Chapter 2 — The Woman Behind the Glass
Chapter 2 — The Woman Behind the Glass
The old Blackwood medical facility stood three miles outside the city.
It had been abandoned for nearly a decade.
At least, that was what the official records said.
Ethan knew better.
He had driven past the building dozens of times without ever noticing it.
The facility sat behind a wall of overgrown trees, hidden from the main road by an iron gate and a narrow private driveway.
No sign.
No lights.
No visible security.
That made Ethan more nervous than a dozen armed guards would have.
He slowed the car.
His phone showed the last location Victor had transmitted.
The signal came from inside the building.
Ethan stopped the car.
He looked at the clock.
Nine minutes had passed.
He had one minute.
Then the phone buzzed.
A message appeared.
ALONE.
Ethan stared at it.
Then another message.
OR SHE DIES.
He put the phone away.
For seven years, he had lived believing Amelia was dead.
Now she was somewhere inside that building.
He wasn't going to lose her twice.
The front door was unlocked.
That was the first thing that frightened him.
Ethan stepped inside.
Dust covered the reception desk.
The walls were stained.
Old medical posters hung crookedly from the walls.
The air smelled like disinfectant.
Too much disinfectant.
This place wasn't abandoned.
Someone was still using it.
Ethan walked forward.
His footsteps echoed through the empty corridor.
Then he heard something.
A faint mechanical hum.
He followed it.
At the end of the corridor was an elevator.
The control panel required a security code.
Ethan entered the date of his grandfather's death.
Nothing.
He tried Amelia's birthday.
The light turned green.
The elevator doors opened.
Ethan stared at the empty shaft.
“Of course,” he whispered.
The elevator descended.
Down.
Farther than the building should have allowed.
The numbers on the panel changed.
B1.
B2.
B3.
Then the display went blank.
The elevator continued moving.
Ethan's stomach tightened.
There was no fourth basement on any architectural plan.
But the elevator kept descending.
Finally, it stopped.
The doors opened.
A bright white corridor stretched ahead.
Ethan stepped out.
The building above might have been abandoned.
Down here, everything was immaculate.
New cameras.
New lights.
New medical equipment.
A hospital hidden underneath an abandoned hospital.
Ethan slowly walked forward.
Then he saw the glass.
A wall of reinforced glass separated the corridor from a medical room.
Inside was a woman.
She was lying motionless on a hospital bed.
Ethan stopped.
Everything inside him went silent.
“Amelia.”
She didn't move.
Machines surrounded her.
An IV.
A heart monitor.
A ventilator.
A small screen displayed her vital signs.
Alive.
Ethan stepped closer.
His hand touched the glass.
Seven years.
Seven years of mourning.
Seven years of photographs.
Seven years of waking up from nightmares believing he had heard her voice.
And she had been here.
Alive.
Just a few meters away.
A tear rolled down his cheek.
“I'm here.”
Amelia didn't respond.
Ethan looked around.
“Where is Victor?”
No answer.
Then a voice came through the ceiling speaker.
“You always were sentimental.”
Ethan looked up.
Victor.
“You should have stayed home.”
Ethan clenched his jaw.
“You lied to me.”
“I protected the family.”
“You murdered my wife.”
“No.”
Victor's voice remained calm.
“I saved her.”
Ethan stared through the glass.
“From what?”
“From you.”
Ethan laughed once.
It wasn't amusement.
It was disbelief.
“You expect me to believe that?”
“You believe whatever you need to believe.”
“Open the door.”
“No.”
“Victor.”
“You're standing in a room surrounded by explosives.”
Ethan froze.
“What?”
Victor continued.
“Take one wrong step, and the woman you love dies.”
Ethan looked at the floor.
Small red indicators were visible along the walls.
He had not noticed them.
Victor had planned everything.
“You brought me here.”
“Yes.”
“You wanted me to see her.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because you need to understand what you're fighting.”
Ethan looked at Amelia.
“What happened to her?”
Victor sighed.
“She survived the fire.”
“I know.”
“She was badly injured.”
