Es turned, her strides purposeful as she headed toward her car. Helga, still rooted in place, watched as her friend reached for the door handle. But before Es got in, she paused and looked back, her expression softening for just a mont.
"Helga," she said quietly, "if sothing happens to , soone will need to take care of everything. Soone who understands how it all works. You know how important that is."
Helga’s chest tightened. The weight of Es’s words felt like a punch to the gut. She wasn’t just talking about the imdiate threat—they were talking about the empire Es had built, the legacy she had crafted from blood, sweat, and determination. If Es fell, soone had to step up and hold it all together.
"Es..." Helga whispered, her voice breaking, but Es didn’t let her finish.
"I’m trusting you," Es said, her eyes lingering on Helga for a brief mont before she climbed into the car.
The engine roared to life, and Es sped out of the parking lot without a backward glance. Helga stood frozen, her mind racing. She knew Es was right—she had to be there for Aron, for her child. But the gnawing fear in her gut wouldn’t go away. This wasn’t just an ordinary threat. Sothing far bigger was at play, and Helga knew that if they weren’t careful, everything could co crashing down around them.
As the dust settled in Es’s wake, Helga clenched her fists, her jaw tightening with a fierce resolve. She had her orders, and she’d follow them—but she also knew this was far from over.
Helga’s footsteps echoed as she walked away, her heart heavy and her mind racing. Every instinct scread at her to turn back, to argue again, but Es’s words rang in her ears. Protect Aron. Protect your child. She was more than just a secretary and a friend now. She was a wife, a mother, and that ant her priorities had shifted in ways she wasn’t entirely ready to face.
But leaving Es to face this alone? It felt wrong, almost cowardly.
anwhile, Es sat behind the wheel of her car, gripping the steering wheel tightly as she sped down the darkened streets. She ripped off her tie and threw it aside, her jacket following quickly. She felt the pressure mounting, squeezing the air out of her lungs. She’d lied to Helga—sothing she hated doing—but she needed her out of the way. Helga’s focus had to be on her family now. Es needed to handle this alone.
As she weaved through traffic, her mind raced. The truth? The tracker she had given Ray wasn’t working. She had tried telepathy, calling out to him in her mind. Over and over she scread his na. Ray.
Nothing.
Her eyes, now glowing with a fierce gold hue, flickered in frustration. Telepathy was their strongest connection, and if Ray wasn’t responding, it ant only one thing. Either he was too far away, too injured, or—worst of all—he was no longer in control of his own mind.
Es slamd her fist against the steering wheel, the impact reverberating through the car. She couldn’t afford to think about the worst-case scenarios right now. Her thoughts darkened as she considered the possibilities—if Ray was in danger, real danger, she needed to act fast.
Her phone rang, cutting through the tense silence. Without taking her eyes off the road, she answered through her car’s Bluetooth system. "Yes? Have you found anything?"
A voice crackled through the speaker. "We’re getting closer. Turns out, Joey’s not her real na. She’s been using an alias. Her actual na is Kaya—an infamous figure in the underground world. Kidnapping is her specialty. But her real strength? Disappearing without a trace."
Es’s blood ran cold. Kaya. The na was notorious in certain circles, a ghost who slipped through the cracks of law enforcent and never left a trail. She was more than just a kidnapper—she was an expert at eluding capture, and her thods were always precise, brutal.
"Where is she?" Es asked, her voice low and controlled.
"That’s the thing. She’s gone off the grid. We can’t pin her down. But this isn’t just a job for her—it’s personal. She’s playing a different ga this ti."
Es gritted her teeth. If Kaya had Ray, then this was more than just about ransom. There was a deeper motive at play, and Es needed to figure out what that was—and fast.
"Keep looking," she ordered, her voice icy. "I don’t care how you do it. Find her."
The call ended, leaving Es alone in the quiet hum of her car. Her thoughts twisted and turned as she tried to piece together the puzzle. Why Ray? Why now? What did Kaya want from them? And why had she gone through the trouble of kidnapping him from right under their noses?
Es’s phone pinged again. A text ssage this ti. She glanced down at the screen, her brow furrowing as she read the short ssage:
"I know you’re coming for him. Try if you dare."
The ssage was simple but taunting, like a predator toying with its prey. Es’s lips curled into a dangerous smile.
She pressed harder on the accelerator, her car speeding down the empty road. She didn’t know what condition Ray was in, but one thing was clear: She was going to find him.
And when she did, this damn kidnapper would regret ever crossing her.
.
.
.
Ray groaned as consciousness slowly returned, the sensation of soft fabric beneath him unfamiliar and unsettling. He shifted, only to feel the resistance of ropes binding his hands behind his back.
Confusion flickered in his mind as he realized the ropes weren’t rough or cutting—silk. It felt like whoever had tied him up didn’t want him to hurt himself. But that didn’t make any sense. Why go through the trouble of restraining him if they were concerned about his comfort?
He blinked, or at least, he thought he did. The world around him remained dark, and it took a mont for him to register the cloth tightly secured around his eyes. A blindfold.
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