CHAPTER 011
1664 Words
Ethan's POV
The sun did not appear in the sky today.
It attacked.
The curtains were torn apart by a blinding light which hit the silk sheets and hurt my eyes. I woke up suddenly, my body already covered in sweat.
Buzzing. Buzzing. Buzzing.
My phone kept buzzing all night on the nightstand. Many missed calls. Messages. Notifications coming in like water that has broken through a dam.
I picked it up.
And froze.
“ETHAN VALE: THE BILLIONAIRE BAD GUY?”
Large. Strong. Violent. The tabloid’s front page was filled with my name. Under the headline, there is a photo of me leaving a restaurant with a woman I barely knew, her mouth open in laughter and my hand on her back.
There were even more than these.
“EMPIRE BUILT ON FALSEHOODS?”
“EMAILS THAT WERE LEAKED TELL A DIFFERENT VERSION OF THE EVENTS.”
“Is he the savage king of the stock market or is he just another CEO who cheats?”
Cheating. Bribery. Corruption. Insider trading. Blackmail. I kept scrolling, my heart racing, every headline hitting me like a bullet. The most frustrating thing? Not all of it was just slander. It was a lie—mixed, distorted and given to the public as if it were a deadly meal.
I hung up the phone and looked at the wall. For a moment, I could only hear the sound of blood rushing in my ears. I grabbed the remote and switched on the news.
“Vale Enterprises’ stock price drops after an anonymous whistleblower releases confidential documents, showing that the company has been involved in unethical business activities—”
Click. I turned it off.
I got dressed quickly, hardly remembering how to do it. Shirt. Slacks. Strangle me with a rope around my neck. When I got to my office, everything was a mess.
The phones were constantly ringing.
Dana, my assistant, seemed to be running on no sleep.
“Ethan, you should—” she began.
“What just happened?” I barked.
Her eyes showed that she was very afraid. Everything was leaked by someone. Old emails, encrypted phone records and security videos from hotels—”
I felt a knot in my stomach. “What hotels?”
“This was taken three years ago. Panama. The agreement for the offshore merger.”
“No one realized I was in the room.” I spoke in a deep, growling voice. “Except legal.”
She nodded. “Then someone in the legal system turned against you.”
The word betrayed kept ringing in my mind, just like a gunshot. I walked past her and made my way to the boardroom. I could tell from the noise that there was arguing going on down the hall.
As soon as I entered, the voices became quieter. The room was full of senior executives, legal advisors and board members. Some people sat down, while others walked around restlessly. People avoided me as if I were radioactive.
I didn’t stay seated.
I simply told him, “Shut the door.”
Everyone remained still.
I told him to shut the door.
Eventually, someone followed the instructions. The click sounded like a warning to everyone.
I placed the folder Dana gave me, full of the leaked materials, on the table with a loud thud.
I said, “Let’s discuss betrayal,” my voice calm but full of sharpness.
Paul, who was one of the oldest board members, began to clear his throat. Ethan, we shouldn’t be blaming each other right now. We should focus on repairing the situation.”
I laughed. Dark. Bitter. Do you think this is all about damage control? This is a real execution.
A junior executive, who was too new to speak, said, “We’ve already lost seventeen percent.” Many investors are choosing to leave the market.
“They’ll return,” I assured him.
“But if criminal charges are brought,” Cheryl added. Her expression was hard to read. And if this story gets out. Some are already talking about how people are being manipulated and coerced. Even assault.”
“Assault?” I repeated. That’s not even close to being true. That’s slander.”
They are connecting the way male executives behave in hotel meetings with female executives. Her voice was as cold as ice.
I looked at her. “You understand me.”
She didn’t even flinch. I thought I had.
Silence.
Paul continued to speak after that. “The board feels, at this moment, that for the company’s stability… you should take a step back.”
I laughed. Then laughed even more. Until it stopped being funny.
