CHAPTER 4: HIS UNREASONABLE OFFER

Amelia had never been offered so much money in her life, but the price came with something she wasn't sure she could afford to lose.

Her freedom.

She stood in Alexander Blackwood's office, holding her phone with trembling fingers.

The photograph of her mother in the hospital was still on the screen.

YOUR MOTHER KNOWS WHAT YOUR FATHER DID.

She read the message again, hoping the words would somehow change.

They didn't.

"Who sent this?" she asked.

Alexander looked at the phone.

"We're trying to find out."

"Trying?" Her voice rose. "You have an entire security team. How can someone send me a photograph of my mother from inside a hospital without you knowing?"

His jaw tightened.

"Because someone has access to information they shouldn't have."

"Then perhaps you should spend less time questioning me and more time finding out who is responsible."

One of the guards near the door looked uncomfortable.

Alexander didn't react.

"Victoria," he called.

His assistant entered almost immediately.

"Yes, sir?"

"Contact hospital security. I want two people assigned to Mrs. Carter's room. Quietly. No uniforms, no unnecessary attention."

"Of course."

"And find out who took that photograph."

Victoria nodded and left.

Amelia watched her disappear.

"Don't make decisions about my mother without asking me."

Alexander picked up his glass.

"Someone has already made your family a target. I'm not going to wait for your permission before preventing something worse."

"You don't get to control everything just because you have money."

His eyes met hers.

"I've learned that not controlling things can cost lives."

For a moment, something changed in his expression.

It was brief, but Amelia noticed the tension in his jaw and the way his fingers tightened around the glass.

She wondered what kind of experience had taught him that lesson.

Before she could ask, he returned to his usual cold expression.

"Sit down, Miss Carter. We need to discuss an arrangement."

She looked at the chair.

"What arrangement?"

"One that benefits both of us."

Alexander opened a drawer and removed a black folder.

He placed it on the desk and pushed it towards her.

Amelia didn't touch it.

"What is that?"

"An agreement."

"About what?"

"Your cooperation."

She gave a short, disbelieving laugh.

"You want me to sign something?"

"I want you to understand your options."

He opened the folder.

Inside were several neatly printed pages.

"You're going to remain under my protection until we identify the people threatening you. You will not discuss what happened at the hotel with anyone outside the investigation."

Amelia stared at him.

"And in exchange?"

"Financial compensation."

He said it as casually as if he were discussing the weather.

"How much?"

"Two hundred thousand dollars."

For several seconds, Amelia couldn't speak.

Two hundred thousand dollars.

It was more money than she had ever imagined having.

She thought about the unpaid hospital bills. Daniel's school fees. The electricity notice hidden beneath the newspaper. The landlord who had threatened to throw them out.

With that amount, she could pay everything.

Her mother could receive treatment without worrying about the next payment.

Daniel could finish school without having to search for a job.

She could even return to her dream of studying interior design.

Then she looked at Alexander.

"You're paying me to keep quiet?"

"I'm offering compensation for the inconvenience and risk you've been exposed to."

"That's a very expensive way of saying you're buying my silence."

His expression remained unchanged.

"Call it whatever you like."

Amelia slowly pushed the folder away.

"No."

Alexander raised an eyebrow.

"No?"

"You heard me."

He studied her.

"Most people would consider that a generous offer."

"Most people aren't being threatened because of something they accidentally witnessed."

"You're not being forced to accept it."

She looked at the security guards standing outside.

"Really? Because I haven't been allowed to leave your building since I arrived."

His gaze followed hers.

"You're free to leave."

"Then open the door."

He pressed a button on his desk.

The guards stepped aside.

"Go ahead."

Amelia stared at him.

He was challenging her.

He wanted her to walk out and discover exactly how dangerous the world outside had become.

She hated that he might be right.

But she hated being manipulated even more.

"Why can't you simply trust me?" she asked.

Alexander leaned back in his chair.

"Because trust is earned."

"And you think keeping me here will make me trust you?"

"No. I think keeping you alive will give you time to decide whether you should."

Amelia folded her arms.

"You keep talking about protecting me. But how do I know you're not the person I need protection from?"

His expression became unreadable.

"You don't."

The honest answer surprised her.

He continued.

"I won't pretend I'm an innocent man. I've made decisions that have hurt people. I've destroyed businesses, ended careers, and made enemies. But I didn't kill Richard Hale."

"How do I know?"

"You don't."

She shook her head.

"You expect me to believe you just because you say so?"

"No. I expect you to pay attention."

He stood and walked towards the window.

Outside, the city stretched beneath the morning sunlight. Cars moved along the busy roads, and people hurried towards buildings where their problems were probably waiting for them.

Alexander stood with his hands in his pockets.

"Richard believed someone was using my company to move money. He also believed the person responsible had help from someone in my family."

"Your brother?"

"Possibly."

"And you want me to stay quiet while you investigate?"

"I want you to stay alive while I investigate."

Amelia looked down at her hands.

She thought about the black flash drive hidden inside her old handbag at home.

If Alexander knew she had taken it, why hadn't he searched her?

Perhaps he was waiting for her to reveal its location.

Perhaps he already knew.

She looked up.

"What happens if I refuse?"

"Then I'll arrange security for you and your family anyway."

"Out of kindness?"

"No."

His answer came quickly.

"Because if something happens to you, the evidence disappears with you. And I don't intend to let that happen."

There it was.

The truth.

He wasn't protecting her because he cared about her.

He was protecting his investigation.

Amelia nodded slowly.

"At least you're honest about that."

