Chapter 58

With the weight of Jack's inquiry bearing down on me like a mountain, I gazed at it. "You've been in contact with him, haven't you?"

I took a while to respond. Instead, I loosened my tie and took a slow, shaky breath, as though doing so would somehow release me from the grip of all I had been holding inside. Jack regarded me with narrowed, uncompromising eyes as the room was eerily quiet and tense.

I finally sank back into his chair and wiped my face, too exhausted to continue the performance. "We're in deep," I said, scarcely raising my voice above a whisper. "Henry has placed us all in an impossible position."

Jack's eyes widened slightly, and he swiftly undid his own tie before silently taking the seat beside me. His quiet encouraged me to continue, and his eyes never left my face.

The door opened before I could even collect my thoughts, and Jack's secretary entered, her worried gaze flitting between us. "Is everything well, Mr. Turner? I heard voices being yelled as I saw Ms. Emily scurry off."

Jack nodded briefly and held up a hand to soothe her. "Susan, everything is good. Close the door on your way out."

After a moment of hesitation and a frightened glance in my direction, she nodded and silently closed the door. Jack leaned closer, his eyes sharp and probing, once we were alone once more.

"You're finally ready to talk?" He asked in a softer tone than usual, as though he didn't want to shake what little determination I still had.

I laughed in a hollow voice that I had never heard before. "Talk? I'm not really sure where to start, Jack."

"Ethan," he said patiently, "start with the truth. No more pretending, no more falsehoods. Tell me everything, please."

I looked down at my hands, which felt strangely alien, and drew another trembling breath. "Victor he reached out to me not long after my father died. He claimed that Monroe Enterprises was only the start of what he wanted back and that Henry owed him a great deal."

Jack's fingers tightened on the arm of his chair, but his face stayed composed. "Continue."

I chuckled once again, a sour sound that seemed to be gnawing its way out of me. "He told me that if I didn't step up and continue the work my father started-the illegal deals, the fronts, all of it-he'd come after me. After Emily. And, Jack, he has the resources to do it. The connections, the resources he's practically untouchable."

Jack's jaw tensed, but he said nothing, so I was able to reveal the rest. "The business-the legitimate part of it-was just a mask. The purpose of whatever Henry constructed was to provide funds and resources to Victor's business. Black market transactions, weapons, and even political power. Jack, it's all a web. And I've been pulled straight into the thick of everything."

Jack exhaled slowly and deliberately as he considered what I had said. "And you you agreed to work with him? to continue the activities?"

As the shame weighed down on me like a smothering blanket, I shook my head. "I had no other option. He would ruin everything if I didn't. He would seize Monroe Enterprises, ruin the brand, and then do more. He would target everyone who had a connection to Henry and me. And that means Emily too."

Something flared in Jack's eyes: disappointment, rage, perhaps even sympathy. "Ethan, you ought to have approached me. You ought to have informed me as soon as he got in touch with you."

I laughed without a sense of humor. "And then what, Jack? Consult the authorities? The FBI? Do you think they'd care about saving me? About saving us? Victor has the authority to ensure that we are all buried before anyone has a chance to act."

Jack let out a tired sigh and shook his head. "But dragging Emily into this? Keeping her in the dark as you participate in Victor's schemes? Ethan, that isn't protecting her."

His remarks made me feel guilty, but I made myself ignore it. "There is no other way to protect her. She should know as little as possible."

Jack examined me while leaning back and crossing his arms. "And you genuinely think that? That it's preferable to keep her out of the loop?"

I forced myself to look him in the eye as my throat constricted. "Jack, I'm not sure what's best. All I'm doing is just trying to keep everything together. I'm working to prevent this from becoming a complete catastrophe."

Jack's voice remained harsh, but his face softened. "You can't do this by yourself, Ethan. And you certainly can't keep lying to everyone around you, especially not to the people who want to help."

My annoyance flared, and I yelled, "I'm not asking for help. Jack, I never requested any of this. Running things the way I was was OK with me. I didn't want this mess."

Jack seemed almost sad as he shook his head. "Ethan, you are no longer alone in this. You may think you're protecting Emily, but you're putting her in even more danger by hiding the truth."

His comments weighed heavily on me, and I went silent. However, I was unable to completely agree and let go of the notion that, in some way, I was protecting her from Victor's world by keeping her in the dark.

"Ethan." Jack's tone had softened, becoming almost empathetic. "You and Victor are already deeply involved. You run a greater risk of losing everything your father built as well as yourself the more you attempt to play his game."

I averted my eyes, reluctant to look him in the eye. "I understand. I know, I assure you. But there was nothing my father built."

Jack sighed, a tired look on his face. "Ethan, this isn't going to end well. And if you keep going down this path, you're not just risking the business. You're risking the lives of everyone you care about."

His words replayed in my head, each one getting more profound and eating away at the resolve I had fought so hard to keep.