CEO And Secretary

Cracks In Ice

The message changed everything.

FIRST WARNING.

Those two words followed Jordan Rodriguez everywhere for the next three days.

At work.

Inside meetings.

Even during sleep.

Someone was watching his family.

Watching Maureen.

And the worst part—

Jordan had absolutely no idea who it was.

That alone made him furious.

—

Rain hammered violently against the glass walls of Rodriguez Tower while executives sat frozen around the conference table.

Nobody dared breathe too loudly.

Jordan stood near the window in complete silence while reviewing security reports.

His expression looked colder than usual.

Which terrified everyone even more.

One executive swallowed nervously before speaking.

“Sir… the shareholders from Vesper Group are requesting confirmation regarding the merger documents.”

No response.

Another executive cautiously added—

“The overseas investors are also asking about the attack on Miss Catherine…”

Still silence.

Then suddenly—

Jordan slammed the file onto the table violently.

Several executives flinched immediately.

“Do all of you enjoy wasting my time?”

His voice came out dangerously calm.

The room froze completely.

Jordan’s sharp eyes moved across them coldly.

“You allowed someone to infiltrate my family’s security.”

Nobody answered.

Nobody could.

Because they had failed.

Jordan loosened his tie slightly before speaking again.

“Find him.”

One manager swallowed nervously.

“Sir… we still don’t know who exactly—”

“Then keep looking.”

Cold.

Terrifying.

Exactly like him.

The meeting ended immediately afterward.

Executives practically escaped the room.

Meanwhile, Jordan remained standing alone near the massive windows overlooking the city.

His phone buzzed quietly.

Emily Rodriguez.

Jordan answered after several seconds.

“What?”

Emily sounded irritated immediately.

“Wow. Good morning to you too.”

“What do you want?”

“You haven’t visited Catherine.”

Jordan’s expression darkened slightly.

“She’s sleeping.”

“She keeps asking for you.”

Silence followed briefly.

Then Emily’s softer voice came through the phone.

“She’s scared, Jordan.”

Something tightened painfully inside his chest.

Jordan closed his eyes briefly.

“I’ll come tonight.”

Emily hesitated before speaking again.

“And… Dad still hasn’t visited her.”

Jordan’s jaw clenched instantly.

Of course he hadn’t.

Richard Rodriguez barely cared about anyone besides himself.

Even his own children.

Especially after Jordan’s mother died years ago.

Jordan ended the call shortly afterward before leaning both hands against the desk heavily.

Exhaustion weighed visibly across his face now.

He had not slept properly in days.

And somehow, despite everything happening—

His mind still kept drifting toward Maureen.

Where she was.

Whether she was safe.

Whether someone was watching her too.

The thought alone made something dark twist violently inside him.

—

Meanwhile, inside the quiet countryside house in Country A, Maureen Green sat beside the kitchen window while reading company reports.

But her attention kept drifting elsewhere.

Toward Jordan.

Toward the cemetery.

Toward the terrifying expression on his face after Catherine’s kidnapping.

She sighed quietly before closing the laptop.

Then suddenly—

A knock echoed against the front door.

Maureen froze briefly.

Nobody visited here.

Carefully, she walked toward the entrance before opening it slowly.

Then blinked in surprise.

Adrian Knight stood outside wearing a black hoodie and sunglasses despite the cloudy weather.

Maureen stared at him.

“…Why are you here?”

Adrian casually removed the sunglasses.

“Emily gave me the address.”

Maureen looked genuinely horrified.

“She WHAT?”

Adrian shrugged calmly before lifting two grocery bags slightly.

“She said you haven’t been eating properly.”

Maureen sighed heavily.

“That girl talks too much.”

Adrian stepped inside casually like he owned the place.

The quiet house suddenly felt less lonely somehow.

Maureen narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“You’re strangely comfortable for someone visiting unexpectedly.”

Adrian glanced around the house calmly.

“I grew up in places like this.”

For several moments, silence settled between them while Maureen prepared tea.

Then Adrian suddenly spoke again.

“You look tired.”

Maureen looked away slightly.

“I’m fine.”

“Liar.”

She blinked.

Adrian leaned against the counter calmly.