"I have no reason to lie."

"Everyone has a reason to lie, Mr. Blackwood."

He turned towards her.

For a moment, their eyes met.

Then he looked away.

Victoria returned carrying a small envelope.

"Sir, the hospital has confirmed that Mrs. Carter is safe. Two members of our security team are already there."

Amelia stood immediately.

"Did you speak to my mother?"

"No, ma'am," Victoria answered gently. "We were instructed not to alarm her."

"Good."

Victoria placed the envelope on the desk.

"There is something else. The hospital's external security camera was disabled for eleven minutes last night."

Alexander's expression hardened.

"By whom?"

"We're still checking."

"Get the original footage from the backup server."

"Yes, sir."

Victoria left.

Amelia felt sick.

Eleven minutes.

That was enough time for someone to enter her mother's room, take a photograph, or do something far worse.

"Can you guarantee my mother won't be touched?" she asked.

Alexander looked at her.

"I can guarantee that I'll do everything in my power to prevent it."

"That's not the same as a guarantee."

"No," he said quietly. "It isn't."

She lowered her eyes.

For the first time, she noticed how tired he looked.

There were faint shadows beneath his eyes, and his normally neat hair had become slightly untidy. A half-empty cup of coffee sat beside his computer.

He looked like a man who hadn't slept.

But she quickly reminded herself that looking tired didn't make him trustworthy.

He was still the man who had stood in a hallway while two men dragged away a body.

And she still didn't know what had happened in that room.

Alexander returned to his desk.

"Two hundred thousand dollars isn't enough," he said.

Amelia looked at him.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

He removed another document from the folder.

"The threats against you are not ordinary threats. Whoever is behind them has access to private company information, hospital security systems, and possibly government contacts."

He paused.

"That means you cannot simply return to your normal life and expect everything to go back to the way it was."

Amelia swallowed.

"Are you offering me more money?"

"Yes."

"How much?"

"Five hundred thousand dollars."

Her eyes widened.

He continued as though he had just named an ordinary business expense.

"Your mother's medical bills will be covered. Your brother's education will be paid for. Your family will be moved to a secure location if necessary."

Amelia stared at him.

Half a million dollars.

It could change everything.

She imagined her mother receiving proper treatment without worrying about payment. She imagined Daniel walking into school without carrying the burden of their financial problems.

She imagined herself sleeping through the night.

Then she noticed the final page.

There was a line for her signature.

"What exactly do you want in return?"

"Your cooperation. Your silence about the incident. And your agreement to remain under my protection until this matter is resolved."

"For how long?"

"Until I say it's safe."

She frowned.

"That's not a date."

"No."

"One month? Six months? A year?"

"However long it takes."

Amelia stood.

"You want me to put my entire life on hold."

"I want you to understand that the people looking for you won't stop because you refuse to cooperate."

"And if I sign, what happens to my freedom?"

Alexander closed the folder.

"You'll have your own room in my private residence. You'll be allowed to contact your family, continue your studies, and move around with security."

"With security following me everywhere?"

"Yes."

"That sounds like prison."

"Then consider it a prison with excellent facilities."

She glared at him.

He didn't smile.

Amelia walked towards the window, trying to control her breathing.

Five hundred thousand dollars.

Her mother's treatment.

Daniel's future.

Her own dreams.

Everything she had been fighting for suddenly seemed to be sitting on that desk.

But there was another question she couldn't ignore.

"What happens if I discover that you're the person responsible for Richard's death?"

Alexander was silent.

Then he answered.

"Then I suppose you'll have to decide whether the truth is worth the price."

She turned towards him.

"And what price is that?"

His grey eyes held hers.

"Your safety. Your family's safety. And perhaps the lives of people you haven't even met."

Amelia looked at the agreement again.

She had entered the Blackwood Grand Hotel to earn extra money.

Now a billionaire was offering her enough money to change her family's future, while asking her to surrender control of her own.

She thought about her mother.

She thought about Daniel.

Then she thought about the photograph of her father.

YOUR MOTHER KNOWS WHAT YOUR FATHER DID.

There was something about that message that frightened her more than the money, the threats, or even Alexander Blackwood.

She slowly lifted her eyes.

"Before I agree to anything, I want one answer."

Alexander waited.

"What does my father have to do with your family?"

For the first time since she had entered his office, Alexander looked genuinely uncomfortable.

He opened his mouth, then stopped.

His phone rang.

He glanced at the screen.

The name displayed there made his expression turn cold.

SEBASTIAN BLACKWOOD.

He answered.

"What?"

Amelia couldn't hear the words coming from the other end, but she watched Alexander's face.

His fingers tightened around the phone.

Then he slowly looked at her.

"Say that again."

A long silence followed.

Finally, he ended the call.

Amelia took a step forward.

"What happened?"

Alexander stared at her as though she had suddenly become someone he didn't recognize.

"Someone has broken into your apartment."

Her heart stopped.

"Daniel?"

"We're checking."

She grabbed her handbag.

"I need to go home."

Alexander moved around the desk.

"You're not going anywhere alone."

"I don't care about your agreement! My brother is there!"

He looked at her for a moment before reaching for his jacket.

Then he turned towards the door.

"Get the car ready," he ordered.

As Amelia followed him, she realized that the decision was no longer just about money.

Someone had entered her home.

Someone had threatened her mother.

And someone had just connected her dead father to the Blackwood family.

The half-million-dollar offer was beginning to look like the smallest part of the danger waiting for her.

And before she could decide whether to accept it, Alexander Blackwood was about to show her just how far his enemies were willing to go.