The Warning Call
Richard Ashford's POV
The clock struck midnight, echoing through the vast silence of the Ashford mansion.
The old study smelled faintly of bourbon and paper — and something else. Unease.
Richard sat behind his mahogany desk, his spectacles resting low on his nose as he reviewed the financial reports that no longer made sense.
Something had been off for weeks — numbers shifting, funds missing, contracts unsigned by Elijah yet bearing his name.
He was about to pour another glass when his phone rang.
The caller ID made his chest tighten.
Voss.
He answered cautiously. "This had better be good."
Voss's voice came through the line — smooth, dangerous, far too calm.
"Richard. You've always been a man who values his family, haven't you?"
Richard's grip on the phone tightened. "What do you want?"
"A warning," Voss replied. "Tell your son to stay away from Starling… or you'll lose him. Permanently."
Richard's blood ran cold. "You threaten my son again, and I'll—"
"You'll what?" Voss interrupted. "You can't protect him from me, Richard. You never could. The moment he chose her, he sealed his fate."
The line went dead.
For a moment, Richard sat frozen, the only sound the faint ticking of the clock. Then, the glass in his hand shattered against the floor.
"Elijah…" he whispered.
He reached for his phone again, dialing his son's number.
No answer.
He tried again.
Still nothing.
Then the realization hit him like a punch to the chest — Elijah hadn't been home in over a week.
Richard rose from his chair in a rush, the chair scraping harshly against the marble floor. He was halfway to the door when voices echoed from the hallway.
"Father!" Matthew called, bursting into the study with Liam and Ray close behind.
"What is it?" Richard demanded.
Matthew's face was pale, his expression grave. "We just got a call from one of our people at the hospital…" He hesitated, then forced the words out. "Clara's dead."
Richard froze. "What?"
Ray nodded grimly. "She was shot earlier tonight. The killer's still unidentified."
The room went silent — a heavy, suffocating kind of silence.
Clara. The woman who'd been part of their lives for years, now gone without warning.
Richard's voice was low, steady, but dangerous. "Where did it happen?"
"At an abandoned warehouse outside the city," Liam said quietly. "They said Voss was seen leaving the area, but by the time security arrived, he'd vanished."
Richard exhaled, a muscle ticking in his jaw. "And Elijah?"
"No sign of him," Matthew replied. "But if Voss made contact…"
Richard slammed his fist against the desk. "Damn it!"
For a long moment, no one spoke.
The storm outside began to swell again, wind rattling against the old windows.
Then — the doorbell rang.
Three sharp chimes.
Everyone turned toward the sound.
Ray moved first. "I'll get it."
Moments later, he returned holding a small brown envelope and a sealed flash drive. His voice was tense. "Someone dropped this off. No name, no return address — just a note that says 'For Richard Ashford's eyes only.'"
Richard took it slowly, his gut twisting. "Where's the courier?"
"Gone," Ray said. "Didn't say a word. Just left it at the gate and drove off."
Richard placed the flash drive into his laptop. The screen flickered — and dozens of files appeared, all neatly labeled.
CLARA ASHFORD — OPERATIONS.
VOSS — FINANCIAL RECORDS.
SOLENART — ACQUISITION.
Liam leaned closer. "What the hell is this?"
Richard clicked on the first file.
A video appeared — grainy, from a security camera. Clara stood beside Voss, signing documents, whispering to men in dark suits as crates marked Ashford Holdings were loaded into trucks.
Ray swore under his breath. "She was working with him."
Richard clicked the next file — an audio recording.
Clara's voice came through the speakers, calm and cold.
"Once the Ashfords are out of the picture, you'll regain full control, Voss. Elijah's too loyal — he'll take the blame without question."
The words hit like a blade.
Richard's knuckles turned white as he gripped the desk.
"She betrayed us," he said quietly. "All this time, she was feeding him information — and using Elijah."
Matthew's face hardened. "Then her death wasn't random. Voss silenced her."
Richard opened one last document — this one marked PROJECT STARLING.
It contained bank transactions, coded messages, and a list of names tied to Voss's network.
And at the bottom — a handwritten note.
*If anything happens to me, it means Voss is done hiding. He'll go after Starling next.*
The signature was unmistakable.
Clara.
Liam whispered, "She knew. She tried to make it right before he killed her."
Richard shut the laptop with a decisive snap. "Too late."
He turned to his sons, his eyes burning with quiet fury.
"Listen carefully. Find Elijah. Find Starling. And don't let Voss reach them first."
Matthew nodded immediately. "Yes, Father."
"And one more thing," Richard added, his tone like ice.
"Cut every tie connected to Voss — the accounts, the contacts, everything. Burn his bridges before he burns ours."
The brothers exchanged grim looks and hurried out of the room, leaving Richard alone once more.
He stood by the window, staring into the dark, his reflection cold and unblinking in the glass.
Voss's warning replayed in his mind.
^~^ Tell your son to stay away from Starling, or you'll lose him.
Richard's grip tightened on the edge of the desk.
"You'll regret touching my family," he muttered under his breath.
Outside, thunder cracked — deep and violent — as if the sky itself echoed his rage.
And far away, in the heart of the storm, Voss was already watching.
...................
In the Shadow of the Truth
Voss's POV
The mansion was quiet — too quiet.
Voss stood before the tall glass windows of his office, the faint reflection of city lights casting cold shadows across his face. His phone buzzed once on the desk. He didn't need to check the name. He already knew.
He exhaled deeply, running a gloved hand down his face. "Clara…"
She'd been careless. Too emotional, too desperate to fix what couldn't be undone. Now she was gone — and the files she'd tried to use to protect herself had found their way into Richard Ashford's hands.
He turned sharply toward the man standing near the door — his most trusted aide.
