Chapter 10 - THE PERSON HIDING IN THE SHADOWS

The old house was silent.

Too silent.

Ethan stood at the bottom of the stairs, staring into the darkness above.

Every instinct inside him screamed that someone was watching.

Someone who knew they were coming.

Someone who wanted them to find this place.

“Who’s there?”

His voice echoed through the empty hallway.

No answer.

Emma grabbed his arm.

“Ethan, please.”

But he couldn’t move.

Not when his daughter was missing.

Not when every second mattered.

He slowly walked upstairs.

Each step creaked beneath his weight.

The old wooden floor sounded like it was warning him.

At the end of the hallway was a half-open door.

Ethan pushed it.

Inside was a small room.

Empty.

Except for one thing.

A phone sitting on the table.

The screen was glowing.

A video was playing.

Ethan picked it up.

And his heart stopped.

It was Lena.

She was sitting in the same room from the previous video.

But this time…

Someone else was beside her.

Victoria Lane.

Ethan stared.

“She’s working with Daniel.”

Emma looked shocked.

“No.”

“You knew her.”

“Yes.”

“Then tell me why she’s helping him.”

Emma looked away.

“Because I was wrong about her.”

The video continued.

Victoria looked directly into the camera.

“Ethan.”

Her voice was cold.

“You’re probably angry.”

Ethan clenched his jaw.

Victoria continued.

“But anger is exactly what Daniel wanted.”

Lena looked at her.

“You said my daddy would come.”

Victoria looked uncomfortable.

“He will.”

“Then why are you helping the bad guy?”

The question hit harder than anything.

Even Victoria looked away.

Ethan noticed.

She wasn’t completely cold.

She was afraid.

The video stopped.

Emma whispered:

“She’s not loyal to Daniel.”

Ethan looked at her.

“Then why is she doing this?”

“Because Daniel knows her secret too.”

Ethan frowned.

“What secret?”

Emma hesitated.

“She had a son.”

“So?”

“He died because of Daniel.”

Silence.

“What?”

Emma nodded.

“Daniel was involved in an accident years ago.”

Ethan looked at the screen.

“He destroyed everyone around him.”

Before they could say more, the phone rang.

Unknown number.

Ethan answered.

“Where is my daughter?”

A quiet voice replied.

“Ethan?”

His eyes narrowed.

“Victoria?”

“Yes.”

“Where is Lena?”

“I can help you.”

Emma stepped closer.

“What does she want?”

Ethan put the phone on speaker.

Victoria whispered:

“I want Daniel stopped.”

“Then tell me where he is.”

A pause.

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because he knows I’m talking to you.”

Suddenly, a loud crash came from the other side of the call.

Victoria gasped.

A man’s voice shouted.

“You betrayed me.”

Daniel.

Ethan froze.

“Victoria?”

Her breathing became faster.

Then she whispered one final sentence.

“Save Lena.”

The call went dead.

Emma covered her mouth.

“He found her.”

Ethan looked at the phone.

“No.”

His voice turned cold.

“He found Victoria.”

He grabbed the documents from the table.

And then he noticed something written on the back.

A location.

A single address.

A place Ethan knew very well.

His childhood home.

The place where everything started.

CLIFFHANGER:

May you like

THE MAID’S DAUGHTER

“GET OUT OF MY HOUSE,” HIS FIANCÉE TOLD THE MAID—THEN THE MAFIA BOSS LOOKED AT HER LITTLE GIRL“Get out of my house. And take that...

**MY HUSBAND CALLED ME A “BARREN LEECH”—HE DIDN’T KNOW MY MONEY WAS KEEP...

My husband threw his wedding ring at my feet and told security to remove the “barren leech” from the ballroom.He had no idea he wa...

MY DAUGHTER’S NOTE STOPPED MY WEDDING—AND EXPOSED MY BRIDE

MY DAUGHTER SLIPPED ME A NOTE BEFORE “I DO”—AND EXPOSED MY BRIDE’S PLANPART 1 — TEN MINUTES BEFORE THE VOWS“Daddy, if you marry he...

The answer to seven years of lies was waiting inside Ethan’s old family home.

But Daniel wasn’t the only person hiding there.