Chapter 598: We did

A few minutes later, the room had turned into a war zone of quiet urgency.

“I tried tracing the previous number he used to call you,” Shawn said, his voice steady but weighed down with frustration. His eyes remained fixed on the laptop screen as lines of data flickered rapidly. “The signal placed him in a crowded area near a bar in the city. But the moment we got there, it was gone.”

Ethan’s jaw tightened.

Shawn continued, his fingers moving swiftly across the keyboard. “This time, the number he used pinged somewhere in the outskirts. But just like before, the signal dropped the second the video ended.”

A heavy silence followed.

Everyone in the room watched him, hanging on to every word as if it were their last thread of hope.

“And if you observe carefully,” Shawn added, turning the laptop slightly toward them, “the video is not random. It is structured. Sequential.”

Ethan frowned. “What do you mean?”

Shawn tapped the screen, pausing on a frame from the video.

“The environment, the lighting, the water level progression. It is deliberate. He wants us to see it unfold step by step.”

A chill crept through the room.

“So how are we supposed to find Kathrine?” Ethan demanded, unable to hold back any longer. His voice carried a sharp edge, his patience wearing dangerously thin. “Every second matters. I am not going to stand here analyzing his madness while her life hangs by a thread.”

His words struck hard.

Because they were true.

Time was slipping through their fingers.

Shawn nodded, understanding the urgency, and rotated the laptop fully toward them.

“Look at this,” he said.

On the screen were still frames from the video, zoomed in and enhanced.

“These containers,” Shawn continued, pointing at the image, “are not common. They are used in warehouses that store large quantities of water. Industrial storage units.”

A flicker of hope sparked in the room.

“There are only three such facilities within the radius of where the signal last dropped,” he said.

Ethan did not wait another second.

He pushed his chair back and stood up abruptly.

“Send me the locations,” he said, already reaching for his phone. “I will check all three.”

Anna stepped forward immediately.

“I am coming with you.”

Her tone left no room for argument.

“You cannot cover that much ground alone,” she added firmly. “Searching blindly will waste time. We need coordination. We need teamwork.”

But Ethan shook his head.

“No.”

The refusal was immediate.

“You need to stay here,” he said, his voice low but resolute. “I have a feeling Collin is planning something else.”

Anna frowned. “Ethan—”

“I am not risking you,” he cut in sharply.

The room fell silent again.

“Kathrine is already in danger,” he continued, his voice tightening with restrained emotion. “I am not putting you in the same position.”

Anna opened her mouth to argue, but Ethan had already turned away.

He did not give her the chance.

Within seconds, he was gone.

The door shut behind him with a finality that echoed in the room.

Anna stood there, her hands curling into fists at her sides.

Before she could gather her thoughts, her phone buzzed.

The sound was sharp.

Unsettling.

Her breath stilled as she slowly picked it up.

One glance at the screen was enough to make her blood run cold.

Collin.

A message.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she opened it.

“Do not mess this up, my dear daughter,” the message read. “Because if you do… things will not be easy for you either.”

The words were simple.

But the threat behind them was unmistakable.

Anna’s grip on the phone tightened.

Her expression hardened.

Daniel, who stood beside her, noticed the shift immediately.

“Anna,” he called quietly.

She did not respond.

Her eyes were still locked on the screen.

Daniel exchanged a quick glance with Shawn.

No words were needed.

“Track it,” Daniel said under his breath.

Shawn nodded and immediately got to work, his focus sharpening.

The sound of keys clicking filled the room again, faster this time, more intense.

Then suddenly—

“He is close.”

Shawn’s voice cut through the air.

Everyone froze.

“What?” Daniel asked, stepping closer.

Shawn’s eyes were glued to the screen. “The signal did not bounce far this time. He is somewhere nearby. Not exact, but close enough to monitor.”

The revelation sent a wave of tension through the room.

Norma, who had remained silent until now, finally looked up.

Her gaze met Daniel’s.

There was something unspoken in that look.

Something heavy.

“There is no other way, Aunt,” Daniel said quietly but firmly. “We have to do what he wants.”

Norma’s lips pressed into a thin line.

She knew exactly what that meant.

Taking the blame for what had happened to Hugo and Roseline would not just damage her reputation. It would drag her into a storm that could destroy everything she had built.

The company.

Her name.

Her standing.

Everything.

But another image rose in her mind.

Kathrine.

Trapped.

Helpless.

Slowly drowning as time slipped away.

Norma closed her eyes for a brief moment.

Revenge had once consumed her. The Bennetts had taken so much from her, from George.

But this… this was different.

This was a life hanging in the balance. And she was not them.

’She would never be them.’

Opening her eyes, she looked back at Daniel; a quiet resolve settled within her.

“Let us go.” She gave a small nod.

Anna watched them silently.

Her mind, however, was far from the room.

