Chapter 6 - The Ghost from the Past
My knees nearly buckled.
Daniel hadn't aged a day since he betrayed me twelve years ago.
He still wore the same arrogant smirk, though his eyes were completely dead.
"Let the boy go, Daniel," I ordered, my voice surprisingly steady despite the terror ripping through my chest.
"He has nothing to do with this."
Daniel chuckled, pressing the blade slightly closer to Luis's trembling throat.
"Actually, he does," Daniel drawled smoothly.
"This brave little busboy overheard Walter telling his security team where your secret studio was."
"He tried to warn you, but my men caught him in the alley behind the hotel."
Ethan stepped in front of me, his fists clenched tight enough to turn his knuckles white.
"What do you want, Daniel?" Ethan demanded.
"You're Julian's lapdog now?"
"I am Julian's champion," Daniel corrected, his smile fading into a sneer.
"I am dancing for the Vance family in the tournament."
He shoved Luis forward.
The boy stumbled and fell onto the polished wooden floor, gasping in pain.
"Julian sent me to deliver a message," Daniel said, wiping the blade of his knife on his tailored slacks.
"Drop out of the competition, Ethan."
"If you show up on that floor, we won won't just break Claire's leg this time."
"We will break her neck."
Daniel turned and walked toward the shadowy rear exit of the warehouse.
Right before he stepped into the darkness, he looked back at me.
"Oh, and Claire?" he added mockingly.
"You should really ask your new partner what happened to his previous dancer."
He disappeared into the night, the heavy metal door clicking shut behind him.
I immediately dropped to the floor beside Luis, frantically untying the plastic zip-ties on his wrists.
"Are you okay?" I asked, checking his bruised face.
Luis nodded bravely, though tears were streaming down his cheeks.
"I'm sorry, Miss Claire," he choked out.
"They hit my mom."
"They said if I didn't tell them where Ethan's car was going, they would hurt her again."
A tidal wave of white-hot rage washed over me.
I stood up and slowly turned to face Ethan.
Ethan was staring at the ground, guilt radiating from every muscle in his body.
"What did Daniel mean?" I asked, my voice dangerously low.
"What happened to your last partner, Ethan?"
Ethan swallowed hard, refusing to meet my eyes.
"Her name was Sarah," he said quietly.
"We were favored to win the qualifiers last month."
"Three days before the event, the brakes on her car were cut."
"She didn't survive the crash."
I stepped back, as if he had just slapped me.
"You knew they were murdering people, and you still dragged me into this?" I screamed.
"I didn't have a choice!" Ethan yelled back, finally looking up with agonizing despair in his eyes.
"If I don't win this tournament, Julian takes the company, and he takes my little sister's trust fund."
"My sister needs a heart transplant, Claire."
"Julian is threatening to cancel her medical coverage the second he takes over."
I stared at him, the complex web of blackmail and death tangling completely around us.
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Before I could process the shock, the heavy steel doors of the warehouse violently blew inward.
Smoke and fire filled the room as heavily armed men in tactical gear poured through the breached entrance.