“I know.”
“She lost consciousness.”
“You kidnapped her.”
Victor didn't deny it.
“She had information.”
“What information?”
“The truth about the trust.”
Ethan's expression hardened.
“You kept her alive for seven years because of money?”
“Not money.”
Victor laughed.
“Power.”
Ethan looked at Amelia again.
She seemed impossibly small beneath the white sheets.
There was a scar near her temple.
Another along her jaw.
Her left hand was curled slightly inward.
Seven years of captivity had changed her.
Ethan felt rage rise inside him.
“Let her go.”
“I can't.”
“You can.”
“No.”
“Then I'll make you.”
Victor laughed.
“You still think you're powerful.”
Ethan looked around.
“I am.”
“Are you?”
Victor's voice became colder.
“You don't even control your own company.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The board meets tomorrow.”
Ethan said nothing.
Victor continued.
“Your uncle has already prepared the succession vote.”
“Not if I attend.”
“You won't.”
“Why?”
“Because you're going to die tonight.”
The lights suddenly went out.
Ethan instinctively moved backward.
A red emergency light appeared.
Then a metal door slammed shut behind him.
He was trapped.
Victor's voice came through the speaker.
“Seven years ago, Amelia refused to sign the trust transfer.”
Ethan stared at the glass.
“What transfer?”
“She knew Lily was the heir.”
Ethan froze.
Victor continued.
“She refused to give me control.”
“So you burned the hospital.”
“I didn't start the fire.”
Ethan's eyes narrowed.
“Who did?”
Victor was silent.
Then:
“Your father.”
Ethan felt as if the floor had disappeared beneath him.
“My father was dead.”
“Not when the fire started.”
Ethan stared.
Victor continued.
“Your father knew Amelia had discovered everything.”
“What did she discover?”
“The original Blackwood Trust.”
Ethan's breathing became heavier.
“What about it?”
“Your grandfather didn't leave the empire to your father.”
Victor laughed.
“He left it to Amelia.”
Ethan's face went blank.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“That's impossible.”
“Read the original trust.”
“I've seen it.”
“You've seen the version they wanted you to see.”
A screen descended from the ceiling.
A document appeared.
The original Blackwood Trust.
Ethan recognized his grandfather's signature.
He stepped closer.
There was a clause he had never seen.
Primary Beneficiary: Amelia Blackwood.
Below it:
Secondary Beneficiary: Lily Blackwood.
And beneath that:
No member of the Blackwood family may alter, transfer, or terminate the trust without the written consent of the primary beneficiary.
Ethan stared.
Amelia had been the rightful owner.
Lily was next.
Victor had never owned the empire.
Not legally.
He had only controlled it because everyone believed Amelia was dead.
Ethan looked toward the glass.
“You killed her identity.”
Victor corrected him.
“I preserved the company.”
“You imprisoned my wife.”
“She was dangerous.”
“She was your family.”
Victor laughed.
“Family is irrelevant when money is involved.”
Suddenly, Amelia moved.
Ethan's heart stopped.
Her fingers twitched.
Her eyes opened.
Barely.
But they opened.
Ethan rushed toward the glass.
“Amelia!”
Her eyes moved slowly.
She couldn't focus.
Then she saw him.
Her lips moved.
No sound came through.
Ethan pressed his hand against the glass.
“I'm here.”
Amelia's eyes widened.
Tears appeared.
She tried to lift her hand.
It trembled.
Ethan whispered:
“It's me.”
Her lips formed one word.
Ethan couldn't hear it.
He leaned closer.
“What?”
She tried again.
“Lily.”
Ethan's heart shattered.
“She is alive.”
Amelia's eyes filled with tears.
“She…”
Ethan nodded.
“Our daughter is alive.”
Amelia closed her eyes.
A tear rolled down her cheek.
Victor's voice interrupted.
“This is touching.”
Ethan turned.
“Open the door.”
“No.”
“Victor.”
“You have five minutes.”
“For what?”
“To decide.”
“Decide what?”
“Your company.”
Ethan stared at the speaker.
