Tania stumbled into her room, The confrontation with Fabian satisfied her heart, knowing fully well Fabian would not joke about his daughter’s safety, she knew she had him trapped, and locked in the palm of her hands. She could still see Fabian’s defeated face, and Crystal’s did a good job in tricking him. Lying down on the bed exhausted and totally drained, she hoped to get some sleep but her dreams were haunted by shadows of the past. Tania’s grip on the situation was slipping, and she knew it.
Meanwhile, downstairs, Grace sat by the fireplace, staring into the flickering flames. The crackling sound of burning wood echoed through the quiet room, but it did little to ease the growing ache in her heart. She hadn’t seen Leo or Liam at school for weeks, and the loneliness gnawed at her. She didn’t understand why her mother was being so cold, so distant. What had she done to deserve this?
Tears threatened to spill, but Grace held them back, determined to stay strong. She missed her dad too. Ethan hadn’t been home much lately, always stuck at the office. Where is everyone? she wondered. It felt like her family was falling apart, and no one seemed to care.
At Ethan’s office, the atmosphere was tense. He leaned back in his chair, his mind heavy with thoughts of Ella, Tania, and the chaos that had swallowed his life. Victor entered, his expression grim.
“Ethan,” Victor began, taking a seat across from him. “I found something. I looked into Ella’s disappearance.”
Ethan’s heart quickened. “What did you find?”
Victor hesitated, unsure of how to break the news. “Tania. She’s behind it all. She hired Crystal and Fabian to kill Ella. That’s why Ella went into hiding.”
The words hit Ethan like a punch to the gut. He felt the blood drain from his face. “Tania… tried to kill Ella?” He had suspected Tania of a lot of things, but this? His mind raced back to the pier, to the moment Fabian had emerged from the shadows, gun in hand.
“Fabian mentioned something about it,” Ethan murmured, mostly to himself. “He was angry he blamed himself and was trying to Ella back. I thought he was just… deranged, but now…”
Victor nodded. “Fabian was confessing, but he didn’t act alone. Tania orchestrated the whole thing. She’s been playing both of you.”
Ethan slammed his fist on the desk, the realization burning through him. “I was such a fool. I thought I had lost Ella because she died. I didn’t see it. Tania made Ella believe I cheated, she manipulated everything.”
Victor’s face softened. “It’s not your fault, Ethan. She’s dangerous. Now you know the truth. The question is what are you going to do about it?”
Ethan’s eyes darkened with resolve. “I need to make things right. I need to protect my family. And I need to bring Tania down before she hurts anyone else.”