The footsteps were slow… deliberate… carrying the weight of a man who believed the world belonged to him.
Diana stiffened beside me.
My jaw clenched so tightly the ropes dug deeper into my skin.
Then he stepped into the light.
My father. Victor Langley
Grey suit. Gold cufflinks. Calm eyes that had watched the world bleed without blinking.
"Son," he said with a faint smile, as if I were seated at a dinner table not tied to a chair.
I didn't look away.
"Where is she," I demanded, my voice raw, stripped of anything human.
He studied me like I was a misbehaving dog.
"So that's the first thing you care about? Not the driver who died. Not the men who risked their lives dragging your unconscious body back home."
His smile sharpened. "A girl."
My chest burned. "Sharon, where is she Victor."
He stopped in front of me, hands clasped behind his back.
"Ace… the car went off the cliff."
Air left my lungs in one violent rush.
He continued, cold and precise.
"Even if by some miracle she survived the fall, there was no body. The currents in that region tear anything apart within minutes... Show your father some respect "
My pulse roared in my ears.
He leaned in, voice dropping into something almost gentle.
"You need to let her go."
I spat straight into his face.
Diana gasped but my father didn't flinch. He wiped it off slowly, like cleaning dust from a desk.
"Your emotions," he said calmly, "are exactly why I kept you far away from this business."
"I'm going back," I growled. "I'm going to find her. Alive. Dead. Whatever is left. I'm not staying here."
He chuckled.
"You're not leaving this house."
I pulled at the ropes until they burned my skin.
"You think tying me will stop me?" My voice cracked, breaking through the pain. "You think ropes can keep me away from her?"
His expression hardened.
"You're obsessed."
"You killed her." I answered immediately, rage filled my entire system
He raised a brow. "I didn't give that order."
He glanced at Diana. Her face paled instantly.
My stomach dropped.
"What?" I snarled. "What is he talking about?"
Diana stepped back, lips trembling. "Ace, I… I didn't mean…"
"Diana," Langley said sharply. "Tell him… Even if I am pained because you acted rashly I still understand you"
She swallowed hard.
"I told them to… remove her. To scare her away. To separate you two. I didn't think they'd… I didn't think the car would…"
My world detonated.
"You ordered it?" My voice wasn't even human anymore, it was a growl ripped out of hell.
"Ace…"
"You ordered them to take her?"
She sobbed. "I didn't want to lose you…"
"You never had me."
My father sighed, bored. "Enough crying. Ace, you're staying here until you learn how to behave."
I raised my head slowly and smiled.
It was cold. Animalistic. A promise.
"When I get out of this chair," I whispered, "I'm going to burn this whole house down."
Diana froze.
My father's eyes narrowed just a fraction.
" well for now you are still tied to a chair"
"Get him sedated," Langley said to the guards waiting outside the door. "We'll start reconditioning him tonight."
_ _ _
Maxie's leg bounced uncontrollably as she sat on the cold metal bench inside the police station lobby. The fluorescent lights buzzed above her, the room too bright, too loud, too slow for the panic twisting through her stomach.
Her phone vibrated again.
She checked the screen and the number she tried was unreachable again…
Aec…
For the fifth time.
"Come on," she muttered, dialing again with shaking fingers.
"Pick up… pick up…AEC!"
But it went straight to voicemail.
"Damn it."
She ended the call and immediately tried Zion.
Another dead end.
"What the hell is going on?" she whispered, running a hand through her hair. Sharon had been missing for hours.
Maxie stood abruptly, pacing.
Just then, an officer approached, the same one she'd begged earlier for help.
"Miss Maxine?"
She stopped. "It's Maxie but that aside, please tell me you found something."
The officer sighed and shook his head. "We've been instructed to close the missing-person inquiry."
Maxie blinked. "What?"
"You heard me. The report has been withdrawn. Sharon is not missing. She probably left on her own."
Maxie's mouth dropped open. "Left on her? Are you insane? SHE WAS KIDNAPPED! Who leaves by getting dragged forcefully into a van, then goes MIA!"
"Ma'am, calm down"
"NO!" Maxie snapped, her voice cracking through the station.
"Don't tell me to calm down! Someone took her! Something happened to her!"
Two other officers glanced over.
The man in front of her lowered his voice. "We can't investigate this anymore. Orders came from above."
"What does that even mean?" she barked. "She's my friend!"
"Ma'am, I need you to leave…"
"No! Look again! Check your damn system! She didn't 'leave on her own',she was taken!"
Two officers came forward, each taking an arm.
Maxie struggled. "Let go of me! Sharon is in danger! Do your jobs!"
They pulled her toward the door, ignoring her completely.
"I hope all of you lose your badges! I swear, if anything happens to her…!"
The glass doors swung open and they shoved her out onto the steps.
Maxie stumbled, catching herself with one hand. She was shaking from head to toe, anger, fear, helplessness mixing in her chest until everything burned.
"Useless bastards," she muttered, wiping her eyes roughly.
Then
Her phone rang.
She froze.
Her heart jumped into her throat. It was Aec
She didn't breathe before swiping the screen.
"Where is Sharon?" she demanded immediately, voice sharp with panic and fury.
But there was no reply from the other end…
Her eyebrows pulled together. "Aec? Are you there? This is not the time for your cold attitude… Where is…"
A voice cut in.
Not Aec's. The voice was smooth and female
"My husband is sleeping," Diana said lazily. "Don't call married men at this hour."
Maxie went still.
Completely still, her mouth parted.
"…Diana?" she whispered, her voice barely existing.
A low hum came from the other end, almost amused.
Maxie swallowed hard. "Please put Aec on the phone. It's urgent."
"Don't be stupid," Diana snapped, her tone flipping sharp like a blade. "Remember who you're talking to. I am your boss."
Maxie's pulse roared. Her fingers tightened on the phone.
Before she could speak again, she heard a faint click, like someone moving to end the call.
Then Diana's voice slid through the speaker one last time, cold enough to freeze bone.
"And if this will help you sleep… The person you're calling to ask about is dead."
The line went silent.
Maxie's knees gave out. The phone slipped from her shaking hand.