“Give me control of Blackwood Holdings.”
“Or?”
Victor paused.
“Amelia dies.”
Ethan stood completely still.
He understood.
This was never about killing him.
Victor wanted him to surrender.
The board.
The company.
The trust.
Everything.
He wanted Ethan to sign away his future.
Ethan looked through the glass.
Amelia was still awake.
Barely.
But alive.
He had no intention of losing her again.
“Bring me the documents.”
Victor laughed.
“You agree?”
“I said bring me the documents.”
A printer started inside the corridor.
Pages appeared.
Ethan picked them up.
He read.
Transfer of voting rights.
Transfer of executive authority.
Transfer of personal shares.
Transfer of trust management.
Everything.
Victor wanted complete control.
Ethan took a pen.
He signed the first page.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Victor's voice sounded pleased.
“You finally understand.”
Ethan signed the fourth.
Then the fifth.
He stopped.
One clause caught his attention.
Upon execution, all claims made by Ethan Blackwood regarding the identity of Lily Blackwood shall be deemed withdrawn.
Ethan stared at it.
So that was the real objective.
Not just the company.
Lily.
Victor wanted to erase his daughter's legal identity.
If Ethan signed, Lily would disappear from the trust.
Ethan put the pen down.
“No.”
Victor's voice changed.
“What?”
“I'll give you the company.”
Ethan tore the page in half.
“But I will never give you my daughter.”
The lights flickered.
A metallic click echoed through the room.
Ethan looked at the red indicators.
Victor's voice became cold.
“You've made a mistake.”
“No.”
Ethan looked at Amelia.
“I've made one every day for seven years.”
He turned toward the nearest camera.
“And tonight I'm correcting it.”
A door opened behind Ethan.
Two armed men entered.
Ethan immediately raised his hands.
“Easy.”
One man approached.
“Drop the phone.”
Ethan obeyed.
The second man grabbed him.
He resisted.
The first man struck him.
Ethan fell against the wall.
Inside the medical room, Amelia suddenly moved.
Her heart monitor began alarming.
The men froze.
Victor's voice came through the speaker.
“Do not touch her.”
Ethan looked up.
“What did you do?”
“Nothing.”
The alarm continued.
Amelia's heart rate dropped.
Ethan shouted:
“Get a doctor!”
Victor didn't respond.
“Get a doctor!”
Nothing.
Amelia's heart rate dropped again.
Ethan broke free.
He ran toward the glass.
“Amelia!”
The monitor screamed.
A red line appeared.
Ethan slammed his fist against the glass.
“No!”
Amelia's body jerked.
Then—
the heart monitor stabilized.
Ethan froze.
The line returned.
A faint rhythm.
Alive.
Victor spoke.
“Now you understand.”
Ethan looked toward the camera.
His face was expressionless.
“You're going to regret this.”
Victor laughed.
“You have no idea how much.”
The two guards dragged Ethan toward the elevator.
But just before the doors closed, Ethan noticed something.
A small maintenance panel.
The same model used in Blackwood facilities.
He remembered his grandfather's emergency systems.
Every underground facility had a secondary exit.
And the control switch was hidden behind the maintenance panel.
Ethan waited.
One second.
Two.
Three.
Then he drove his elbow backward.
The guard stumbled.
Ethan kicked the second man into the wall.
He tore open the panel.
Inside was a manual override.
He pulled it.
The corridor doors unlocked.
Alarms began screaming.
Red lights flashed.
The guards shouted.
Ethan ran.
Not toward the elevator.
Toward Amelia.
He reached the medical room.
The door was locked.
Ethan grabbed the emergency release.
Nothing.
He hit it again.
Still nothing.
Then a voice came from behind him.
“Step away.”
Ethan turned.
Samuel stood there.
Blood covered one side of his shirt.
Ethan stared.
“How did you get here?”
Samuel held up a keycard.
“I followed you.”
“You weren't supposed to.”
“I know.”
He opened the door.
Ethan rushed inside.
He went straight to Amelia.
“Amelia.”
Her eyes opened.
