Chapter10: The first enemy
1202 Words
Ava stared at the note.
Her hands trembled so badly that the paper nearly slipped from her fingers.
STOP DIGGING OR YOU'RE NEXT.
The words seemed to burn into her eyes.
The apartment felt colder.
Smaller.
Dangerous.
Someone had been here.
Someone had gone through her belongings.
Someone knew where she lived.
For several moments, she couldn't move.
Couldn't think.
Couldn't breathe.
Then her survival instincts finally returned.
Ava reached for her phone.
Her fingers shook as she dialed Ethan's number.
The call connected almost immediately.
"Ava?"
The moment she heard his voice, relief washed over her.
"Ethan."
Something in her tone instantly alerted him.
"What happened?"
Ava swallowed.
"They were here."
Silence.
Dangerous silence.
"Who?"
"I don't know."
She glanced around the wrecked apartment.
"But someone broke in."
The line went quiet.
Then Ethan's voice returned.
Cold.
Controlled.
Deadly calm.
"Stay where you are."
"What?"
"I'm coming."
The call ended.
Ava stared at the phone.
For the first time since his return, Ethan sounded genuinely angry.
Not annoyed.
Not irritated.
Angry.
And strangely enough, that made her feel safer.
---
Twenty minutes later.
A black luxury car stopped outside the apartment building.
Ethan stepped out.
His expression immediately darkened when he entered the apartment.
The destruction spoke for itself.
Furniture overturned.
Drawers emptied.
Documents scattered everywhere.
Nothing had been stolen.
At least nothing obvious.
This wasn't robbery.
It was intimidation.
A warning.
Ethan picked up the note.
His jaw tightened.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop instantly.
"They threatened you."
Ava nodded.
Again.
This time there was no phone call.
No distorted voice.
Just undeniable proof.
Someone wanted her frightened.
Someone wanted her silent.
Unfortunately for them...
It had the opposite effect.
Ethan folded the note carefully.
"We're taking this."
"Why?"
"For fingerprints."
Ava nodded.
That made sense.
For the first time, they were treating this like a real investigation.
Not paranoia.
Not coincidence.
An investigation.
Because somebody was targeting them.
And somebody had made a mistake.
---
Several hours later, they sat together inside Ethan's office.
The note had already been sent for analysis.
Neither expected much.
Professional criminals rarely left evidence behind.
Still, it was worth trying.
Ava sat across from Ethan.
A thick file rested between them.
The crash investigation.
The same file Ethan had kept hidden for years.
Slowly, he opened it.
"Let's start from the beginning."
Ava nodded.
Together, they reviewed every page.
Every report.
Every witness statement.
Every detail.
Hours passed.
Nothing unusual appeared.
Then Ava noticed something.
"Wait."
Ethan looked up.
"What?"
She pointed toward a specific page.
"The passenger list."
Ethan frowned.
"What about it?"
Ava scanned the names.
Again.
And again.
Then realization struck.
"There's one missing."
"What?"
"This report says there were seven people on board."
Ethan nodded.
"Yes."
Ava pointed at the list.
"Then why are there only six names?"
Silence filled the office.
Ethan immediately grabbed the document.
His eyes moved down the page.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six.
Ava was right.
Only six names appeared.
Yet the report clearly stated seven passengers.
Someone had been removed.
Someone important.
A chill ran through the room.
Because missing information meant deliberate tampering.
And deliberate tampering meant conspiracy.
Ethan slowly looked up.
The realization was written across his face.
"The crash report was altered."
Ava nodded.
Finally.
Real evidence.
Not suspicions.
Not theories.
Evidence.
And evidence changed everything.
---
Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones making discoveries.
Across the city, inside a luxurious penthouse, Sophia Reed sat in silence.
A glass of wine rested untouched in her hand.
She wasn't thinking about business.
She wasn't thinking about work.
She was thinking about Ava.
Again.
And again.
And again.
The situation was getting worse.
Every day Ava remained in the mansion, Ethan seemed to drift further away.
The realization terrified her.
A knock interrupted her thoughts.
"Come in."
The door opened.
A man entered.
Sophia immediately sat upright.
"What do you have?"
The investigator handed her a folder.
Sophia opened it.
Her eyes moved across the pages.
Then widened.
"No."
The investigator remained silent.
Sophia looked again.
Then again.
Hoping she had misunderstood.
She hadn't.
The document was clear.
Painfully clear.
Ethan Blackwell and Ava Hart had indeed been legally married.
Sophia felt the blood drain from her face.
The marriage wasn't a lie.
It wasn't a scam.
It wasn't a trick.
It was real.
The realization hit her harder than expected.
Because for the first time, she understood the truth.
Ava wasn't trying to steal Ethan.
Ava had him first.
---
That evening, Ethan and Ava returned to the mansion.
Both were exhausted.
Neither had expected the investigation to uncover anything significant.
Yet now they had proof.
The passenger list had been altered.
Someone was missing.
Someone connected to the crash.
Someone important enough to erase from history.
Ava sat beside the fireplace.
Lost in thought.
Ethan watched her quietly.
Over the past week, something had changed between them.
The distance felt smaller.
The walls felt weaker.
The memories felt closer.
And every time he looked at her, the same question returned.
What if she was telling the truth?
Deep down, he already knew the answer.
The memories had confirmed it.
The photographs had confirmed it.
His heart had confirmed it.
The only thing left was accepting it.
Ava suddenly noticed him staring.
"What?"
Ethan hesitated.
Then asked the question that had haunted him for days.
"Were we happy?"
The words caught her off guard.
For a moment, she simply stared.
Then a soft smile appeared.
A sad smile.
A beautiful smile.
"Very."
Ethan looked away.
Something inside his chest tightened.
Ava continued.
"We weren't perfect."
"No?"
She laughed softly.
"Far from it."
The sound immediately triggered something.
A memory.
Ava laughing.
A kitchen.
Flour on her face.
Happiness.
The image flashed through his mind.
Gone almost instantly.
But long enough.
Long enough.
Ethan's heart pounded.
Another piece.
Another memory.
Another step closer.
Ava noticed the change.
"Ethan?"
He looked at her.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then he whispered something that made her breath catch.
"I think..."
He paused.
His voice became softer.
"I think I'm starting to remember you."
Tears immediately filled Ava's eyes.
Hope surged through her chest.
The moment she had been waiting for was finally arriving.
Little by little.
Memory by memory.
Piece by piece.
---
Outside the mansion, hidden among the darkness, a black vehicle remained parked.
Inside sat the same man who had been watching them for weeks.
His phone rang.
He answered immediately.
"Sir."
The cold voice returned.
"Report."
The man swallowed.
Then delivered the news.
"They found the passenger discrepancy."
Silence followed.
Then came a low chuckle.
Not amused.
Dangerous.
The kind of laugh that promised violence.
"Interesting."
The man shifted nervously.
"What should we do?"
The answer came instantly.
Without hesitation.
Without mercy.
"Send a message."
The man's stomach dropped.
"What kind of message?"
A long pause followed.
Then the voice spoke.
Slowly.
Clearly.
Terrifyingly.
"One they won't survive."
The call disconnected.
The man stared toward the illuminated mansion.
A chill crawled down his spine.
Because he knew exactly what was coming.
And by the time Ethan and Ava realized the truth...
It might already be too late.
- Writer
