Chapter 16: The Enemy’s Shadow

The screeching tires of Dominic’s car came to a halt outside a high-rise building that towered over the city like a dark sentinel. It was a stark contrast to the elegance of his usual penthouse, all sleek lines and polished chrome. The place we arrived at was more hidden, more secretive—a place that seemed to hold more than a few skeletons in its closets.

My hands were still shaking from the adrenaline rush as I forced the door open and stepped into the lobby, ignoring the stares of the security team. My mind was still reeling from the revelation about my father and the extent of the chaos I’d just discovered. I should have been terrified, but instead, I was furious.

Dominic didn’t say a word as he walked beside me, but I could feel the tension radiating off him, his body coiled like a spring ready to snap.

“You’re not going to get away with this,” I muttered through clenched teeth, my anger a firestorm that burned hotter with every step I took.

Dominic turned, his eyes flashing with the same fire. “You won’t be the one to bring me down, Elena.”

I laughed bitterly. “Don’t you think you’ve already done that yourself?” I waved the folder in front of him. “Everything I need to destroy you is right here. You don’t need to worry about me. You need to worry about what happens next.”

He didn’t flinch. His lips curled into a half-smirk, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous promise. “You think you can hurt me with this? You think I haven’t already accounted for every possible move?”

His words hit harder than I expected. He was right. There was always a step ahead. Always. But this time… this time, it would be different.

We walked down a long hallway, the silence stretching between us like a taut wire. Every step felt heavier, every moment thicker with tension. We reached a door at the end of the hall, and Dominic didn’t even glance at me before opening it.

“After you,” he said, his voice unexpectedly soft.

I stepped inside the dark room, my eyes immediately drawn to the large desk at the center. But it wasn’t the furniture that held my attention. It was the man sitting behind it.

My blood ran cold.

“I’ve been expecting you.”

My heart skipped a beat as I locked eyes with the person I least expected—my father’s former business partner and the man I believed had been behind most of my family’s ruin: Richard Caldwell.

The man who should have been a father figure to me.

“Richard,” I said, my voice sounding hollow, as if the very word itself could poison me.

He smiled, though it was devoid of warmth. “You didn’t think Dominic was working alone, did you?”

It felt like the floor had just dropped out from under me. All the air in my lungs was sucked away. “What are you talking about?”

“Everything, Elena. Everything.” He gestured around the room, the atmosphere dark and foreboding. “You think Dominic is the mastermind? No. He’s just the tool I’ve been using. The real game has always been mine.”

My world was shattering. Pieces of the puzzle I’d been struggling to fit together fell into place with a sickening snap.

Dominic, standing behind me, stiffened, his gaze flicking from Richard to me.

“Elena,” he warned, his voice low. “You don’t know the whole truth.”

“No,” Richard said, leaning forward, his smile growing. “She doesn’t, does she? She only knows what I want her to know.”

I felt dizzy, like the walls were closing in on me. “You… you were behind all of it?” My voice trembled as I looked between them.

Richard’s expression never wavered. “Your father isn’t the innocent man you think he is, Elena. He was the first pawn I played. I knew I’d eventually use Dominic to finish what I started, but I needed you to push him to the right place. That’s why you were always so useful.”

I backed away, the walls pressing against me as I struggled to process the words that were being thrown at me. “No. No, you’re lying. You’re both lying!”

Richard stood up, walking slowly around the desk. “Look at you. So angry. So determined to find the truth. But what if the truth isn’t what you think it is?”

“You knew my mother wasn’t loyal to my father.” The words were out before I could stop them. They were out before I even realized I had said them.

Richard’s smile faltered for just a second, and in that brief moment, I saw something—a flicker of guilt, of regret. But it was gone in the next instant, replaced by the cold, calculating gaze of the man who had been pulling the strings from behind the curtain for so long.

“Elena, listen to me,” Dominic said suddenly, his voice desperate. “It wasn’t supposed to go like this. I never wanted to hurt you. Not like this.”

But I couldn’t look at him. Not now. The betrayal was too much to bear.

I turned toward the door. “I’m done with both of you.”

But Richard’s voice stopped me in my tracks.

“You think walking away will solve this?”

I froze, my hand still on the doorknob. “What are you going to do?” I spat over my shoulder, trying to mask the fear in my voice. “Kill me? Throw me into your game of lies?”

He chuckled softly, his voice like ice. “No. I’m going to make sure you stay in the game, whether you want to or not.”

Before I could move, I heard the unmistakable click of a gun being cocked behind me. My heart skipped, my entire body going rigid.

“Don’t move.”

I slowly turned around. Dominic stood with a gun pointed at me, his hand trembling slightly.

My breath caught. “Dominic…”

His gaze was dark, unreadable. He looked like he wanted to say something—anything—but the words wouldn’t come.

I stood frozen, unable to tear my eyes away from him. Was he doing this? Was he going to kill me too?

“Elena, I…”

I could see the conflict in his eyes, the pain of his own choices. And then, in a flash, I understood.

It was never about the game. It was always about me.

Richard’s voice cut through my thoughts like a knife. “You don’t get it, Elena. You never did. This was never just about power or money. It was about control. And now, I own you.”

The room felt suffocating.

I took a slow step back. “You don’t own me, Richard. Neither of you do.”

And with that, I ran.