Chapter 32
1284 Words
Nathan didn't sleep.
The first hint of dawn painted Manhattan in muted shades of gray, but he remained standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows, Rossi's message glowing on the screen of his phone.
Personal vulnerabilities.
Three words. No names. No direct threat.
They didn't need one.
Ava stirred behind him.
"Nathan?"
He slipped the phone into his pocket before turning. "Morning."
She studied his face. "You've been awake all night."
"I had work."
She walked over in one of his shirts, barefoot, wrapping her arms around his waist. For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
"You don't lie very well," she murmured.
He rested his forehead against hers.
"Rossi knows."
"Knows what?"
"You."
Her expression barely changed, but he felt the slight tension in her shoulders.
"They've known my name for weeks."
"They know you're important."
Silence settled between them.
"And Alex?" she finally asked.
Nathan's jaw tightened.
"I don't know."
The uncertainty frightened him more than certainty ever could.
---
By seven o'clock the penthouse had transformed into a fortress.
Additional security personnel occupied the lobby and private elevators. Two black SUVs waited outside the building. Nathan's most trusted lieutenant, Marco, stood in the dining room reviewing security routes on a tablet.
Victoria arrived just as breakfast was served.
She took one look around and frowned.
"You've doubled security."
"I've tripled it."
Richard's power plays no longer occupied the front of Nathan's mind.
Rossi did.
Alex came running into the kitchen carrying his backpack.
"Dad! Look."
He proudly held up a drawing.
Three stick figures stood beneath a large blue sky.
One wore a suit.
One had long brown hair.
The smallest stood between them holding both their hands.
Across the top, written in careful seven-year-old handwriting, were the words:
My Family
Nathan felt something twist painfully inside his chest.
Alex looked up.
"Do you like it?"
Nathan knelt until they were eye level.
"I love it."
Alex beamed.
"Can we put it in your office?"
Nathan glanced toward Marco.
"No."
Alex's smile faltered.
"I mean..."
Nathan took a slow breath.
"I think it belongs here."
He taped the drawing to the refrigerator himself.
---
An hour later, the security meeting began.
Marco projected several photographs onto the television.
"The gallery incident wasn't random."
Ava looked at the screen.
"There."
One photograph showed reporters surrounding the entrance.
Another captured Ethan's black sedan waiting in the alley.
A third froze a man across the street wearing sunglasses despite the cloudy morning.
Marco zoomed in.
"Our people identified him."
Nathan recognized the face immediately.
"Rossi."
"Not Rossi himself," Marco corrected. "One of his surveillance men."
The room fell silent.
"They watched the entire incident."
Victoria folded her arms.
"So Erica's stunt gave Rossi exactly what he needed."
"Confirmation," Nathan said quietly.
Marco nodded.
"They now know Ava's routine. They know where she works. They know how quickly you respond."
Ava looked from one face to another.
"They're studying us."
"They're studying you," Nathan corrected.
---
"I won't hide."
The words came an hour later inside Nathan's office.
He closed the door behind them.
"You don't get a vote."
Her eyes flashed.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me."
"I'm not a prisoner."
"No."
He stepped closer.
"You're the woman Rossi will use to get to me."
She refused to back away.
"I've spent weeks adjusting my life because of your enemies."
"And I'm asking you to do it a little longer."
"I have a gallery."
"You had one."
The moment the words left his mouth he regretted them.
Pain crossed her face.
"My career matters."
"I know."
"No, Nathan. I don't think you do."
She turned away.
"I spent years building something that belonged to me."
He reached for her hand.
She pulled away.
"For one day," she whispered, "I wanted people to see my paintings."
Instead, they had seen camera flashes.
Rumors.
Questions about organized crime.
Nathan closed his eyes.
"I'm sorry."
She looked back at him.
The anger had disappeared.
Only exhaustion remained.
"I chose you," she said softly. "But I didn't choose this."
---
Richard Walker watched the morning news from his office.
The television replayed footage from the gallery.
Images of Ava.
Nathan.
Questions about criminal investigations.
He muted the broadcast as Ethan entered.
"The press loves it."
Richard didn't answer.
"They're calling for a statement from Walker Enterprises."
Still silence.
Ethan took a seat.
"If Nathan stepped aside now, we could contain the damage."
Richard finally spoke.
"You sound eager."
"I'm practical."
Richard studied his younger son for a long time.
"Practical men rarely volunteer."
Ethan looked away.
Richard wasn't blind.
He knew ambition when he saw it.
The question was whether Ethan possessed enough strength to carry the empire Nathan had built.
He wasn't convinced.
---
By afternoon, Alex's school called.
Nathan answered immediately.
"Mr. Walker?"
His pulse quickened.
"Yes."
"This is Principal Harris."
"What happened?"
"There was a man outside the playground asking questions about Alex."
Nathan's voice turned dangerously calm.
"Describe him."
The description matched one of Rossi's associates.
Nathan ended the call without another word.
Marco looked up.
"What is it?"
Nathan was already reaching for his jacket.
"They're getting closer."
---
The school had already dismissed the children into the building when Nathan arrived.
Alex sat in the principal's office coloring quietly.
The moment he saw his father, he smiled.
"Dad!"
Nathan crossed the room in three strides and hugged him so tightly Alex laughed.
"I couldn't breathe."
"Sorry."
Nathan brushed his son's hair back.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"The man didn't talk to you?"
Alex shook his head.
"He just watched."
Nathan exchanged a look with Marco.
Watching.
Testing.
Exactly what Rossi would do.
Not today.
Soon.
---
That evening the penthouse felt unusually quiet.
Alex had fallen asleep early after insisting Nathan read three bedtime stories instead of one.
Nathan remained sitting beside the bed long after the boy drifted off.
Ava appeared in the doorway.
"You've been in here twenty minutes."
Nathan smiled faintly.
"I know."
She sat beside him.
"You think they're going after him."
"I think they're deciding."
She slipped her hand into his.
"What are you going to do?"
Nathan stared at his sleeping son.
"When I was Alex's age, my father told me something."
"What?"
"'A king without enemies isn't a king.'"
He laughed bitterly.
"I believed him."
"And now?"
"I'd give away every kingdom I have if it meant he never had to learn that lesson."
Ava rested her head against his shoulder.
"You won't lose him."
His expression remained unreadable.
"I've buried too many people to make promises."
She lifted his chin until he met her eyes.
"Then make me one."
He waited.
"No more shutting me out."
"Ava..."
"No."
Her voice was calm but unwavering.
"If someone wants to destroy this family, then it concerns all of us. I won't stand behind closed doors wondering what danger is coming next."
Nathan searched her face.
The woman who had once hidden behind paintbrushes and quiet galleries was gone.
In her place stood someone stronger.
Someone choosing to remain despite knowing exactly what his world demanded.
He kissed her forehead.
"I promise."
Before either of them could say another word, Nathan's secure phone vibrated.
Marco.
Nathan answered immediately.
"What?"
"There has been a breach."
His entire body stiffened.
"Where?"
"The warehouse in Brooklyn."
"What was taken?"
A pause.
Then Marco's voice lowered.
"Not what."
Another pause.
"Who."
Nathan's blood turned to ice.
One of his trusted men had disappeared without a trace.
Pinned to the empty warehouse wall was a single photograph.
A recent picture of Ava walking hand in hand with Alex outside his school.
Across it, written in black marker, were four words.
Your move, Walker.
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