I sit at the table, surrounded by papers, files, and photographs, each one more damning than the last. My head throbs from hours of combing through old records and connections, but the puzzle is still incomplete.
There’s someone pulling the strings, someone I can’t see yet-but I know they’ve been there all along. Ethan, Xavier, even my uncle… they were all pieces on a board controlled by an invisible hand.
And now that hand is closing in on me.
The burner phone buzzes on the table, breaking the suffocating silence. I grab it, half-expecting another cryptic message from Gabriel West. Instead, it’s Isabella.
“Find anything?” she asks, her voice hushed.
“Not enough,” I say, glancing over the mess on the table. “There’s someone we missed. Someone bigger. They’ve been working in the shadows this whole time.”
Isabella exhales sharply. “Gabriel, maybe? He’s been behind a lot.”
I shake my head, though she can’t see me. “It’s not just him. This is bigger than Gabriel. I think he’s a pawn too-or at least, he was.”
Her silence on the other end feels heavy. “If Gabriel’s a pawn, Alyssa… what the hell are we dealing with?”
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”
I end the call, tossing the phone onto the table, and run a hand through my hair, frustration bubbling beneath my skin. Every answer leads to more questions, every clue to another dead end.
Then I see it. A photograph, buried beneath old contracts and financial records.
My breath catches in my throat as I pick it up. A man, standing beside my father.
The photo is old, the edges frayed and yellowing, but the two figures in the image are unmistakable. My father, younger but still carrying the weight of power on his shoulders.
And next to him, a man I don’t recognize. He’s smiling-broad, confident, with an arm slung casually over my father’s shoulder.
They look like old friends. But something about the way my father stands-rigid, uneasy-tells me otherwise.
Who is this man? And why was he so close to my father before his death?
I flip the photo over, hoping for a name, a date, anything. There’s nothing. Just blank, brittle paper. But this photograph feels like a key-a piece of the puzzle I didn’t even know I was missing.
If this man was in my father’s life before he was killed, then he might have been pulling strings even back then. Which means he’s been watching me, Ethan, and Xavier for years.
I grab my laptop and start searching for anything I can find about the photograph. It’s not much to go on-just two faces frozen in time-but I’m desperate. Every name I type feels like a shot in the dark.
Hours pass, the night stretching on endlessly. I dig deeper, into old archives, business records, even my father’s personal files. And then I find it-a single mention buried deep in a folder labeled ‘Personal Contacts.’
Nolan Black.
The name sends a shiver down my spine. I’ve never heard of him before, but the moment I see it, something clicks. This is the man in the photo.
Nolan Black. An alias, maybe? It has to be-because there’s nothing else. No records, no addresses, no family connections.
Just his name, sitting like a ghost in the middle of my father’s files. A ghost with a dangerous amount of power.
The thought makes my skin crawl. This man-whoever he is-was close enough to my father to pose for photographs with him.
Close enough to leave his name buried in private files. And now he’s resurfacing, weaving through the lives of Xavier, Ethan, and me like a puppet master.
What does he want? Why now?
The longer I stare at the photo, the clearer one thing becomes: This man didn’t just know my father. He was involved in his death.
My heart races as paranoia settles deep in my bones. How long has he been watching me? Was he behind the hitmen? Was he the mole in my uncle’s organization?
Suddenly, it feels like the walls are closing in. Everyone I’ve trusted-Ethan, Xavier, my uncle, even Isabella-could be part of Nolan’s plan.
A message flashes on my phone screen. A familiar number. Ethan.
Ethan: “Xavier’s getting reckless. I can take him down, but I need your help. Are you in?”
My fingers hover over the keypad, my mind spinning. Ethan doesn’t know about Nolan. Should I tell him? Can I even trust him anymore?
I start to type back but hesitate. Then I delete the message entirely.
Instead, I scroll back through old messages from Ethan, Xavier, even my uncle. There’s something I’ve missed. There has to be.
And then I see it. A text from months ago, before things spiraled out of control. A message from an unknown number:
“You’re in deeper than you think. Watch your back.”
At the time, I dismissed it as a prank. But now, with everything I’ve uncovered, I realize the truth. The message wasn’t a warning-it was a threat.
I clutch the photograph tighter, my mind racing. If Nolan has been pulling the strings all along, then he’s not just after Ethan or Xavier. He’s after me.
And if I don’t move fast, I’ll be the next one to fall.
The burner phone buzzes again, startling me. This time, it’s a video message. I open it with trembling hands, dreading what I’ll see.
The screen flickers to life, revealing a dimly lit room. A man steps into the frame, his face hidden in shadow-but I recognize the voice.
“Alyssa,” he says smoothly. It’s Nolan Black.
“We have unfinished business, you and I.”
The video ends abruptly, leaving me staring at the blank screen. My heart pounds in my chest, each beat like a drum signaling the end of the game. Nolan Black is alive-and he’s coming for me.
And the worst part? I still don’t know what he wants.