THE NIGHT EVERYTHING BURNED
746 Words
Rain hammered against the windshield as Ava Bennett tightened her grip on the steering wheel. The winding road leading to the Bennett Estate disappeared beneath sheets of water, matching the unease twisting inside her chest.
She glanced at the clock on the dashboard.
11:47 p.m.
Victor Bennett hated being kept waiting.
Ever since her mother died two years ago, the mansion had stopped feeling like home. Every hallway echoed with silence, every room carried memories she couldn't bear to revisit. Her stepfather had become colder, more controlling, and surrounded himself with powerful men whose smiles never reached their eyes.
Tonight, something felt different.
The gates creaked open.
As Ava parked, she noticed several unfamiliar black SUVs lined outside the mansion. Their engines were still running.
Her stomach tightened.
Who visits at midnight?
She quietly stepped out of her car, clutching her camera bag. She had planned to grab a few belongings and leave before dawn. Victor believed she was attending a charity gala in the city. He wasn't supposed to know she'd returned early.
The front door was slightly open.
That had never happened before.
Voices drifted from Victor's private study.
Deep.
Angry.
Dangerous.
Curiosity battled fear.
Ava slipped off her heels and padded silently across the marble floor.
"...the journalist has copies," a stranger growled.
"He won't live long enough to publish them," Victor replied, his voice calm enough to send chills down her spine.
Ava froze.
Journalist?
Publish what?
She edged closer until she could see through the narrow gap in the study door.
Victor sat behind his massive oak desk, dressed in a tailored black suit despite the late hour. Around him stood four men in dark clothing.
One of them dragged a bruised man into the room.
His hands were tied behind his back.
Blood stained the collar of his shirt.
"I told you everything," the captive pleaded. "Please... my family—"
Victor slowly rose from his chair.
"You made one mistake," he said.
"You believed the truth could destroy me."
Without another word, Victor lifted a pistol from the desk.
Ava's breath caught.
"No..." she whispered.
A deafening gunshot shattered the silence.
The prisoner collapsed to the floor.
Blood spread across the polished marble.
Ava clamped both hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming.
Her legs refused to move.
Her heart pounded so loudly she was certain everyone inside could hear it.
Victor handed the gun to one of his men as if nothing extraordinary had happened.
"Clean this up," he ordered.
"And find the missing flash drive."
Flash drive?
Another man spoke.
"Our search team couldn't locate it."
Victor's expression darkened.
"Then someone has it."
Ava's pulse quickened.
She stumbled backward, accidentally brushing against a porcelain vase.
It wobbled.
Then crashed onto the floor.
The study fell silent.
Victor slowly turned toward the door.
"Who's there?"
Panic exploded through Ava.
She spun and ran.
Heavy footsteps thundered behind her.
"Stop her!"
The mansion erupted into chaos.
She sprinted down the hallway, tears blurring her vision.
A bullet slammed into the wall inches from her shoulder.
She gasped but kept running.
Her instincts took over.
Instead of heading for the front entrance, she darted into Victor's office.
If she escaped empty-handed, no one would ever believe what she'd witnessed.
She yanked open the top drawer of his desk.
Files.
Passports.
Cash.
Then she spotted a small silver flash drive tucked beneath a leather notebook.
This must be it.
She shoved it into her pocket.
The pounding footsteps grew louder.
"She's in the office!"
Ava threw open the window.
Cold rain lashed her face.
Without thinking, she climbed onto the ledge and jumped.
She hit the soaked grass hard, pain shooting through her ankle.
Ignoring it, she scrambled to her feet and ran toward her car.
The engine roared to life.
Headlights from the black SUVs flared behind her.
"They're escaping through the east gate!"
Her tires screeched as she sped onto the empty highway.
Rain blurred the road ahead.
Her hands shook violently.
She had just watched a man die.
And now the most dangerous man she knew wanted her dead.
She didn't know where she was going.
She only knew one thing.
She could never go home again.
As the storm swallowed the highway behind her, a black motorcycle emerged from the darkness, its single headlight cutting through the rain.
The rider watched her speeding car disappear into the night.
Then he twisted the throttle.
And followed.
- Writer
