Rain fell throughout the night.
That morning, the city looked grayer than usual. But what weighed heavier was not the sky it was the atmosphere in the dining room of Ethan's apartment.
A laptop lay open. The screen was filled with data.
The prepaid number that had called Sophia the night before had been traced. The result was nothing. Bought with cash. Used once. Switched off.
"Professional," Ethan murmured softly.
Sophia sat across from him, both hands wrapped around a cup of cold tea. "So this isn't some random person."
"No," Ethan replied. "And this isn't a petty game either."
He closed the laptop slowly.
"My father may be cruel," he continued, "but he never worked with methods like this. He's always upfront when he attacks."
"What does that mean?"
"It means there's another party that wants us to suspect each other."
Sophia nodded slowly. But her mind remained restless.
The words from the phone call echoed again.
Don't trust anyone from the Sterling family.
It wasn't a threat.
It was a warning.
And warnings usually come from someone who knows something.
"Have you ever heard of any particular organization?" Sophia asked suddenly.
Ethan looked up. "An organization?"
"Last night, your father said you were standing in the middle of something bigger a network."
Ethan fell silent.
He didn't like that part.
Because deep in his mind, there were faint memories. Conversations from his childhood that he hadn't understood at the time. His father had mentioned a "committee," an "alliance," "old agreements."
Things that were always discussed behind closed doors.
"I was never directly involved," Ethan said finally. "But I know there's a circle of businesspeople and politicians who protect each other."
"Like a cartel?"
"More subtle. More dangerous."
Sophia swallowed.
"And my mother?"
Ethan let out a long breath. "Your mother's company held a revolutionary medical technology patent back then. Many wanted to get their hands on it."
"Including your family?"
The question hung sharply in the air.
Ethan didn't answer right away.
"Ardent did work with them for a time," he said softly. "But not to take over."
"Are you sure?"
He looked straight at Sophia. "If there's anything dirty going on, I'll find it."
Silence fell.
But before they could continue their conversation, Ethan's phone buzzed.
A message from the CFO.
We have a new problem.
At the Ardent office, the atmosphere was more suffocating than it had been two days ago.
Stocks had stabilized slightly that morning, but new news had broken.
"Regulators Launch Formal Investigation into Allegations of Market Manipulation."
Ironically.
The ones being attacked were now accused of manipulating the market.
Ethan entered the conference room with quick steps.
"What are the details?"
The head of legal stood up. "Someone sent an anonymous report to the regulators. Accusing us of deliberately conducting share buybacks to illegally control prices."
"That isn't illegal," Ethan shot back.
"No if done transparently. But the report includes internal documents."
Ethan froze.
"What documents?"
The CFO displayed a file on the screen.
It was an internal memo circulated only among the core executive circle about share defense strategy.
"Who leaked this?" Ethan's voice turned cold.
Everyone fell silent.
This was no longer an external attack.
This was infiltration.
"Run an audit of server access immediately," Ethan ordered. "Check every login, every file transfer."
"Already done," replied the head of IT, who had just entered. "There was unknown access two nights ago. Using credentials from a senior manager in the investment division."
"Who?"
"Daniel Hart."
Ethan frowned.
Daniel had worked there for seven years. Loyal. Never had any issues.
"Call him in."
Daniel entered the conference room with a confused look on his face.
"What's going on?"
Ethan stared at him sharply. "Your account was used to access confidential memos."
Daniel paled. "That's impossible. I never."
"The login happened at 2:13 a.m."
"I was asleep by ten."
"Who has access to your devices?"
Daniel shook his head quickly. "No one."
The room was quiet.
Ethan noticed sweat on the man's temples.
"Daniel," he said softly, "if you're being pressured, tell us now."
"What do you mean?"
"Has anyone contacted you? Offered you money? Threatened you?"
Daniel looked hurt. "No, sir. I swear."
Ethan stared at him for a few more seconds.
His instinct told him the man wasn't the mastermind.
Too flustered.
Too naive.
"For now, you're suspended," Ethan said finally. "Until we find out the truth."
Daniel looked like he wanted to protest, but eventually nodded weakly.
When the door closed, the CFO said softly, "This runs deeper."
Ethan nodded.
Someone had planted seeds inside the company.
And they'd done it cleanly.
That afternoon, Sophia received an anonymous email.
The subject line was just one word: Truth.
Her heart beat faster.
She opened it.
One attachment.
An old file. A scanned copy of a contract between her mother's company and an entity called the Helix Consortium.
The name was unfamiliar.
But at the bottom of the document, there were witness signatures.
Marcus Sterling.
And one other name.
One that made Sophia's breath catch.
Victor Sterling.
Ethan's father.
She stared at the screen without blinking.
The contract had been signed three months before her mother's death.
Sophia immediately called Ethan.
"You need to see this."
That night, they sat side by side on the sofa, laptop in their laps.
Ethan read the document with a clenched jaw.
"Helix Consortium…" he murmured. "I've heard that name before."
"An organization?"
"Possibly."
Sophia pointed to the signature section. "Why is your father's name here?"
Ethan didn't answer right away.
"This isn't a regular transaction," he said softly. "It's a conditional patent transfer agreement."
"What does that mean?"
"It means if your mother's company failed to meet certain clauses, the patent would automatically change hands."
Sophia felt her chest tighten.
"Three months later, my mother died," she whispered.
Ethan closed the laptop slowly.
"This could mean many things," he said carefully.
"Or just one thing."
Ethan looked at her. "Don't jump to conclusions."
"You saw the signatures yourself."
"Yes. But that doesn't mean my father killed your mother."
Sophia stood up and walked a few steps away.
"Then what does it mean?"
Ethan got up and moved closer.
"It means there's a bigger game at play. The Helix Consortium is probably the real party involved. My father may just be one of its members."
"Or its leader."
Ethan fell silent.
Because he couldn't entirely dismiss that possibility.
"We need to find out who Helix really is," he said finally.
Sophia looked at him with eyes that were beginning to blur.
"If the truth hurts in the end, will you still stand by my side?"
The question was heavier than any stock chart.
Ethan took both her hands in his.
"I don't choose family because of blood," he said softly. "I choose based on values."
Silence.
"And if it turns out my family is guilty, I won't look away."
Sophia stared at him for a long time.
For the first time since all this began, there was a different kind of fear.
Not fear of Marcus.
Not fear of the market.
But fear of the possibility that their love was built on ruins created by their respective families.
Outside, the rain began to fall again.
But this time, it wasn't just water that was falling.
Trust was starting to crack.
And somewhere out of their sight, someone opened the same file, smiled faintly, then sent a short message:
The next phase has begun.
The game isn't over yet.
It has just entered a more dangerous.