Ethan:
The mansion felt suffocating.
Too quiet.
Too empty.
Ethan stood in the center of the living room, his phone in his hand, his jaw tight, his eyes darker than ever.
"Check every highway again," he said coldly into the phone. "I want every camera feed from the last three hours."
"Yes, boss."
"And the coastal roads—don't miss a single one."
"We're on it."
He cut the call.
Another call came in immediately.
He answered without looking.
"Report."
"Nothing yet, sir. The car hasn't shown up on any major route."
Ethan's grip on the phone tightened.
"Then expand the search."
"Yes, sir."
Call after call.
Order after order.
His entire network was moving.
Every man.
Every contact.
Every resource.
All for one person.
Yuna.
Ethan ran a hand through his hair, pacing slowly.
His mind wasn't calm.
Not like usual.
This wasn't business.
This wasn't strategy.
This was—
Chaos.
"…Find her," he muttered under his breath.
His chest felt tight.
Heavy.
A feeling he wasn't used to.
Something close to fear.
He stopped walking.
Closed his eyes for a second.
And her face appeared.
Crying.
Broken.
The way the driver described her.
Drunk.
Upset.
Driving fast.
Something twisted painfully inside him.
"I shouldn't have left her alone," he said quietly.
For the first time—
There was regret.
Real regret.
He opened his eyes again, colder now.
More focused.
"I'm not losing her."
His voice was low.
Deadly.
"She's not going anywhere."
---
His phone rang again.
Luca.
Ethan answered instantly.
"Where are you?"
"I just landed," Luca said, his voice tense. "I'm in Italy. At the office."
Ethan didn't waste time.
"Did you find anything?"
"I'm checking all the road CCTV footage," Luca replied. "Every possible route."
Ethan waited.
A few seconds.
Then—
"Nothing," Luca said.
Ethan's expression darkened.
"Nothing?"
"Her car disappears after the coastal road," Luca continued. "After that—no trace."
That wasn't normal.
That meant one thing.
"She was taken off the grid," Ethan said coldly.
"Yes."
Silence.
Heavy.
Then Luca spoke again,
"I'm coming back."
"Good."
The call ended.
---
Time passed.
Slowly.
Painfully.
Ethan didn't sit.
Didn't rest.
He kept moving.
Calling.
Commanding.
Waiting.
Until—
The elevator sound echoed in the mansion.
A sharp ding.
Ethan's head turned.
The doors opened.
Luca stepped out.
His expression was dark.
Tense.
Angry.
Before Ethan could say anything—
Luca walked straight toward him—
And punched him.
Hard.
Ethan's head snapped slightly to the side from the impact.
But he didn't fall.
He didn't even step back.
The room went silent.
Luca's breathing was heavy.
"You let her go alone?" he snapped.
Ethan slowly turned his face back toward him.
His expression didn't change.
"She left on her own."
"That's not an excuse!" Luca shouted. "You were supposed to be with her!"
Ethan's eyes darkened.
"I told her to stay."
"And you think she listens when she's hurt?!" Luca shot back.
That hit something.
Ethan didn't respond immediately.
Because he knew—
Yuna had been hurt.
And he knew why.
Luca stepped closer.
"If anything happens to her—"
"It won't," Ethan cut in coldly.
Luca laughed bitterly.
"You don't know that!"
Ethan's voice dropped.
"I said it won't."
The air between them turned heavy.
Dangerous.
Luca stared at him for a moment.
Then spoke again, quieter this time—but sharper.
"You don't even understand what she means to you."
Ethan's jaw tightened slightly.
"Don't talk about things you don't understand."
"Oh, I understand perfectly," Luca said. "You don't feel things. You don't care. You just—"
"Stop."
Ethan's voice was low.
But it carried warning.
Luca didn't stop.
"She's not like the others, Ethan!" he continued. "You can't treat her like—"
"I don't."
Silence.
For a second—
Luca paused.
Because this time—
Ethan's voice was different.
Not just cold.
Not just controlled.
There was something else in it.
Something deeper.
"I'm finding her," Ethan said.
His eyes locked onto Luca's.
"And I'm bringing her back."
Luca studied him.
Searching.
Trying to see if this was just another calculated response—
Or something real.
Then—
Ethan's phone rang.
Both of them looked at it.
Unknown number.
Ethan answered.
And everything—
Was about to change.