Dominic Ashford's POV
"She hung up on me."
I stared at my phone in disbelief. Sophia had called, said our son's life was in danger, and then—nothing. The line went dead. Every callback went straight to voicemail.
Marcus burst into my office. "The tracker I put on her phone shows she's moving fast. Heading toward—" He checked his tablet. "—the downtown CrossTech building. Boss, something's wrong."
I was already grabbing my jacket. "Get the car. Now."
We made it to CrossTech in fifteen minutes—a drive that should have taken thirty. I didn't care about speed limits. My son was in danger, and Sophia had reached out to me for the first time in six years.
That meant something was very, very wrong.
The CrossTech lobby was chaos. Security guards rushing around. Employees whispering nervously. And in the center of it all—Adrian Cross, shouting into his phone.
"I don't care if she's the CTO! Find her! Check her apartment, her son's school, anywhere she might—" He looked up and saw me. His face twisted with rage. "You."
"Where's Sophia?" I demanded.
"Like you don't know! You probably sent someone to kidnap her after you found out about the kid!" Adrian stormed toward me. "How long have you known? How long have you been planning to steal my fiancée and her son?"
I grabbed him by his expensive tie. "Your fiancée just called me saying our son is in danger. So either tell me where she is, or get out of my way."
"Your son?" Adrian laughed bitterly. "That's rich. You didn't even know Ethan existed until last night. I've been his father for three years while you lived your perfect billionaire life!"
The words hit like a knife to the gut. He was right. I'd missed three years of my son's life. First steps. First words. Birthdays. Everything.
But I couldn't think about that now.
"Where. Is. Sophia."
"I don't know!" Adrian shoved me away. "She got some kind of message, grabbed her things, and ran. Her assistant Maya went with her. Security footage shows them leaving in a panic twenty minutes ago."
My phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number:
"Looking for Sophia? Check Riverside Park. Near the old playground. Bring the police and she dies. Come alone. You have 10 minutes."
My blood ran cold.
"Marcus." I showed him the message. "Track this number. And call the police—but tell them to stay back until I signal."
"Boss, if you go alone—"
"That's my son's mother. I'm going." I headed for the door, then turned back to Adrian. "If you actually care about Sophia and Ethan, you'll help Marcus coordinate with the police. Otherwise, get out of my way and let the adults handle this."
I didn't wait for his response.
Riverside Park was nearly empty at this time of day. A few joggers. Some people walking dogs. And there, near the old playground where the equipment was rusty and forgotten—Sophia.
She stood alone, her phone pressed to her ear, looking terrified.
I ran toward her. "Sophia!"
She spun around, relief flooding her face. "Dominic, thank God. I didn't know if you'd—"
"Are you okay? Where's Ethan?"
"Safe. He's still at school with extra security I hired this morning. But we need to talk. Now. Before—"
A car screeched up behind us. Black sedan, tinted windows. The same car I'd seen outside my office this morning.
The hooded figure from the threatening message stepped out.
"How touching," the distorted voice said through a voice changer. "The happy family reunion I've been waiting six years to destroy."
I positioned myself in front of Sophia. "Who are you? What do you want?"
"What I want?" The figure laughed. "I want what you took from me six years ago, Dominic Ashford. I want you to suffer the way I suffered. I want you to lose everything precious."
"I don't understand—"
"Of course you don't! You destroy people's lives and forget about them the next day!" The figure was shaking with rage. "Six years ago, you destroyed Chen Technologies. You crushed Eleanor Chen's company, stole her life's work, and left her family in ruins. Remember?"
I did remember. The acquisition had been hostile, ruthless. But it was business. Just business.
"That was a legal acquisition—"
"You destroyed my sister!" The figure pulled back the hood.
I stared in shock.
It was a woman in her early forties. Elegant features twisted with hatred. She looked familiar somehow, but I couldn't place her.
"I'm Rebecca Stone," she spat. "Eleanor Chen's younger sister. And you ruined my family."
Sophia gasped behind me. "Aunt Rebecca? But I thought you were—"
"Dead? That's what Eleanor told everyone after the acquisition. Easier than admitting her sister committed suicide because you bankrupted the company I'd invested my entire life savings into." Rebecca's voice broke. "I lost everything. My money. My house. My husband left me. My children won't speak to me. All because Dominic Ashford wanted another trophy company for his empire."
