Chapter 24 RISING STAKES
POV: Selena
My phone vibrated violently against the table, rattling the empty coffee cup beside it, and every muscle in my body locked at once.
For half a second, I just stared at it.
I already knew this was not going to be good news.
The room was tense in a way that felt alive, like it was waiting for something to break. Cameron stood near the window, refreshing his news feed over and over. Adrian was pacing, his movements sharp and restless, like a man who had run out of options but refused to accept it.
I picked up the phone.
“Marcus?” I said.
His voice came through fast and low. “We have a problem.”
My stomach dropped. “Define problem.”
“The post went viral faster than we expected,” he said. “Thornton’s people are moving. Quietly. Aggressively.”
Adrian stopped pacing and looked at me.
“What kind of moving?” I asked.
“The kind that makes witnesses disappear,” Marcus replied. “And the kind that shuts doors before you even know they were open.”
I swallowed hard. “So Jessica wasn’t a one time thing.”
“No,” Marcus said. “She was a test run.”
I felt sick.
I ended the call and looked up at Adrian and Cameron. “Thornton is locking this down. He’s protected.”
“How protected?” Cameron asked.
“Deep,” I said. “Marcus thinks federal level.”
Adrian cursed under his breath. “Of course he is.”
The weight of it pressed down on my chest. The evidence we had was real, but it was not enough. Documents could be questioned. Posts could be dismissed as conspiracy. Jessica was gone. No body. No witness.
“They’ll say she ran,” Cameron said grimly. “Or that she was unstable.”
“And they’ll say the same about me,” I said quietly.
Adrian turned toward me sharply. “No.”
I met his gaze. “They already are. Mysterious intern. Disappearing heir. It writes itself.”
He crossed the room in three long strides and stopped in front of me. “Listen to me. You are not disappearing. I will not let that happen.”
His voice was firm, controlled, but I could hear something else underneath it. Fear.
“I believe you,” I said. “But belief doesn’t stop men like Thornton.”
Cameron cleared his throat. “What stops him is testimony. Living, breathing testimony.”
Adrian nodded slowly. “Witnesses.”
“Or something so irrefutable it detonates everything,” Cameron added.
Silence settled over the room again.
I thought of Jessica’s words.
Trust no one.
“I don’t think we can rely on systems,” I said. “If he really has people everywhere, then courts, police, agencies. They’re compromised.”
Adrian leaned against the table. “So we go outside the system.”
“That’s dangerous,” Cameron said.
“Yes,” Adrian replied. “But safer than pretending the system will save us.”
I hugged my arms around myself. “We need someone who worked for him. Someone alive.”
The words barely left my mouth before Adrian’s phone rang.
He looked at the screen and frowned. “Marcus.”
He answered it on speaker.
“What?” Adrian said.
Marcus did not waste time. “I just got a call from someone using an untraceable line.”
Cameron stiffened. “Who?”
“She wouldn’t give her full details over the phone,” Marcus said. “But her name is Sarah Chen.”
My heart skipped. “Thornton’s assistant?”
“Yes,” Marcus confirmed. “Former assistant. She left suddenly six months ago. No public reason.”
Adrian straightened. “What does she want?”
“She says she has evidence,” Marcus replied. “Financial records. Communications. Proof that Thornton ordered the document forgeries.”
My pulse thundered in my ears.
“And?” I asked.
Marcus hesitated.
“And she will only meet with Selena.”
The room went completely still.
“Alone,” Marcus added quietly.
Adrian exploded. “Absolutely not.”
“I knew you’d say that,” Marcus replied. “She anticipated it. She says if anyone else shows up, she disappears.”
Cameron swore softly. “This could be a trap.”
“It could also be our only real witness,” Marcus said. “She’s terrified. I can hear it in her voice.”
Adrian ran a hand through his hair. “This is insane.”
My heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might break through my ribs.
“When?” I asked.
Marcus exhaled. “She wants to meet tomorrow night.”
