.

Arielle's heart began racing.

"Someone's inside."

Damian nodded.

"Stay here."

She immediately shook her head.

"No."

"Arielle."

"You know I'm not staying behind."

He looked at her for a moment.

Then sighed.

"Fine."

She smiled.

"You knew I'd win."

"I knew you'd argue until I gave up."

"Same thing."

"Not even close."

They moved toward the side entrance.

The lock had already been broken.

Damian looked at Marcus.

"Someone's been here."

They entered.

Inside, the building was enormous.

Rows of metal shelving stretched into the darkness, filled with old cartons, machinery parts, and sealed crates. The smell of dust and rust hung heavily in the air.

Arielle felt something twist inside her.

She remembered this place.

Not this exact room.

But the smell.

The cold.

The sound of a metal door closing behind her.

She stopped.

Damian noticed.

"What?"

"I've been here."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded.

"Yes."

She touched one of the metal shelves.

"I remember this."

Her eyes closed.

A flash.

A man's hand.

A red door.

A voice telling her to keep quiet.

Then darkness.

Arielle opened her eyes sharply.

"There."

She pointed.

At the far end of the warehouse stood a red metal door.

Damian looked at Marcus.

"Check it."

Marcus moved forward.

He opened the door.

A small room lay beyond it.

Empty.

Except for a chair.

And a woman's scarf.

Arielle stared at it.

"That's hers."

"Your mother?"

She nodded.

"The woman from the warehouse."

Damian picked up the scarf.

A small folded piece of paper fell from it.

He opened it.

Only one sentence.

SHE WAS HERE.

Arielle frowned.

"Who?"

Damian looked at her.

Then they heard something.

A faint sound.

Like someone breathing.

They turned.

At the end of the corridor, a door moved slightly.

Damian immediately raised his hand.

"Stay here."

He walked toward it.

Arielle followed.

He glanced back.

"I said stay."

"And I ignored you."

He shook his head.

"You really enjoy making my life difficult."

"You've survived five years without me."

"Exactly."

She smiled.

He opened the door.

A man was sitting on the floor.

His hands were tied.

His face was bruised.

Arielle stopped breathing.

"Emeka."

The man slowly lifted his head.

His eyes widened.

"Arielle?"

She ran toward him.

He barely had time to react before she fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around him.

For a moment, neither spoke.

She cried against his shoulder.

He held her tightly.

"I thought you were dead."

"I thought you were dead too."

She pulled away and touched his face.

"You're alive."

He gave her a tired smile.

"Apparently."

She laughed through her tears.

Damian stood a few feet away, watching them.

Emeka looked past Arielle.

Then his expression changed.

"Damian."

Damian nodded.

"Emeka."

The two men stared at each other.

There was history there.

Complicated history.

Arielle noticed immediately.

"You two know each other?"

Emeka looked at Damian.

"We've met."

Damian's expression hardened.

"You were working with my father."

Emeka's jaw tightened.

"I was working against him."

"Then why were you in his files?"

"Because I was trying to find out who was controlling him."

Damian stepped closer.

"And?"

Emeka looked toward the door.

"They're still watching us."

Arielle's stomach dropped.

"Who?"

Emeka looked directly at her.

"The Meridian Circle."

She swallowed.

"What are they?"

"A network."

"Of what?"

"Politicians. Businessmen. Security officials. People with enough money to make problems disappear."

Damian's face darkened.

"My father?"

"One of them."

"Who runs it?"

Emeka hesitated.

"I never found out."

"Then why were you taken?"

"Because I got too close."

Arielle looked at him.

"Why didn't you come back?"

Emeka's eyes softened.

"I tried."

"How?"

"They were watching everyone connected to me."

He looked at her.

"You were the easiest way to control me."

Arielle's eyes filled again.

"So when they threatened me..."

"They knew you'd disappear."

She covered her mouth.

Damian looked at Emeka.

"Who told her to leave?"

Emeka's expression changed.

"My father."

