Shadows Beneath The Ivy

Chapter 13 — Wounded Trust

The plane dipped through gray clouds as the coast of West Africa appeared below, a shimmer of city lights and red earth.

Lila pressed her forehead to the window, her heart tight. “It’s been so long,” she whispered.

Ethan watched her, unsure what to say. Every mile they traveled brought him closer to his father’s sins — and her pain.

When they landed in Lagos, the humidity wrapped around them like heat and memory. Crowds surged, the smell of roasted plantains mixing with diesel. Ethan kept his cap low, wary of being recognized.

At the hotel, Lila stood on the balcony, staring out over the lagoon. “I used to think I’d never come back,” she said. “Too many ghosts.”

He stepped beside her. “You don’t have to face them alone.”

She turned, eyes searching his face. “I don’t know if I can trust you, Ethan. You lied about who you are.”

“I know.” He swallowed. “But I’m telling you the truth now. I didn’t come to protect my father’s name — I came to make things right.”

A long silence stretched between them.

“Then prove it,” she said finally, handing him the envelope of documents. “Help me find out who really ordered those shipments.”

He nodded, the weight of her faith — fragile and reluctant — heavier than any guilt.

*** In the street below, a man leaned against a black SUV, speaking into his phone:

“The girl’s back in Lagos. Tell Halden.”