My stomach twisted. I hadn't known. I never investigated what happened to the shareholders after acquisitions. It was just business. Numbers on paper.
"I'm sorry," I said, and meant it. "I didn't know—"
"Sorry?" Rebecca laughed hysterically. "You're sorry? Well, now you're going to understand what it feels like! I've spent six years planning this. Six years watching. Waiting."
"You're the one who drugged us," Sophia whispered. "You worked with Victoria—"
"Victoria was a useful idiot. She wanted you gone so she could have Dominic. I wanted you pregnant and disgraced so I could use your child as a weapon later." Rebecca smiled coldly. "And it worked perfectly. You ran away. Had the baby. Built a new life. And then I contacted you three months ago with my plan."
"The emails," Sophia said. "The threats. The countdown. That was all you."
"Everything was me! I forced you to come back. I made you develop technology to destroy Dominic's company. I manipulated Adrian into proposing so you'd have protection and resources. And now—" Rebecca pulled out a gun. "—now I'm going to finish what I started."
I moved to shield Sophia completely. "You wanted revenge on me. Fine. Take it. But leave Sophia and Ethan out of this."
"Leave them out?" Rebecca's eyes were wild. "They're the whole point! I'm going to kill Sophia right in front of you. Then I'm going to make sure the world knows Ethan is your son. The press will destroy you. The custody battle will ruin your reputation. And you'll spend the rest of your life knowing you caused your son's mother's death. Just like you caused my sister's death."
"Your sister is alive!" I said desperately. "Eleanor Chen is alive and being investigated for fraud. She didn't—"
"Liar!" Rebecca aimed the gun at Sophia. "Eleanor died two years ago from cancer. Alone. Broke. Destroyed by what you did to her. And now—"
A shot rang out.
But not from Rebecca's gun.
Rebecca crumpled to the ground, screaming, her gun flying away. Blood bloomed on her shoulder.
Maya stepped out from behind a tree, holding a pistol with shaking hands. "Nobody threatens my best friend. Nobody."
Police sirens wailed in the distance. Marcus must have ignored my orders and called them anyway.
Rebecca writhed on the ground, crying. "You ruined everything! Everything!"
I turned to Sophia, who was trembling violently. "Are you okay?"
She nodded, tears streaming down her face. "I thought—I thought she was going to—"
I pulled her into my arms before I could stop myself. She stiffened at first, then collapsed against me, sobbing.
"It's over," I whispered. "You're safe. Ethan's safe. It's over."
Police cars surrounded us. Officers arrested Rebecca, who was screaming about revenge and justice and Eleanor. Paramedics checked Sophia for shock. Marcus appeared with Ethan's school security detail, confirming our son was safe.
And through it all, Sophia stayed in my arms, letting me hold her for the first time in six years.
"I need to see Ethan," she finally said. "I need to hold my son."
"Our son," I corrected gently. "And yes. Let's go get him."
She looked up at me with red, swollen eyes. "Why did you come? After everything I said to you on the phone, after I hung up, why did you still come?"
"Because he's my son," I said simply. "And you're—" I stopped, not sure how to finish that sentence.
You're the woman I destroyed. The woman I wronged. The woman who haunts my dreams.
"I'm what?" Sophia asked.
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed. Another message. My blood turned cold as I read it:
"You think it's over? Rebecca was just the beginning. You both destroyed my family—Dominic with his business deals, Sophia by being the golden child Eleanor's husband loved more than his real daughters. Victoria and I have been planning this together for six years. Rebecca was Phase One. Phase Two starts now. Check your email. Both of you. And say goodbye to Ethan."
I looked at Sophia's phone. She'd gotten the same message.
We both opened our emails simultaneously.
Inside was a live video feed.
Of Ethan.
In a room we didn't recognize.
Alone.
Crying.
And a timer counting down from thirty minutes.
The message below read: "The REAL game begins now. Find him before time runs out, or your son dies. Let's see if you're both as smart as everyone says. Clue 1: Where the Chen family legacy began and ended. Tick tock."
Sophia's scream shattered the air. "ETHAN!"