Damian went still.

"He knew?"

"Yes."

"Then why did he help?"

Emeka looked away.

"Because your father wasn't entirely loyal to them anymore."

Arielle stared at him.

"What do you mean?"

"He was trying to get out."

Damian shook his head.

"Why?"

"Because they wanted you."

Silence.

Arielle looked at Damian.

"Why him?"

Emeka didn't answer immediately.

Then he said quietly,

"Because your family wasn't the only family with a secret."

Damian's eyes narrowed.

"What does that mean?"

Emeka looked directly at him.

"Your father wasn't your biological father."

The room became completely silent.

Damian didn't move.

Arielle stared at him.

"What?"

Emeka swallowed.

"Damian, the man you called your father wasn't the man who gave you your blood."

Damian's face became unreadable.

"Who is?"

Emeka looked toward Arielle.

"I don't know."

Then the lights went out.

Again.

Arielle grabbed Damian's arm.

"Not again."

A gunshot exploded somewhere outside.

Then another.

Marcus shouted.

"Get down!"

Everyone dropped.

Arielle felt Damian pull her against him as bullets struck the metal walls.

Emeka crawled toward the doorway.

"There's another exit!"

Damian looked at him.

"Where?"

"Behind the shelves!"

They moved quickly.

The warehouse erupted into chaos.

Footsteps.

Shouting.

More gunshots.

Metal crashing against concrete.

Arielle ran behind Damian, her heart pounding violently.

They reached a narrow passage behind the shelves.

Emeka pushed open a concealed door.

Cold air rushed inside.

"Go!"

They ran.

Outside, rain had started falling again.

They moved through the narrow alley behind the warehouse until they reached Marcus's vehicle.

Damian helped Arielle inside.

Emeka followed.

Marcus got behind the wheel.

"Where?"

Damian looked at Emeka.

"Somewhere safe."

Emeka laughed bitterly.

"There isn't anywhere safe anymore."

Damian stared at him.

"Then we'll make somewhere."

---

An hour later, they were back at the apartment.

Emeka sat on the sofa while Marcus treated the injuries on his wrists.

Arielle remained beside him.

She still couldn't believe he was sitting there.

Alive.

Breathing.

Talking.

She reached over and touched his hand.

He looked at her.

"You still do that."

"What?"

"Touching my hand whenever you're worried."

She smiled through the tears.

"You're still my brother."

"And you're still annoying."

She laughed.

"Good."

Across the room, Damian watched them.

His expression was distant.

Arielle noticed.

She excused herself and walked toward him.

"You okay?"

"No."

She looked at him.

"Because of what he said?"

He nodded.

"You believe him?"

"I don't know."

"You'll find out."

He looked at her.

"How?"

"We keep looking."

He gave her a tired smile.

"You always make everything sound simple."

"It isn't."

She took his hand.

"But we're still here."

His fingers closed around hers.

He looked down at their hands.

Then back at her.

"You really aren't going anywhere?"

Arielle shook her head.

"No."

He leaned closer.

"Good."

Before either of them could say anything else, Emeka suddenly stood.

His face had gone pale.

"Arielle."

She turned.

"What?"

He looked at Damian.

Then at her.

"There's something I didn't tell you."

The room became quiet.

"What?"

Emeka swallowed.

"The person who ordered my kidnapping..."

He paused.

"They weren't trying to punish me."

Arielle's heart began racing.

"Then what did they want?"

Emeka looked directly at Damian.

"They wanted me to find you."

Damian's expression hardened.

"Why?"

Emeka's voice dropped.

"Because you're the key."

Arielle frowned.

"Key to what?"

Emeka looked toward the window.

"I don't know."

Then his phone vibrated.

Everyone looked at it.

One message.

HE'S FINALLY HOME.

Another appeared.

NOW BRING ARIELLE TO US.

Arielle stared at the screen.

Emeka looked at her.

And for the first time since she had found him, genuine fear appeared in his eyes.

"They know where we are."