Crowded by Fire

The bar Cole had chosen was a far cry from the opulence Annalise was used to. It was tucked in the corner of a quiet street, dimly lit and sparsely populated. The kind of place where secrets were exchanged, not drinks. She hesitated at the door, questioning her sanity for the hundredth time before stepping inside.

Cole was at a booth in the back, nursing a whiskey and scrolling through his phone. He looked up as she approached, his gaze sharp and assessing.

"Fashionably late," he remarked.

"Strategically on time," she countered, sliding into the booth across from him.

He smirked, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Nice to see you're still sharp. You'll need that tonight."

"Enough games, Cole," Annalise said, leaning forward. "What's this 'lead' you're so eager to share?"

Cole reached into his jacket and pulled out a USB drive, sliding it across the table. "I had a contact dig through Ethan's financials. Turns out, our golden boy has been funneling money into offshore accounts under a shell corporation. He's hiding something big."

Annalise stared at the drive, her pulse quickening. "Do you know what he's hiding?"

"Not yet," Cole admitted. "But I do know this: the shell corporation's transactions lead back to Orion. If we can connect the dots, we'll have proof that Ethan's been laundering money—and using Madeline's family to cover his tracks."

Her fingers brushed the USB drive, but she didn't pick it up. "Why would he do that? Ethan has money. He doesn't need to launder anything."

Cole's expression darkened. "That's the part that doesn't add up. Either he's in deeper debt than anyone realizes, or he's funding something he doesn't want anyone to know about."

Annalise's stomach churned. "Something like what?"

"That's what we need to find out," Cole said. "But if we're going to do this, you need to be all in. No hesitations. No second-guessing."

She stared at him, weighing her options. Trusting Cole felt like striking a match in a room full of gasoline, but if what he was saying was true, Ethan wasn't just a liar—he was a criminal. And if she let him get away with it, he could destroy everything she'd built.

"I'm in," she said finally.

Cole's smirk returned, this time with a glimmer of approval. "Good. Because tonight, we're going hunting."

Later That Night

The address Cole had sent led them to a towering office building in downtown Los Angeles. It was sleek, modern, and, according to Cole, one of Orion Industries' lesser-known subsidiaries.

"Why are we here?" Annalise asked as they stepped into the elevator.

"Because this is where they keep the records Ethan doesn't want anyone to see," Cole said, pressing a button for the 27th floor.

"And how exactly do you plan to get those records?"

He shot her a sideways glance. "Let's just say I have a knack for persuasion."

The elevator doors opened to reveal a dark, empty office. Cole led the way, moving with the ease of someone who had done this before. Annalise followed, her heels clicking softly against the marble floor.

"Keep watch," Cole instructed, heading for a glass-walled conference room at the end of the hallway.

Annalise frowned. "Wait—what are you doing?"

"Retrieving the files," he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"How?"

He pulled a small device from his pocket, holding it up like a trophy. "Hacking the server."

She blinked. "You're a hacker now?"

"Multitalented," he said with a wink before disappearing into the room.

Annalise stayed by the door, her nerves on edge. The office was eerily silent, every creak of the building amplified in the stillness.

"Do you do this often?" she called out.

"Break into corporate offices?" Cole's voice was laced with amusement. "Not as much as you'd think. But sometimes the direct approach is the only one that works."

"And if we get caught?"

"Relax, Crane," he said, his tone maddeningly calm. "I've got this under control."

She was about to retort when a faint noise caught her attention—a soft shuffle, like footsteps on carpet. Her heart skipped a beat, and she turned toward the sound.

"Cole," she whispered urgently.

"What?"

"I think someone's here."

He appeared in the doorway, his expression sharp. "Stay here. I'll check it out."

"No way," she said, grabbing his arm. "We stick together."

Cole hesitated, then nodded. "Fine. Stay close."

They moved down the hallway, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife. The sound of footsteps grew louder, more distinct. Annalise's pulse thundered in her ears.

As they rounded the corner, they came face-to-face with a security guard.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" the guard demanded, his hand moving toward the radio on his belt.

Cole reacted instantly, stepping forward with a disarming smile. "Whoa, easy there. We're just here for a late-night meeting. Got locked out of the main office, and I was trying to figure out how to get back in."

The guard frowned. "I haven't heard about any meeting."

"It's all last-minute," Cole said smoothly, pulling out his phone. "Let me show you the email—"

Before he could finish, Annalise stepped forward, her expression icy. "Do you know who I am?"

The guard blinked, clearly taken aback.

"I'm Annalise Crane," she said sharply. "CEO of Novatek Industries. And if you don't want me calling your boss and questioning why his security team is harassing me, I suggest you step aside."

The guard hesitated, his gaze darting between her and Cole. Finally, he lowered his hand from his radio. "Apologies, ma'am. I didn't realize."

"Good," Annalise said, brushing past him with Cole in tow.

Once they were out of earshot, Cole let out a low whistle. "Remind me never to get on your bad side."

"Shut up and get the files," she snapped, her adrenaline still pumping.

The Discovery

Back in the conference room, Cole plugged the device into the server, his fingers flying over the keyboard. Annalise stood behind him, her anxiety mounting with each passing second.

"Got it," Cole said finally, pulling up a series of encrypted files.

"What are they?" she asked.

He clicked on one, and a spreadsheet appeared on the screen. It was a list of names, dates, and payments—millions of dollars funneled into accounts tied to shady organizations.

"Is this what I think it is?" Annalise asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Looks like Ethan's been funding something illegal," Cole said grimly. "And if I'm reading this right, it's tied to offshore arms deals."

Her stomach dropped. "Arms deals?"

"Among other things," he said, scrolling through the files. "This isn't just corporate greed. This is criminal."

Annalise felt a wave of nausea. Ethan wasn't just a liar or a cheat—he was a monster.

"What do we do now?" she asked, her voice trembling.

Cole looked at her, his expression deadly serious. "We use this to destroy him. But we'll have to move fast. If Ethan finds out we have this, he'll come after us."

"And if he does?"

Cole's smirk returned, but this time it was cold and dangerous. "Then we hit back harder."

Annalise nodded, her resolve hardening. Ethan Donovan had made a mistake when he betrayed her. Now, it was her turn to make him pay.