She looked at him.
This time, she recognized him.
Her lips moved.
“Ethan.”
He froze.
He hadn't heard her voice in seven years.
One word.
His name.
And it destroyed him.
He took her hand.
“I'm here.”
She squeezed his fingers weakly.
“Lily?”
“She is safe.”
Amelia closed her eyes.
“Thank God.”
Ethan leaned down.
“I'm sorry.”
Her eyes opened again.
“Why?”
“I couldn't find you.”
“You weren't supposed to.”
“What?”
Amelia looked terrified.
“Ethan…”
“What?”
“He knows about the second room.”
Ethan frowned.
“What second room?”
Amelia tried to speak.
But suddenly the door slammed shut.
Samuel turned.
“Someone locked us in.”
Ethan looked toward the window.
A small red light appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Explosives.
Victor's voice came through the speaker.
“You should have signed.”
Ethan held Amelia's hand.
Victor continued:
“Now the whole facility comes down.”
Samuel looked at the clock.
“Thirty seconds.”
Ethan stared at the locked door.
Thirty seconds.
He looked at Amelia.
Then at Samuel.
“Find another exit.”
“There isn't one.”
“There has to be.”
“Ethan—”
“Find it!”
Samuel ran toward the far wall.
Ethan lifted Amelia from the bed.
She was weak.
Barely conscious.
But she wrapped her arms around his neck.
He carried her.
Behind them, the countdown began.
Twenty-five.
Ethan kicked open a cabinet.
Nothing.
Twenty.
Samuel tore away a wall panel.
“Here!”
A narrow passage appeared.
Ethan carried Amelia inside.
Fifteen.
They ran.
Ten.
The corridor shook.
Nine.
Ethan held Amelia tighter.
Eight.
A door appeared ahead.
Seven.
Samuel opened it.
Six.
They stumbled through.
Five.
Ethan turned.
Four.
The medical facility exploded behind them.
Three.
The underground corridor collapsed.
Two.
Ethan pulled Amelia into the emergency tunnel.
One.
The entire building disappeared beneath a deafening roar.
For several minutes, Ethan could hear nothing.
Then he heard Amelia breathing.
He looked down.
She was alive.
Samuel was alive.
The tunnel remained intact.
Ethan closed his eyes.
He had found his wife.
But Victor had escaped.
And more importantly—
Victor had mentioned a second room.
Ethan looked at Amelia.
“What were you going to tell me?”
She stared at him.
Her eyes were filled with fear.
“There was another child.”
Ethan froze.
“What?”
Amelia's voice was barely audible.
“When Victor took Lily…”
She swallowed.
“He didn't just want our daughter.”
Ethan's blood ran cold.
“Then what did he want?”
Amelia looked directly into his eyes.
“He wanted the other baby too.”
Ethan stared.
“What other baby?”
Amelia began crying.
“The child I was carrying when the fire started.”
Ethan stopped breathing.
“You were pregnant?”
Amelia nodded.
“I was seven months pregnant.”
Ethan stared at her in disbelief.
“You told me Lily was the only baby.”
“I was going to tell you.”
“When?”
“After the birth.”
“Amelia…”
She gripped his hand.
“I didn't know Victor knew.”
Ethan looked toward the darkness behind them.
Another child.
Another heir.
Another secret.
And suddenly he understood why Victor had spent seven years hiding Amelia.
It wasn't only because she knew the truth.
She was protecting something far more dangerous.
Something that could destroy Victor's entire claim to the Blackwood empire.
Ethan whispered:
“Where is our second child?”
Amelia closed her eyes.
“I don't know.”
Then she opened them again.
“But Victor does.”
Far above them, a phone began ringing.
Ethan's phone.
He picked it up.
One message appeared.
A photograph.
A newborn baby.
Underneath it:
YOU FOUND ONE CHILD.
Then another message appeared.
NOW COME FIND THE OTHER.
Ethan stared at the screen.
Amelia began to cry.
May you like
And somewhere in the darkness, a second heartbeat was waiting.
TO BE CONTINUED…