"Tell me, Leon," Voss said calmly. "Who delivered that flash drive?"
Leon hesitated. "We're still tracing it, sir. The courier disappeared before our men arrived. But we suspect it was sent by someone close to Starling Hayes."
At the mention of Starling's name, a dark smile curved across Voss's lips.
"She always did have her mother's stubbornness."
He walked slowly toward his desk, fingers brushing across a faded photograph — Starling as a child, sitting beside a younger version of himself.
"She was never supposed to know the truth," he murmured. "None of them were."
Leon shifted uneasily. "Sir, if Ashford begins digging, he'll find everything. Your finances, the off-shore links, the medical—"
"I'm aware," Voss cut in coldly.
He turned back toward the window.
"Then we make sure they don't live long enough to finish the search."
Leon nodded, leaving without a word.
But Voss's thoughts lingered on Starling — the daughter who now stood on the opposite side of his war.
And the man who refused to let her go.
"Elijah Ashford," he murmured. "You've cost me enough. I won't lose her to you."
---
Elijah's POV
The rain hadn't stopped since dawn.
Elijah stood near the cracked window of the hideout, his arm still wrapped in a bandage that Starling had tied the night before. The faint smell of medicine and dust filled the air.
He turned when he heard footsteps behind him.
Starling walked in slowly, her expression heavy. Her eyes were tired — haunted.
"Elijah," she said softly. "You shouldn't be up."
"I can't just sit still," he replied. "We need to move before your father finds this place."
Her gaze dropped. "He already knows."
Elijah froze. "What?"
Starling swallowed hard. "He always knows. Wherever I go, whatever I do — he's one step ahead."
She took a deep breath. "I asked my mother if she ever loved him. She said she did, once… before he became the monster he is now. She didn't even know he was alive until recently."
Elijah stepped closer, brushing his fingers against her cheek. "We'll end this, Starling. He's not untouchable."
But she shook her head. "You don't understand. He's everywhere. My mother said he's been pulling strings behind every deal, even inside your father's company."
Elijah clenched his jaw. "Then we'll expose him. Whatever it takes."
Starling handed him a small flash drive — identical to the one that reached the Ashfords.
"I sent one to your family already," she said. "Rin helped me deliver it anonymously."
Elijah stared. "You—wait, you sent that?"
She nodded. "It's the only way they'll believe what's coming. My mother risked everything to steal that data from Voss. If he finds out…"
He caught her wrist gently. "Hey. Look at me."
She did — and he smiled faintly. "You're not alone. We'll fight him together."
For a long moment, neither spoke. Only the rain filled the silence.
Then Elijah said quietly, "What did your mother tell you before she…?"
Starling's lips trembled. "She said I was stronger than her. That she was sorry for hiding the truth about Voss. She said… if I ever had to choose between love and revenge—"
Her voice broke slightly. "—I should choose what keeps me alive."
Elijah's hand found hers. "Then choose us."
Starling met his gaze — and for the first time in days, her eyes softened.
But before she could answer, a sudden noise cut through the silence — the sound of engines outside.
Elijah's expression hardened. "We're not alone."
---
Voss's POV
Through the rain-blurred windshield, Voss watched the cabin come into view — one faint light burning through the darkness.
He exhaled slowly. "Found you."
He reached for his gun, sliding it into his coat.
"Sir, should we take them alive?" Leon asked.
Voss smiled coldly. "Only her."
Lightning flashed — and the storm swallowed the sound of his laughter.
---
Elijah's POV
"Elijah—" Starling started, but he held a finger to his lips.
He could hear it now — footsteps, wet gravel crunching under boots.
"Stay behind me," he whispered.
The next second, the door burst open.
Armed men stormed in. Gunfire shattered the quiet.
Elijah pushed Starling down, shielding her as bullets splintered the table.
Then came that voice — smooth, familiar, chilling.
"You can't run from me forever, Starling."
She looked up through the smoke.
Voss.
Alive. Smiling.
"Father…" she whispered.
He stepped forward, calm amid the chaos.
"I told you, little one. No one leaves me."
Elijah raised his gun. "Stay away from her."
Voss chuckled. "You're just like your father — brave, foolish, predictable."
A gunshot echoed. Voss stumbled back, but before Elijah could fire again — a blinding beam of light flooded the room from outside.
Engines roared. Tires screeched.
Then a powerful voice cut through the chaos.
"Elijah! Down!"
Richard Ashford.
Within seconds, black SUVs surrounded the cabin. Matthew leapt from the lead car, weapon drawn, shouting orders to the Ashford security men.
The firefight erupted — chaos, thunder, shouting.
Richard rushed in first, firing toward the mercenaries that flanked Voss. "Elijah, get her out of here!"
Starling stared in shock. "Your father—he—"
Elijah grabbed her hand. "Move!"
They ran for the back door as Matthew and two guards covered them, bullets flying in every direction.
Voss roared, "You think this ends here?"
Richard turned, eyes burning. "It ends the moment you touch my son again."
Another shot cracked the air — and Voss fell back as one of his men dragged him toward the getaway car.
Within seconds, the forest swallowed him and his convoy into darkness.
---
Starling's POV
The storm calmed only slightly when the gunfire faded.
Starling stood by the edge of the road, rain dripping down her face as Elijah held her close, both of them trembling — from cold, from shock, from everything.
Richard walked toward them, lowering his weapon. His voice was quiet but firm. "We're leaving. Now. Before he circles back."
Elijah nodded silently.
Starling looked back toward the forest, where the last echo of Voss's voice seemed to fade with the thunder.
She whispered, almost to herself, "He's not gone. He'll come again."
Richard turned to her. "Then we'll be ready."
As the rain poured harder, Elijah reached for her hand — and she didn't pull away.
For the first time in a long time, she didn't feel alone.