“Where?” I pressed.
“She hasn’t said yet,” Marcus replied. “She says she’ll send the location directly to Selena’s phone.”
Adrian turned to me. “No. Absolutely not.”
I stood up slowly. “If she only trusts me, then I’m the one who has to go.”
“This is exactly how people vanish,” Adrian said sharply.
“I know,” I replied. “That’s why she trusts me.”
Cameron looked between us. “She’s right. Thornton’s pattern is intimidation. Sarah broke away. She’s scared of everyone connected to him.”
Adrian shook his head. “That doesn’t mean Selena walks into a possible ambush.”
“I won’t be alone,” I said.
He met my eyes. “She demanded you be.”
I took a breath. “She demanded no one else be visible.”
Silence fell again.
Adrian’s jaw tightened. “I don’t like this.”
“I don’t either,” I said. “But Jessica didn’t have this chance.”
The words hung heavy between us.
Adrian looked away, then back at me. “If anything happens to you…”
“I know,” I said softly. “But if we do nothing, this ends the same way anyway.”
Cameron nodded slowly. “Thornton’s protection only works if he keeps things in the shadows. A witness drags him into the light.”
Adrian clenched his fists. “I won’t lose you.”
I stepped closer. “You won’t.”
He searched my face, like he was trying to memorize it. “Promise me you won’t take risks you don’t have to.”
“I promise I won’t be reckless,” I said honestly. “But I can’t promise I won’t be brave.”
He let out a shaky breath. “That’s not comforting.”
I managed a small smile. “It’s honest.”
Marcus spoke again through the phone. “Selena, there’s something else.”
My chest tightened. “What?”
“She asked specifically for you because she knows who you are.”
I froze. “What do you mean?”
“She knows you turned down the money,” Marcus said. “She knows you didn’t disappear.”
A chill slid down my spine.
“She’s been watching,” Cameron said quietly.
“Yes,” Marcus replied. “And she thinks you’re the only one Thornton underestimated twice.”
Adrian closed his eyes briefly.
“Send me whatever she sends,” I said.
“Selena,” Adrian warned.
“I won’t go blind,” I said. “We’ll plan this.”
Marcus sighed. “I’ll stay on standby. But she was very clear. One wrong move, and she vanishes.”
The call ended.
The silence afterward felt heavier than before.
I sank back into my chair, my legs suddenly weak.
Adrian knelt in front of me so we were eye level. “Listen to me. I don’t care what she demands. I will have eyes on you.”
“I know,” I said. “Just… not where she can see them.”
His voice dropped. “This is not just about the case anymore.”
I nodded. “I know.”
He hesitated, then said quietly, “This is about you.”
Something in my chest tightened painfully.
Cameron cleared his throat. “We should assume Thornton already knows Sarah is unstable.”
“Unstable,” I echoed bitterly.
“That’s the word they always use,” Cameron said. “It discredits women. Especially smart ones.”
I thought of Jessica again. Of Sarah. Of myself.
“They keep betting we’ll stay quiet,” I said. “They keep betting we’ll choose safety over truth.”
Adrian stood. “They made the wrong bet.”
I looked at my phone, half expecting it to light up again.
My stomach twisted with dread and determination in equal measure.
“If Sarah is real,” I said, “this changes everything.”
“And if she’s bait?” Cameron asked.
“Then we prove them wrong again,” I replied.
Adrian’s phone buzzed.
He glanced at it, then handed it to me.
A new message had come in.
Unknown Number.
Coordinates.
A time.
And one sentence beneath it.
Come alone. Or don’t come at all.
My hands went cold.
I looked up at Adrian.
“This is it,” I said.
He nodded once, his face hard with resolve. “Then we prepare.”
I stared at the screen, my reflection faint against the glass.
Jessica had written her warning too late.
Sarah was still alive.
And now, so was I.
But the distance between those two truths felt terrifyingly small.