Chapter 2
757 Words
The truth behind the door
The words “we found her” stayed in Amara’s mind.
She didn’t know who Adrian was talking about, but she knew one thing.
Whatever was happening had nothing to do with a simple meeting.
Adrian picked up a file from his desk, his expression once again becoming unreadable.
“Leave us,” he told the man who had entered.
The man nodded and walked away.
Amara watched Adrian carefully.
“You’re not going to explain?”
Adrian looked at her.
“You ask too many questions.”
“And you avoid answering too many.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Adrian placed the file on the desk.
Inside was a photograph.
A photograph of a woman Amara had not seen in years.
Her breath caught.
Because she knew her.
“Who is she?” Amara asked, even though a part of her already knew the answer.
Adrian studied her face.
“You really don’t remember?”
Amara looked back at the photograph.
The woman in the picture had been part of a life Amara tried so hard to forget.
“She was my mother’s friend,” Amara said quietly.
Adrian’s expression changed.
Not because he was surprised.
Because he knew there was more.
“Interesting,” he said.
Amara looked at him.
“What does she have to do with you?”
Adrian was silent for a moment.
Then he answered.
“She was the last person who saw my father alive.”
Amara froze.
The room suddenly felt smaller.
Because suddenly, the past she had spent years running from was standing right in front of her
And somehow…
was connected to Adrian Vale.
Amara stared at him.
“What are you saying?”
Adrian placed the photograph back on the desk.
“I’m saying that the woman you knew may have been hiding things from you.”
Amara shook her head slowly.
“No. You don’t know her.”
A strange look crossed Adrian’s face.
“You’re right. I didn’t know her the way you did.”
He paused.
“But I know what she was involved in.”
Amara felt a cold feeling settle in her chest.
“What was she involved in?”
For a moment, Adrian said nothing.
It was almost like he was deciding whether she was ready to hear the truth.
Then his phone rang.
He looked at the screen, and his expression changed.
Another secret.
Another problem.
Another reason why Amara was starting to believe one thing…
Nothing about Adrian Vale’s world was simple.
Adrian answered the call without taking his eyes off Amara.
“Speak.”
A few seconds passed.
His face remained calm, but his eyes changed.
“Are you sure?”
Amara watched him carefully.
She couldn’t hear the voice on the other end, but she could tell the news was serious.
Adrian ended the call.
“What happened?” she asked.
He didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he looked at the photograph again.
Then at her.
“The person we found…”
He paused.
“She wasn’t the only one who knew the truth.”
Amara’s heartbeat quickened.
“What does that mean?”
Adrian stepped closer, lowering his voice.
“It means someone else has been watching you for years.”
The room went silent.
Amara felt a chill run through her.
Because for the first time, she wondered…
Was she really running away from her past?
Or had her past been following her all along?
Amara tried to stay calm, but her mind was racing.
All her life, she believed the past was something she left behind.
But now she was beginning to realize something.
Maybe the past never let her go.
“Why me?” she whispered.
Adrian looked at her.
For the first time, there was something in his eyes that looked almost like regret.
“Because they believe you have something they want.”
Amara froze.
“What do I have?”
Adrian didn’t answer.
Instead, he walked toward the door and opened it.
“Tonight, you stay here.”
Amara stared at him.
“Excuse me?”
“Until we know who is looking for you, you are not safe outside.”
She wanted to argue.
She wanted to tell him he couldn’t control her life.
But before she could speak, Adrian said something that made her forget every argument she had.
“Amara…”
She looked at him.
“I think the person you’re running from has finally found you.”
- Writer
