Chapter 4 - The Warehouse
1382 Words
Nadia's POV
Getting out of bed without waking Adrian was harder than I thought. Every movement made the mattress shift. He mumbled something and turned over, his arm landing where I'd just been lying.
I froze, holding my breath. After a moment, his breathing deepened again.
The penthouse was dark as I crept through it, avoiding the spots where I knew security cameras used to be. My hands shook as I grabbed my coat and car keys.
The security guard at the elevator looked surprised.
"Mrs. Caldwell? It's five AM."
"I need to go to the hospital. My father-they called."
He hesitated. "Mr. Caldwell said—"
"My father could be dying." I let tears fill my eyes. It wasn't hard. "Please."
He nodded and pressed the button. "I'll call for a car."
"No, I'll drive myself. I need... I need to be alone." The parking garage was empty and cold. My car started with a quiet purr. As I drove out, I saw the guard on his phone. Probably calling Adrian. I had maybe ten minutes before Adrian realized I was gone.
Pier 47 was on the wrong side of the city, where warehouses stood like dark giants against the water.
My GPS said fifteen minutes. I made it in twelve.
The warehouse was abandoned, windows broken, and graffiti covering the walls. One door stood open, darkness beyond it.
This was stupid. I knew it was stupid. But if there was even a chance they'd hurt my father…
I got out of the car, my heels clicking on the concrete.
The sound echoed in the space.
"Hello?" My voice came out smaller than I wanted.
A light flicked on inside. "Come in, Nadia." I didn't recognize the voice, but I went anyway.
Inside, a single bulb lit a circle of space. A man stood in the shadows just beyond it.
"Where's my father?"
"Safe. For now." The man stepped forward, and I gasped.
It wasn't Willaimss Kendrick. It was David, my father's business partner. Someone I'd known since I was a child.
"Uncle David?"
He smiled, but it wasn't the warm smile I remembered.
"Hello, sweetheart."
"You're working with Willaimss?"
"Working with him? No." He laughed. "I'm working for myself. Williams is just a convenient tool."
"I don't understand."
"Your father's company should have been mine. We started it together, but he pushed me out, gave me a tiny percentage while he got rich." His face twisted with anger. "Do you know how much your wedding dress cost? More than I make in a year."
"So you tried to kill him?"
"I didn't want to hurt him. Just scare him into selling his shares. But then you had to go and file for divorce, ruining everything."
"How does my divorce ruin anything?"
"Because without Adrian's protection, you're vulnerable. Your father would do anything to keep you safe, including signing over his company. But now Adrian's involved, and he's harder to manipulate."
My phone buzzed. Adrian calling. I declined it.
"You used Willaimss as a threat."
"Williams doesn't even know I exist. I've been sending those messages, making it look like him." David pulled out a gun. "And now, unfortunately, I need to escalate things."
My heart stopped. "David, please-"
"You're going to call Adrian. Tell him Williams has you.
Tell him to bring ten million dollars and come alone."
"He won't—"
"He will." David smiled coldly. "He loves you, even if you're too blind to see it."
"We're getting divorced."
"No, you're not. I've seen how he looks at you when you're not watching. How he's looked at you for three years." He gestured with the gun. "Call him."
With shaking hands, I dialed Adrian's number. He answered on the first ring.
"Where the hell are you?"
"Adrian—"
"I swear to God, Nadia, when I find you-"
"Williams has me." My voice broke. "Pier 47, warehouse seven. He wants ten million. Come alone."
"Nadia-"
David grabbed the phone. "One hour, Mr. Caldwell.
Alone, or she dies." He hung up and smashed my phone against the wall.
"Now we wait."
He tied my hands and made me sit on a crate. The rope cut into my wrist
"All these years," I said. "You came to every birthday, every Christmas. You were family."
"Emily?" He laughed bitterly. "Your father never saw me as family. I was just the help." It's not true-"
“Shut up.
I waited in silence. I could hear water lapping against the pier, a boat horn in the distance. Forty minutes passed.
Then, footsteps outside.
"He's early," David muttered. He pulled me up, pressing the gun to my temple. "Not a sound."
The door opened. Adrian walked in alone, a briefcase in his hand. He was still in the clothes he'd slept in, his hair messy. His eyes found mine immediately.
"Let her go."
"Money first," David said, still in the shadows.
Adrian set the briefcase down and kicked it forward.
"It's all there."
"Good. Now—"
"David?" Adrian's voice was shocked. "David Hart?"
David stepped into the light, keeping the gun on me.
"Surprise."
"You're behind this? Not Willaimss?"
"Williams is in Tokyo, has been for a month." David smiled. "I just borrowed his reputation."
Adrian's jaw clenched. "Let Nadia go. You have your money."
"Actually, I've changed my mind. I think I'll keep her.
Insurance, you understand."
"That wasn't the deal."
"Deal's changed."
Adrian took a step forward. "Then we have a problem."
"Stop, or I'll shoot her."
"No, you won't." Adrian took another step. "You need her alive."
"I can shoot her somewhere non-fatal."
"You could." Another step. "But you won't."
"Stop!"
Adrian was close now, close enough that I could see the fury in his eyes. "You made two mistakes, David.
First, you threatened my wife."
"Soon-to-be ex-wife," David corrected.
"Second," Adrian continued as if he hadn't spoken,
"You assumed I alone."
The warehouse is flooded with light. Red laser dots appeared on David's chest-at least six of them.
"Snipers," Adrian said calmly. "Let her go, and you might live."
David's hand shook. The gun pressed harder against my temple.
"They won't shoot. Not while I have her."
"Want to bet?"
For a moment, nobody moved. Then David made his choice. He swung the gun toward Adrian.
The shot was deafening. I screamed, falling as David's grip released. But it wasn't Adrian who'd been shot.
David was on the ground, blood spreading from his shoulder. The gun scattered across the floor.
Adrian's arms were around me, cutting the rope, pulling me against him.
"Are you hurt? Did he hurt you?"
I shook my head, unable to speak. I was shaking so hard my teeth chattered.
"It's okay," he murmured against my hair.
"You're safe."
Police sirens wailed in the distance. Adrian's security team surrounded us. Someone put a blanket around my shoulders.
"How did you know?" I asked when I could speak again.
"The security guard called me the moment you left. I had men following you before you even reached the highway." He pulled back to look at me, his hands framing my face. "Did you really think I'd let you face this alone?"
"You were awake when I left bed."
"Of course I was. You're not as stealthy as you think." His thumb brushed my cheek. "Why didn't you wake me?"
"The message said—"
"I don't care what it said. We're supposed to be a team, remember?"
The police arrived, and everything became a blur of questions and statements. David was taken away in an ambulance, under arrest. The briefcase of money was evidence now.
It was dawn by the time we got back to the penthouse. I was exhausted but too wired to sleep.
"Your father's awake," Adrian said, checking his phone. "Asking for you."
"Now?"
"The hospital called while you were giving your statement." He grabbed his keys. "I'll drive."
"Adrian, you haven't slept-"
"Neither have you." He was already heading for the door. "Come on."
As we waited for the elevator, I said, "Thank you. For coming for me."
"Nadia." He turned to face me fully. "I will always come for you."
"Even if we're divorced?"
Something shifted in his expression. "There's something you should know. The divorce papers— never filed them."
- Writer
