"Elena? Elena!"
The line was dead.
For half a second, she couldn't breathe.
Alexander was already moving.
"Trace the call," he ordered into his secure line. "Deploy unit teams to David's address immediately."
He grabbed Elena's hand.
"We're going."
Rain lashed against the windshield as their car sped through the city. Security vehicles flanked them, lights off but engines roaring.
Elena's heart pounded in her throat.
"This is her," she whispered.
Alexander didn't answer.
But his silence was not agreement.
It was calculation.
David's apartment building came into view.
Two black SUVs were parked outside.
One she recognized.
The other she didn't.
Security rushed ahead before their car fully stopped.
Alexander stepped out first.
"Elena stays with me," he said sharply.
The entrance door was ajar.
Too quiet.
They moved inside.
The elevator was stuck on the fifth floor — David's floor.
Alexander didn't wait. He took the stairs.
Elena followed, breath tight, mind racing.
Please be okay. Please be okay.
When they reached the fifth floor, the hallway lights flickered faintly.
David's apartment door was open.
Alexander signaled for security to hold position, then stepped inside first.
"Elena," he said quietly, "wait."
She didn't.
She walked in beside him.
The living room was untouched.
No broken glass. No overturned furniture.
Just silence.
Then—
"Elena?"
Her head snapped toward the sound.
David emerged from the bedroom.
Alive.
Shaken.
But unharmed.
She rushed to him, gripping his shoulders.
"Are you hurt?"
"No," he said, confused. "They just… knocked."
Alexander's eyes sharpened.
"They?"
"Two men. Suits. Said they wanted to talk about a job opportunity."
Elena's stomach twisted.
"A job?"
"They said it was connected to Hale Enterprises."
Alexander's jaw tightened.
"And you believed them?"
David shook his head. "No. I told them to leave. That's when I called you."
"Where are they now?" Alexander asked.
"They left when they saw someone coming up the stairs."
Security.
Alexander stepped back, thinking.
This wasn't a kidnapping attempt.
It was intimidation.
A message.
Elena felt it too.
"They wanted him scared," she whispered.
"Yes," Alexander said quietly.
David looked between them.
"What's going on?"
Alexander's phone buzzed.
He checked the screen.
Unknown encrypted number.
He answered without greeting.
A familiar voice spoke.
"You move quickly."
Catherine.
Elena stiffened.
Alexander's tone went cold.
"You're running out of subtlety."
"I told you," she replied smoothly, "I did not authorize escalation."
"You expect me to believe this isn't connected to you?"
A pause.
Then—
"I expect you to understand the difference between pressure and chaos."
Elena stepped closer so she could hear.
"If this wasn't you," she said sharply, "then who?"
Catherine's voice shifted slightly.
"Victor had allies."
Alexander's expression darkened.
"He lost funding."
"Yes," she agreed. "But desperation makes men creative."
Elena's blood ran cold.
"You think this is Victor?"
"I think," Catherine said calmly, "that someone wants you distracted before the vote."
Alexander's mind was clearly moving fast.
"If this were your strategy," he said evenly, "you would've targeted leverage, not optics."
"Correct."
Elena blinked.
That sounded like truth.
"Then why call?" Alexander demanded.
"Because if someone is moving independently," Catherine replied, "it threatens more than your position."
Silence.
"You're worried," Alexander said slowly.
"I'm realistic."
Elena's pulse hammered.
"If Victor still has allies," she whispered, "then the vote isn't the only threat."
"No," Catherine agreed. "It is merely the visible one."
The call ended.
David looked overwhelmed.
"Can someone explain what I just walked into?"
Elena hugged him tightly.
"You're staying with us," she said firmly.
Alexander nodded once.
"Security will double."
As they left the apartment, Elena felt something shift.
This was no longer a single opponent.
It was fragmentation.
A power structure cracking at the edges.
Back in the car, she turned to Alexander.
"If this isn't your mother… and Victor is desperate…"
"Then someone believes removing me before the vote guarantees something."
"Like what?"
He stared out at the rain-soaked streets.
"Control during chaos."
Elena's mind raced.
"Could a board member be involved?"
"It's possible."
Twenty-four hours left.
Two confirmed undecided votes.
A looming confidence decision.
And now—
An invisible player moving in the dark.
Alexander's phone buzzed again.
This time, it wasn't encrypted.
It was Daniel.
His voice was strained.
"There's been a development."
Alexander's eyes narrowed.
"What now?"
"One of the confirmed supporters of Catherine's petition just withdrew their vote."
Elena blinked.
"What?"
"Publicly?" Alexander asked.
"Yes. Effective immediately."
"Reason?"
Daniel hesitated.
"He claims… external coercion."
The car went silent.
Elena's heart skipped.
"That means—"
"The vote count just shifted," Alexander finished.
Five needed to win.
Catherine now had three confirmed.
But someone—
Was pressuring the board.
And it wasn't them.
Alexander leaned back slowly.
"This isn't a family war anymore."
Elena swallowed.
"What is it?"
His eyes turned sharp.
"It's a takeover attempt."
And they had less than twenty-four hours to find out who was really pulling the strings.
To be continued…