Chapter 8
314 Words
A Crack in the Ice
The next morning, Martha found Ami sitting quietly in the garden.
"You barely slept, dear."
Ami forced a smile.
"I'm fine."
Martha sat beside her.
"You don't have to pretend with me."
Before Ami could answer, Evans walked into the garden.
He had clearly overheard the conversation.
"Lucas."
"Yes, sir?"
"Cancel today's meetings."
Lucas blinked.
"All of them?"
"Yes."
It was the first time anyone had seen Evans cancel an entire day's schedule for a personal reason.
Turning to Ami, he said, "Come with me."
She followed him to his car, still confused.
An hour later, they arrived at a quiet hill overlooking the city.
There, surrounded by white flowers, stood a single gravestone.
Ami stopped walking.
Evans stood silently before it.
After a long pause, he finally spoke.
"This is Isabella."
Ami looked at the name carved into the stone.
Isabella Kingston 2003–2021
"My younger sister," Evans said quietly.
"My parents died when we were young. I raised her the best I could."
His voice cracked ever so slightly.
"One night... I chose work over family. She was involved in an accident while I was in an overseas meeting."
He closed his eyes.
"I never got to say goodbye."
Ami felt her heart ache.
So this was the reason behind the walls he had built around himself.
Without thinking, she stepped closer.
"I'm sorry, Evans."
He didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he looked at her with tired eyes.
"For the first time in years," he admitted, "I don't feel completely alone."
The words surprised even him.
Before either of them could say anything else, Lucas' phone rang.
He answered, his face turning pale.
"Sir..."
"What is it?"
"The company's main warehouse is on fire."
Evans' expression hardened instantly.
"And preliminary reports suggest..."
Lucas hesitated.
"It wasn't an accident."
Evans clenched his fists.
Someone had just declared war.
- Writer
