12.Who is he?

Mia Miller.

I wake up with a start, my body drenched in sweat, my heart pounding as if I had just run a marathon. Looking around, I realize I’m safe, but the feeling of dread doesn’t leave me. It was just a nightmare, but the fear and anxiety remain alive inside me.

I dreamed of my son. Or rather, it wasn’t really a dream. It was a reflection of my worst fears, a painful reminder of everything that was at stake.

"My love, you’re going to be okay," I whisper, trying to convince myself as much as him. Lorenzo. My Lorenzo. The memory of the day he was born fills my mind, so sweet, so fragile. His tiny body fit in my hands like an extension of my own being. In the maternity ward, only my father was there, beaming with the idea of being a grandfather. He never judged me, he was just an incredible grandfather to Lorenzo, something I can never thank him enough for.

Sometimes, I find myself wondering how different my life would be if I had looked for Ethan earlier. Maybe Lorenzo would be safe, maybe I wouldn’t be in this desperate situation. But now, knowing who Ethan really is, I see that my son and I didn’t lose anything by staying away from him. He’s cold, controlling, and though he attracts me in a way I can’t explain, I know he’s not the man I want by my side.

I got out of bed with my muscles begging to stay there longer.

But I needed to wake up. I needed to know the news.

Ethan said he would take me to buy clothes. To be honest, I didn’t care about his clothes or his money; I just wanted to get out of here with my son. But remembering the contract he offered me, I was here, trapped, forever.

I dressed in the clothes that were in the room and went downstairs, trying to keep a neutral expression. Ethan was already waiting, as always, impeccably dressed and ready to go. He didn’t say a word, just motioned for me to follow him. The silence between us was almost deafening, filled with unresolved tensions and questions I was afraid to ask.

As we walked to the car, the feeling of being watched grew, and it wasn’t just by Ethan. It was as if the whole house, the entire environment, was alive and aware of my presence. Something was wrong there, very wrong, and I didn’t know how much longer I could hold on without falling apart.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"There’s a place where the kidnappers likely stopped. My men tracked them. I need you to see it up close; I wouldn’t know how to recognize any of the boy’s belongings."

I sighed.

"Okay."

"From there, I need to go to work. You’ll return with my driver, no funny business."

He was extremely irritating. I watched him get into the car, his leather jacket gleaming in the sun, his eyes were piercingly blue, and his hair was jet black. It was one of the things that made me give in to him.

Ethan was the last man I got involved with. Since discovering the pregnancy, I lived only for my father and my son.

The hope of finding clues was great, and I spent the entire ride thinking about it. Why hadn’t these kidnappers contacted us yet? Why did they take Lorenzo?

There were so many questions that my mind didn’t rest for a second.

I looked at Ethan Greenwood. He was silent, but there was something more behind him, something he wasn’t telling me. But before I could ask more, the car stopped in front of an isolated cabin in the forest.

"We’re here," he announced, getting out of the car and going to the trunk. I followed him, my breath quickening with the anxiety of what we might find. Ethan opened the trunk and took out flashlights, handing me one. "Let’s go," he said, not waiting for a response.

His security guards stayed at the door, keeping watch while we went in to take a closer look.

The cabin was old, with rotting wooden boards and dusty windows.

The place seemed abandoned for years, but when we entered, I noticed recent signs of activity. There were footprints in the dust on the floor, and some furniture was out of place, as if someone had ransacked the place.

I looked around, trying to find something that would give me hope, anything that indicated Lorenzo had been there. My heart was pounding out of control, and my mind was racing.

"Look at this," Ethan called my attention to a table in the corner of the room. There was something there, something small and familiar. I walked over to the table and saw Lorenzo’s favorite toy, a worn-out teddy bear. My vision blurred with tears, and my hand trembled as I picked up the bear.

"My son was here," I whispered, the pain tearing me apart inside.

Ethan placed a firm hand on my shoulder, a strange attempt at comfort. "We’ll find him. I give you my word, it’s one more clue. Now I know where they probably went."

I wanted to believe him, I desperately wanted to believe that Lorenzo would be in my arms soon, but something in Ethan’s eyes made me hesitate. There was something he was hiding, something I still couldn’t understand.

And then, out of nowhere, the ground beneath our feet began to shake. The sound of wood creaking echoed through the cabin, and a loud crack made me jump. Before I could react, part of the ceiling collapsed, and Ethan pulled me away, shielding my body with his. The impact was quick and brutal, and everything around us turned to chaos.

When the dust began to settle, I was in Ethan’s arms, my body protected by his. I looked up, still in shock, and saw his eyes glowing with something I couldn’t decipher.

Our breathing synchronized, and his mouth was so, so close…

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes... I think so," I replied, still trying to understand what had just happened.

He helped me stand, but before I could thank him, I noticed something strange. Ethan’s clothes were torn, but he didn’t seem hurt. There wasn’t a single scratch, no cut, nothing. Just his intense gaze, as if he were fighting something within himself.

What the hell was that?

The speed with which he grabbed me was inhuman.

"What... what are you?" I asked, staring directly into his eyes.

Ethan stared back at me for a moment, his eyes darkening. "You should stop asking so many questions, Mia Miller," he finally replied, his tone firm. "And now, we need to get out of here before this place collapses completely."

Without further explanation, he grabbed my hand and led me out of the cabin. The cold forest air hit me hard, and my mind was spinning with the possibilities of what Ethan could be.

Who, or what, was he?