That morning, the market was not yet open, but the war had already begun.
Ethan had been sitting in his office since five o'clock. His suit was still neatly draped over the chair, the coffee on his desk cold and untouched. On his laptop screen, overnight transaction reports lay open in layers. Names of shell companies, cross-border fund flows, movements too precise to be called coincidence.
Marcus was not just attacking.
He was testing.
Measuring how far Ethan could hold on.
The door was knocked gently.
"Come in."
The CFO stepped inside, his face tighter than the day before. "There's a development."
Ethan did not like the tone.
"Speak."
"Our two largest institutional investors sold off nearly all their holdings before the market opened."
"What percentage?"
"Eight point two."
It was a devastating blow.
If the pressure continued today, prices could plummet past the psychological threshold that had nearly been touched yesterday. Once that point was breached, panic would spread like wildfire.
"Prepare funds for additional buybacks," Ethan said quickly.
The CFO fell silent. "That means we'll have to sell some non-strategic assets."
"Sell them."
"Ethan, those are long-term reserves."
"If we don't survive today, there is no such thing as long-term."
The decision was made. Again.
Ethan knew every step felt like cutting into his own flesh. But he had no choice.
At her apartment, Sophia stood staring at her phone screen, breathing heavily. Business social media groups were buzzing with talk of Ardent Holdings. Speculation ran wild. Some claimed report manipulation. Others linked it to old transactions now under renewed investigation.
Her mother's name was mentioned too.
Her hands trembled.
She did not care about gossip over stocks.
But seeing her mother's name tossed around in public like cheap speculation material was painful.
Her phone rang.
The name that appeared made her chest tighten.
Marcus.
She hesitated for a split second, then answered.
"What is it?"
Marcus's voice was calm as always. "You've seen this morning's news."
"If this is your way of forcing me back to your side, you are very wrong."
Marcus did not reply immediately. "I never forced you. I'm only showing you reality."
"Reality that you can destroy anyone?"
"Reality that the business world is not built on feelings."
Sophia let out a small, bitter laugh. "And what about my mother's death? Was that also part of your business reality?"
Silence.
For the first time, Marcus did not respond right away.
"I did not kill your mother," he said at last, quiet but firm.
"Then who did?"
"That's what you should be asking."
The answer was like fog. Unclear. Unrelieving.
"But you're using her death now," Sophia pressed. "You're turning it into a tool."
"I'm opening a door that has been closed all this time," Marcus replied. "If it hurts, perhaps it's because some things were meant to stay hidden."
Sophia closed her eyes.
"Stop," she whispered. "End this attack."
"Tell Ethan to come see me," Marcus said flatly. "We'll talk as family."
"Family?" Sophia's voice rose. "Family does not destroy each other."
Marcus let out a slow breath. "Sometimes, to save something, you have to destroy something else."
The call ended.
Sophia stood still for a long time.
She knew what it meant.
Marcus wanted Ethan to surrender.
And if Ethan surrendered, perhaps the attack would stop.
But at what cost?
9:00 AM.
The market opened.
In the first ten minutes, Ardent's shares fell 7%.
Then 10%.
Ethan stood in the company's internal trading room, monitoring every movement.
"Execute buybacks now," he ordered.
The team moved quickly.
Reserve funds were channeled in.
Prices stabilized slightly.
But at 10:30 AM, another news item broke.
"Central Bank Conducts Review of Ardent Holdings' Credit Exposure."
It was not a verdict.
But it was enough to trigger fear.
Shares fell again.
The CFO approached. "We can't hold this off all day."
Ethan stared at the screen without blinking. "We don't need all day. We just need to hold on until closing."
"And tomorrow?"
Ethan did not answer.
Because he knew tomorrow could be worse.
That afternoon, Sophia finally decided to come to Ethan's office.
She did not notify him in advance.
She simply walked in with quick steps, past the receptionist who knew her.
When Ethan's office door opened, the man turned to her with a surprised look.
"Sophia?"
"We need to talk."
Ethan gestured for his staff to leave.
The room fell silent.
"Your father wants you to come see him," Sophia said without preamble.
Ethan furrowed his brow. "He contacted you?"
"Earlier this morning."
"What else did he say?"
Sophia stared straight at him. "That all of this can stop."
Ethan let out a short, humorless laugh. "Of course it can. If I surrender."
"Will you do it?"
The question hung in the air.
Ethan walked over to the window, staring at the city moving below, indifferent to the war raging above it.
"If I go to him, it won't be negotiation," he said quietly. "It will be a declaration that he's won."
"And if you don't go?" Sophia's voice softened. "How many people will lose their jobs? How many families will be affected?"
The words hit harder than any red-line graph.
Ethan turned to her.
"Are you asking me to surrender?"
"I'm asking you to consider it."
A long silence.
Sophia stepped closer. "This isn't just about your pride. It's about thousands of people who know nothing of your family's war."
Ethan clenched his fists.
He knew she was right.
He had always thought of himself as fighting for justice, to prove he was different from his father.
Yet in the middle of this battle, there was collateral damage.
"I don't want to become like him," he said softly.
"Then don't," Sophia replied.
A simple answer.
But heavy.
2:00 PM, shares fell 18%.
3:15 PM, they neared 22%.
The psychological threshold was finally breached.
The trading room felt like an ICU.
Ethan closed his eyes for a moment.
Then opened them again with a resolve already formed.
"Contact my father," he said to his assistant.
Sophia fell silent.
A few minutes later, the video call connected.
Marcus's face appeared on the screen, calm as always.
"Ethan."
"I'll come," Ethan said directly. "But this is not surrender."
Marcus smiled faintly. "We'll see about that."
The call ended.
Sophia looked at Ethan with a mix of relief and fear.
"When?"
"Now."
He picked up his suit.
His steps were firm, but inside his chest, a storm raged.
He knew this meeting could change everything.
It could end the war.
Or make it worse.
As the door was nearly closed behind him, Sophia called out softly, "Ethan."
He stopped.
"Don't make a decision just to save me," she said. "If you go, go as yourself."
Ethan looked at her.
"I'm going to save what can still be saved," he replied.
Then he left.
Outside the building, dark clouds hung low.
As if a sign that the day was not yet over.
And between father and son, between ambition and conscience, between love and pride.
Someone would have to bleed first.
And Ethan had just stepped toward the blade.