“You always say you’re fine when you’re clearly not.”

Maureen stared at him quietly.

Strange.

For someone famous and constantly surrounded by people—

Adrian noticed small things too easily.

Before she could answer, her phone suddenly rang.

Jordan.

The name alone made her chest tighten instantly.

Adrian noticed her expression immediately.

“Trouble?”

Maureen ignored the question before answering quietly.

“…Hello?”

Jordan’s voice came out low and cold.

“Where are you?”

Maureen frowned slightly.

“At home.”

“Stay there.”

Her confusion deepened.

“What happened?”

Silence.

Then finally—

“The man watching my family took a picture of you.”

Fear crawled slowly through her chest.

Jordan continued calmly.

“You’re under security now.”

Maureen tightened her grip around the phone.

“Jordan—”

“I’ll come tomorrow.”

Then he ended the call.

Adrian watched her silently afterward.

“That sounds serious.”

Maureen lowered the phone slowly.

“…It is.”

—

That same night, Jordan finally visited the hospital again.

The private hospital floor remained quiet while security guards stood outside Catherine’s room.

Inside, Catherine Rodriguez looked pale beneath the dim lights.

The gunshot wound had weakened her badly.

But when she noticed Jordan entering, her eyes immediately softened.

“You came.”

Jordan sat beside the bed quietly.

“How do you feel?”

“Like I got shot.”

His mouth almost twitched slightly.

Almost.

Catherine studied him carefully.

“You look terrible.”

“I’m fine.”

She rolled her eyes weakly.

“You sound exactly like Maureen.”

The mention of her name immediately darkened his expression slightly.

Catherine noticed.

Then smiled faintly despite the pain.

“Oh.”

Jordan frowned.

“What?”

“You love her.”

The room fell silent instantly.

Jordan’s expression hardened immediately.

“No.”

Catherine looked unconvinced.

“You crossed countries for her.”

Silence.

“You bought an entire company.”

Still silence.

“You nearly killed Damien Cross.”

Jordan looked away coldly.

“That’s different.”

Catherine smiled weakly.

“Sure.”

Jordan remained beside her until she finally fell asleep again.

Then he quietly left the hospital room.

But instead of returning home—

Jordan drove toward the old Rodriguez family mansion.

The place he avoided whenever possible.

Rain poured heavily by the time he entered.

The mansion remained dark except for one office light upstairs.

Richard Rodriguez.

Jordan walked there immediately.

His father barely looked up when he entered.

“You came to apologize?”

Jordan said nothing.

Richard sighed before signing another document carelessly.

“You’ve always been emotional like your mother.”

Something inside Jordan tightened violently.

Richard continued speaking without noticing.

“She was weak too.”

Silence.

Dead silence.

Then Jordan finally spoke quietly.

“Don’t.”

Richard looked up lazily.

“Don’t what?”

“Talk about her.”

Richard laughed faintly.

“Why? Because she spoiled you before she died?”

Jordan’s fists clenched instantly.

Pain exploded violently inside his chest.

Memories suddenly flooded him without warning.

His mother coughing weakly in bed.

Her soft hands brushing through his hair.

The way she smiled even while dying.

And the terrifying loneliness afterward.

The mansion became unbearable after her death.

Cold.

Empty.

His father stopped caring.

Jordan practically raised himself after that.

Protected Catherine.

Protected Emily.

Built Rodriguez Corporation from nothing but rage and ambition.

And somehow—

He was still losing everyone he cared about.

His mother.

Maureen.

Now Catherine nearly died too.

The pressure inside him finally cracked.

For the first time in years—

Jordan Rodriguez cried.

Silently.

One tear fell before another.

Richard froze completely in shock.

Because Jordan never cried.

Not at funerals.

Not during business failures.

Not even after his mother died.

But now, standing inside that cold office—

Jordan lowered his head slightly while grief finally broke through years of ice.

Richard stared at his son speechlessly.

Jordan wiped his face angrily almost immediately afterward.

Like he hated himself for it.

Then his cold eyes lifted toward his father again.

“I hate this family.”

The quiet confession shattered the room completely.

Then Jordan turned and walked out without another word.

Leaving Richard Rodriguez standing alone in stunned silence for the first time in years.