“Let me make sure I understand.” I moved closer to the screen. I started this company from nothing. I made nothing into billions. I took care of your families, made your pockets fatter and kept this business going when you didn’t understand the market—and now you want me to leave?”
“You’re poisonous now,” Cheryl said softly.
“Toxic?” I repeated. “No. I’m fire. And fire responds in kind.
I hit the table with my fist. Everyone jumped. Are you looking for a fight? I’ll make your life miserable.
A moment of quiet.
Then, something unexpected took place. Fear. In me.
It wasn’t only about business anymore.
This was all about Savannah.
And the baby is also important.
Someone had been digging in the area. If anyone found out about her, it would turn into a huge scandal. Savannah would find herself in the public eye. I went to see my mistress. A gold-digger. Worse.
She didn’t deserve what happened to her.
The child inside her did not move either.
I moved away from the table, not paying attention to their looks. I was breathing in short, shallow breaths. I feel a tightness in my chest.
I said to myself, “I’ll handle this,” as I started to work. “I always do that.”
Everyone stayed silent as I left the room.
As I walked out of my office, I could hear people whispering behind me. My coworkers seemed to think I was a ghost. Or a criminal. Hearing my name, they looked at me with fear and disapproval.
As soon as I reached the underground parking, reporters had already gotten past security.
“Mr. Vale! Did you pay off anyone who testified against you?”
“Did you pay bribes to get real estate permits?”
“Are you planning to have a child with your mistress?”
I froze.
That question broke through every barrier I had built.
I looked directly at the reporter. He seemed to be younger than most people. Cocky. But I was shaking as I stared him straight in the eye.
“Did you just say that?”
He swallowed. “I—I was just told about it by someone else—”
“If you mention her again, you’ll be sorry,” I said in a low, calm voice.
I made my way through the crowd and got into my car. The door was slammed shut. The world became quiet. But what do I think? Screaming.
Who talked?
There were no images. No texts. No one forgets to mention a name. I took care of that. I was always worried about her safety from the beginning.
But now? Someone knew.
I picked up my phone and started typing a message.
“Are you in a safe place?”
No answer.
I called. The call went straight to voicemail.
I felt my stomach sink. I began to drive as fast as I could. The city lights flashed by as I thought about every possible outcome. What if someone was observing her? What if she was already being watched?
Could it be that this wasn’t just a coincidence?
I drove into my private estate, making a loud screeching sound. The entire area was under tight security. Gates. Codes. Cameras.
Even so, I headed straight to the basement—the secret bunker that was behind the wine cellar. A room that Savannah had never even heard of.
I entered the code into the keypad. Inside: there are shelves of weapons, servers, backup drives and an old drawer I hadn’t opened in years.
Inside the package: a burner phone.
I switched it on. No SIM. No cloud. There is no way to follow the money.
I called a number that I had promised myself I’d never use again.
He answered the phone after only one ring.
“Vale.” His tone was dry and amused. I didn’t think you’d get in touch with me again.
I require a trace. Surveillance. Now.”
“Name?”
“Savannah Rose.”
He paused. “Ah. Her.”
I didn’t say anything.
“Who is the danger?”
“Everyone.”
He seemed to like the challenge as he let out a breath. “You sure made a mess of things, didn’t you?”
This isn’t something I do for money. It’s war.”
Then you should hope that I win it for you.
I ended the call.
And remained in that spot.
Looking at myself in the dark mirror.
I didn’t know who the man in the mirror was.
I used to be as tough as steel. Untouchable. At this point, I was made of glass. Splitting down the middle. I realized that if things went wrong, it wouldn’t just be me who suffered.
Savannah.
The baby.
All the things I never realized I needed… are now at risk.
What if I couldn’t keep them safe?
What if I arrived after it was too late?
What if the focus wasn’t on leaked emails or what happens in board meetings?
What if the next news story wasn’t about Ethan Vale?
But what about the people I cared about?
And what if the most difficult part of this storm…
Was it still on the way?
- Writer