It was with Collin.

With his words.

With the threat that still echoed in her head.

Her jaw clenched.

Her fear slowly began to transform into something else.

Something colder.

Something sharper.

Her fingers tightened around her phone as her gaze hardened with determination.

“It is time to end this, Collin,” she whispered under her breath.

No more running. No more reacting.

This time, it would end. One way or another.

***

The engine roared beneath Ethan’s grip as the car sped down the empty stretch of road, the city lights fading behind him and darkness swallowing everything ahead.

His hands tightened around the steering wheel.

Faster.

He needed to go faster.

Every second felt like a blade pressing against his throat, each passing moment a reminder that Kathrine was out there… alone… waiting.

Or worse.

“No,” he muttered under his breath, his jaw clenching. “She’s fine.”

She had to be.

But no matter how much he tried to focus on the road, his mind betrayed him.

It dragged him back.

Back to her.

Back to a moment he wished he had never taken for granted.

[Flashback]

The soft glow of the evening sun filtered through the curtains, painting the room in shades of gold.

Kathrine stood by the window, her hair loose, swaying gently with the breeze. There was a quiet smile on her lips as she looked outside, lost in her own thoughts.

Ethan leaned against the doorframe, watching her.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Just… watched.

Because scenes like this were rare.

Peaceful.

Fragile.

And he wanted to memorize it.

“What are you thinking about?” he finally asked, his voice softer than usual.

Kathrine turned slightly, startled at first, before her expression eased.

“Nothing much,” she said, though the glimmer in her eyes said otherwise.

Ethan raised a brow. “That look says otherwise.”

She hesitated.

Then, after a brief pause, she spoke.

“Do you ever think about the future?”

The question caught him off guard.

Ethan straightened slightly, studying her more carefully now.

“The future?” he repeated.

Kathrine nodded, her fingers lightly gripping the curtain.

“Our future.”

Something in her tone made his chest tighten.

Ethan pushed himself off the doorframe and walked toward her, his steps slow, deliberate.

When he reached her, he stopped just behind her shoulder.

“And what about it?” he asked quietly.

Kathrine let out a small breath, her gaze drifting outside again.

“I was just wondering…” she began, her voice almost hesitant now, “what it would be like.”

Ethan frowned slightly. “What would be like?”

She turned to look at him then.

And there it was.

That softness.

That vulnerability she rarely showed.

“A family,” she said.

The word hung between them.

Ethan stilled.

For a moment, he did not respond.

Kathrine seemed to notice, because she quickly looked away, a faint flush creeping onto her cheeks.

“I mean… not now,” she added hurriedly. “Just… someday.”

Ethan exhaled slowly.

Then, without thinking too much, he reached out and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

“And how many?” he asked.

Kathrine blinked, caught off guard.

“What?”

“If we have a family,” he said, a faint hint of amusement slipping into his tone, “how many are you planning?”

A small laugh escaped her lips.

The tension eased.

“I don’t know,” she admitted, her shoulders relaxing. “Maybe two?”

“Two?” Ethan repeated, pretending to think it over. “That’s too little.”

Her eyes widened slightly. “Too little?”

“Yeah,” he said casually. “At least three.”

Kathrine stared at him. “Three? That’s a lot.”

Ethan smirked. “Afraid you can’t handle it?”

She shot him a look, her lips pressing into a thin line.

“I can handle it just fine,” she said, lifting her chin slightly. “But you’re the one who will panic.”

“I don’t panic,” Ethan replied immediately.

Kathrine laughed again, the sound light and warm.

“Right,” she teased. “We’ll see about that.”

For a moment, they just stood there.

Close.

Comfortable.

The future they spoke of felt so real, so within reach.

Ethan reached for her hand, intertwining their fingers.

“Three,” he said firmly.

Kathrine looked at him, her eyes soft.

“Two,” she countered.

He leaned closer.

“Three.”

She smiled.

“Fine,” she said after a pause. “Maybe… three.”

Ethan’s grip tightened slightly, a quiet satisfaction settling in his chest.

It felt right.

Everything about that moment felt right.

Like nothing could ever go wrong.

The sharp blare of a horn snapped Ethan back to reality.

His eyes widened slightly as he refocused on the road, his grip tightening once again.

The warmth of that memory shattered instantly.

Replaced by cold dread.

His chest felt heavy.

Because now—

That future…

That simple, beautiful future they had once spoken about—

Was slipping through his fingers.

“No,” he muttered again, his voice rough this time. “I won’t let that happen.”

As if on cue, his phone rang.

The sharp sound cut through the silence of the car.

Ethan glanced at the screen.

Shawn.

He did not hesitate.

Answering immediately, he brought the phone to his ear.

“Tell me you found something,” Ethan said, his voice tight with urgency.

On the other end, Shawn’s voice came through.

“We did.”

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