The call

Ethan sat in his dimly lit office, the dull glow of his laptop screen casting shadows across the cluttered desk. He scrolled through Harper’s latest intel on Black Thorn, his mind racing as he tried to piece together the puzzle. Every thread seemed to lead back to Kai Lennox, but none of it told him what he needed to know: why Kai was so important to the syndicate.

His phone buzzed, the sound startling in the silence. Ethan picked it up, his brow furrowing at the caller ID.

Kai Lennox.

For a moment, he just stared at the screen, his instinct screaming caution. The last time he’d seen Kai, the man had practically thrown him out of the alley, shutting down any attempt to get through to him.

So why was he calling now?

Ethan answered, his voice calm but wary. “Kai?”

There was a long pause on the other end, the sound of shallow breathing filling the line.

“It’s me,” Kai said finally, his voice tight and edged with something Ethan hadn’t heard from him before: vulnerability.

Ethan straightened in his chair, his heart quickening. “What’s going on?”

“I need to talk to you,” Kai said, his words rushed and uneven. “Somewhere private. Somewhere… safe.”

The request was unexpected, and Ethan didn’t miss the fear laced through Kai’s tone. He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Are you in danger?”

Another pause, longer this time. “I might be,” Kai admitted. “But it’s not just about me. There are things you don’t understand, and if I don’t—if I don’t deal with them, people are going to get hurt.”

Ethan’s mind raced, his instincts kicking into high gear. This was the opening he’d been waiting for, the crack in Kai’s walls.

“Tell me where to meet you,” Ethan said firmly.

“I’ll send you the location,” Kai said, his voice quieter now. “And Cross… don’t tell anyone about this. No one.”

Ethan hesitated. If Kai was calling for help, it meant he was starting to trust him—but it also meant Ethan was walking a fine line. If...

“You have my word,” Ethan said finally.

The line went dead.

Ethan sat back in his chair, staring at his phone. He replayed the conversation in his head, dissecting every word, every pause. Kai was afraid, and that much was clear. But fear wasn’t the only thing driving him—there was something else.

Guilt.

Ethan had seen it in Kai’s eyes during their last meeting, and he’d heard it just now in his voice. Whatever Kai was caught up in, it was eating him alive.

The phone buzzed again, this time with a text. A set of coordinates and a time. Ethan plugged the location into his phone’s GPS.

A secluded park on the outskirts of the city. Midnight.

Ethan frowned. It was an odd choice—isolated, but not completely abandoned. The kind of place where someone could talk without prying ears but still have an escape route if things went south.

He pocketed his phone and left the office, his mind already running through possible scenarios.

As Ethan drove through the quiet streets, his thoughts kept circling back to Kai. He wasn’t sure what had pushed the artist to finally reach out, but he knew this was a turning point.

Up until now, Kai had been an enigma—guarded, defiant, and infuriatingly elusive. But the man who’d called him tonight was different. Vulnerable. Desperate.

Ethan gripped the steering wheel tighter. He wasn’t just chasing answers anymore. He was chasing something deeper, something that felt dangerously personal.

The coordinates led him to the edge of the city, where the bright lights and crowded streets gave way to dark, empty roads. The park came into view, its entrance marked by a rusty gate that creaked in the wind.

Ethan parked the car and stepped out, the cool night air biting at his skin. He scanned the area, his eyes adjusting to the darkness. The park was quiet, the distant hum of the city fading into silence.

He checked his phone. 11:55 PM.

Kai will be here soon.

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