Chapter 273

Chapter 273

Outside, Vance was about to carry in a tray of tea when he heard the shouting from inside. He didn't waste a second — he put everything down and rushed out, taking the steps two at a time as he ran into the yard and out the gate.

He got outside just in time to see nothing but an empty entrance. When he turned, he caught only a brief flash of red taillights from a black sedan before it sped off and disappeared down the road.

Vance stood there frozen, staring at the empty street. The color drained from his face. Something had gone very wrong.

He hurried back inside and jogged over to Vaughn, his expression tight with worry.

"Mr. Vaughn Edwards, I couldn't catch him. Mr. Holden Edwards was already gone by the time I got out — he was driving too fast."

The words hit Vaughn like a punch. He shot to his feet, chest heaving, the panic written all over his weathered face.

Then he thought about where Holden was going, and panic gave way to fury.

He'd lost his mind. They'd both lost their minds.

In the state Holden was in — practically unhinged — he was going to do something he couldn't take back. If it stayed private, maybe it could be managed. But if he caused a scene in public, hurt someone, that would be a mistake with no coming back from it.

It wouldn't just mean a failed business deal. Holden would drag the entire Edwards family down with him, into a hole they'd never climb out of.

All Vaughn could think about was the family empire built over decades, the reputation earned across generations — he would not let it be destroyed by one man's rage.

He swallowed the fire in his chest and made the call without hesitation.

"Get every man we have out there right now. Security, drivers, everyone. Search the whole city for Holden."

"Yes, sir."

Vance's expression went hard. If this really went sideways, it wasn't going to be a small thing.

As Vance was getting his people together to move out, Vaughn's voice came from behind him one more time.

"Remember — do whatever it takes. Stop him before he does something stupid. We cannot let him blow up the Edwards family name over this."

Vance gave a firm nod.

"Don't worry. I'll find Mr. Holden Edwards as fast as I can."

On Vaughn's orders, the Edwards family mobilized all at once. Car after car pulled out and scattered in every direction at full speed.

Out on the main road connecting the airport to the city, traffic was moving smoothly. Holden was moving with it, keeping a steady pace. He still had just enough sense left not to storm the airport.

The place was covered in cameras, and the security was no joke. If anything happened in there, he'd never get out.

He'd already mapped his route. He looped around ahead of time and positioned himself at the one ramp Andrew would have to take coming back into the city, and waited.

Before long, a pair of headlights cut through the dark from down the road, approaching fast and steady. Holden's eyes narrowed. He recognized the car immediately. It was Andrew's.

He watched it fly down the ramp and merge onto the main road. Holden started his engine and pulled out after it, keeping his distance, no rush.

He hung back deliberately, tucked at the tail end of traffic, giving nothing away — like a predator blending into the dark, locked onto its target, moving without a sound.

They drove into the heart of the city, where the streets were alive with lights and traffic, nothing like the quiet outskirts they'd just left behind.

The light ahead turned red. Andrew eased onto the brakes and rolled to a smooth stop.

The gap between the two cars closed. Through the rows of vehicles and the wash of streetlights, Holden's gaze fixed hard on the car ahead.

The silhouette in the driver's seat was clear. Andrew was behind the wheel himself.

Holden shifted his focus slightly. Through the faintly translucent rear window, he could just make out two figures moving softly in the back seat.

One was slight and slender — had to be Olivia. But who was that smaller shape sitting next to her?

His brow pulled together. His mind started churning through possibilities.

He'd known Andrew was at the airport picking someone up, but he'd never found out who.

Andrew driving. Olivia in the back seat. And some small, unidentified figure beside her.

Since when did Andrew have a kid?

If not that — was it someone from the Anderson family?

Or had the two of them had a child together all along?

Holden's thoughts were spiraling, one after another crashing in, tangled up with everything his father had thrown at him before he left.

His life had come to this. He was about to lose everything — and on top of that, his own family was ready to cut him loose.

And Andrew? Andrew had it all. Career on top, love life on top.

Why? Why did he have to struggle like this while Andrew — the one who'd caused all of it — got to live so well?

Sitting in his car, Holden felt the last flicker of reason in his eyes go dark, swallowed whole by something ugly.

He stared at those two figures leaning warmly against each other in the back seat ahead of him. Slowly, the corner of his mouth curled into something cold and twisted.

"Andrew..."

"You can all go to hell."

The light turned green. The car ahead started moving.

Holden slammed the accelerator to the floor. His car lunged forward, tearing out of the lane and slamming up against Andrew's rear bumper.

The shriek of the engine ripped through the quiet of the street.

Andrew's whole body went taut. Years behind the wheel had sharpened his instincts, and he felt it instantly — something was wrong.

The car behind him was coming in hard and deliberate.

Then Holden cranked the wheel. His car swung sideways and shoved aggressively into Andrew's lane, closing the gap in an instant.

The two cars were nearly touching. One more second and they'd collide.

Inside the car, the sudden violent jolt made Zara cry out from the back seat, her body thrown off balance.

Olivia's expression shifted. In one motion she pulled Zara into her arms, murmuring softly to calm her while her eyes moved quietly to the rearview mirror.

"It's okay. Uncle and Aunt Olivia are right here. Zara's safe."

But even as she said it, something heavy settled in Olivia's eyes.

Ahead was a solid stream of traffic. To the right, a guardrail. In a space this tight, a collision could be catastrophic.

Andrew's eyes went cold. His gaze in the mirror was perfectly steady.

The two people in this car were worth his life. He could not afford to panic.

Strangely, the more dangerous it got, the calmer he became. His hands stayed shockingly controlled, threading through Holden's attacks with precise, measured movements.

"Hold on."

Andrew's voice was low and even. Somehow, in all of this, Olivia found it steadying.

But Holden behind them was completely gone. One hit wasn't enough — he was already accelerating for another run, all-in, like a man who didn't care if he made it out alive.

Through the window, Holden stared at the faint shapes inside the car ahead, his eyes bloodshot and wild.

Again and again, Andrew stayed composed, controlling his speed, absorbing every attempt and slipping out of every collision that could have ended them.