Reina POVI had a feeling something was not right with Ethan but he didn't want to talk to me. He pretended that he was okay but deep down, I knew he was not. Ethan had been acting strange for the past few days, quieter, more distant, like he was keeping something to himself that he could not share. I tried to ask him about it, tried to understand what was going on, but every time I brought it up, he would either change the subject or say it was nothing. But I knew Ethan too well. He was not himself, and it bothered me that he was shutting me out.Tonight was no different. After dinner, he became unusually quiet, barely touching his food, lost in thought. He said he was going to take care of something and left the house. His face looked pale like he was preparing something that I could not see. I watched him leave the hold and I felt uneasy.Something in my gut told me to follow him. Maybe it was the way he left without a word, or maybe it was just my own worry getting the bet
Reina’s POVMy heart raced and each beat echoing in my ears as I pressed myself against the cold, damp wall of the basement. The crashing noise from upstairs sent chills down my spine. What happened? What fell?I needed no one to tell me that I had to find Ethan. I felt a surge of panic shake me severally. The only thing I could see was the darkness of the basement that closed in around me. I could not just sit here. Not when Ethan was up there, possibly in danger.I took a deep breath, trying to steady my trembling hands. The fear of what could be happening to him spurred me into action. I had to know if he was okay, if he was even still alive or if he was the one that got hot. I crept toward the basement stairs, the wood creaking as I stepped on it. My heart felt like it would explode as I strained to listen. “Get the hell off me!” I heard a voice shout from above. It was Ethan!I could not tell if he was fighting back or if he was in trouble, but the sound of his voice pushe
ReinaThis was not over yet until it's over. I fought against the man holding me, twisting and kicking as I tried to free myself. I could see the anger burning in Ethan’s eyes, and it only fueled my determination. “Let her go!” he yelled again, his voice filled with so much rage. He looked so scared. I think he was just afraid that something might happen to me. In that moment, I felt a surge of adrenaline inside of me. I was not going to let them take him. Not now. Not ever. Not when I still have little strength inside of me. I twisted my body and slammed my heel into the second man’s shin. He yelled in pain and loosened his grip for just a second. I seized the opportunity and broke free, launching myself toward Ethan.I reached him just as the first man was about to strike again. Without thinking, I grabbed a loose piece of wood from the ground and swung it at the man, striking him across the arm.“Get away from him!” I screamed. My voice was hoarse with fury.The man staggere
Reina As we drove back toward the city, a heavy silence hung in the air. Everything was okay between us now, I think. Even at that, I could not stop my thoughts from racing like the cars we passed.Ethan was safe for now, but I knew that his problems were not over yet. I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were just beginning to scratch the surface of whatever was going on.“Where are we going?” I asked, breaking the silence, trying to check Ethan's mood.“I need to go home first. I want to make sure the house is secure,” he answered. I nodded, but worry gnawed at me. “Are you sure we should go back there? What if those men find you again?”“I have to,” he said firmly. “I need to take care of this before it gets worse. I can’t let them threaten you or our family.”His determination only made me more anxious. “Ethan, we need to talk to the police about this. This is not something you should handle alone.”He shook his head and he tightened his jaw.“No. I don’t want to drag you i
Ethan’s POV I sat across from Reina in the kitchen. I loved the warmth of her presence. It made me sane. Knowing we were in this together gave me a different kind of strength that I had never had before. I needed to protect her and our son, but I also needed to let her in. I decided not to bring up the topic of her monitoring my movement. I had given her so many reasons to worry. “First things first,” I said. “We need to figure out exactly what we are dealing with.”Reina nodded and she became more serious than before. “Agreed. What do we know about the men?”I thought for a moment, recalling the faces and the tense situation from earlier. “Not much. They seemed to be well-prepared. They knew what they were doing.”“Do you think they were here for the debt? Or your father's issue?” she asked.“Both, Most likely,” I replied, feeling my stomach churn at the thought. “I owed a lot of money that I had cleared without attracting attention. But it looks like everything backfired.”“E
ReinaThe night stretched on, and though I was exhausted, sleep felt impossible for me. Again, I was at the dining table, sitting in front with my laptop open in front of me. I scrolled through news articles, trying to find any mention of the men who had threatened us. Then, I felt Ethan’s presence beside me, his eyes were focused on the front door. “Have you found anything?” he asked, breaking the silence that was in the room. I shook my head, feeling frustrated. Everything was tiring, I had to admit. “No, nothing yet. It is like they just disappeared. But I’m not giving up.” Ethan leaned back in his chair, running a hand over his face. “You really should not be doing this, Reina. You need to rest. I worry more when I remember that you are doing this.”“I can’t rest until I know we are safe. And right now, I don’t feel safe at all,” I replied, raising my voice a little. He sighed, shifting in his seat. “You are right. I just don’t want you to get too stressed. You know that
Reina I jumped out of bed, my heart pounding in my chest. I crept to the window and peeked through the curtains. My breath caught in my throat as I saw headlights illuminating our driveway.“Ethan!” I blurted out and my pulse quickened. I rushed to the door and opened it, barely able to contain my anxiety. Ethan was standing there, looking alarmed. “What’s wrong?”“There is a car outside. I think someone is here,” I said, my voice shaky. He frowned, moving closer to me. He was unsure if what I said was true but at this point in time, he could no doubt say what I said. “Stay here. I will check it out.”“No! I want to go with you,” I insisted, my heart racing. “I won’t let you face this alone. What if it's dangerous?”“Fine, but stay close and be quiet,” he whispered to me. We moved carefully to the living room, peering out the window to get a better look. The car was parked at the end of our driveway and its headlights off now. “Who is it?” I asked, straining to see through th
Ethan's POVThe road stretched out ahead of us, dark and winding, lighted only by the faint glow of the headlights. The silence inside the car was thick and heavy and all of us deep down faced our various fears that we refused to talk about. Reina sat next to me, her eyes staring straight ahead, but I could see the tension in her jaw and in the way her hands gripped the edge of her seat. I wanted to say something, anything to make her feel better, but what could I say? Nothing about this was okay.Bruce was in the back seat, glancing at the rearview mirror every few seconds as if he expected someone to be following us. I could not blame him. After what we had been through the past weeks ,paranoia was the new normal.“Are you sure no one is following us?” Reina finally broke the silence. “I have been checking,” Bruce answered. “No one is behind us, at least not for now.”I kept my eyes on the road, trying to focus on getting us to safety. “We just need to make it to the hotel