Chapter 12 - The HeirThe cemetery became a battlefield.
Ruiz ordered everyone to take cover.
Bullets struck gravestones.
Richard grabbed Ethan and pulled him behind a mausoleum.
Claire crawled beside them.
Daniel pressed himself against the stone wall.
Thomas watched from the church roof.
He wasn't shooting.
He didn't need to.
His men were doing it for him.
“He wants Ethan alive,” Richard shouted.
Ruiz looked at him.
“How do you know?”
“Because that's always been the plan.”
“What plan?”
Richard looked toward Ethan.
“The Heir.”
Another explosion shook the cemetery.
Richard continued.
“Morrow built the organization around one belief.”
Ethan stared.
“What belief?”
“That power can be inherited.”
“Through blood?”
“Through proof.”
Richard explained that Morrow had collected genetic samples from politicians, billionaires, criminals, judges, and corporate leaders.
The goal was to identify their biological heirs.
Then control them.
Blackmail them.
Replace them.
Ethan's hands shook.
“And I'm connected to who?”
Richard stared at Daniel.
“Tell him.”
Daniel looked broken.
“Your grandfather.”
Ethan blinked.
“Who was he?”
Daniel swallowed.
“Arthur Vale.”
Ruiz stiffened.
She knew the name.
Arthur Vale had once been one of the richest men in the country.
He died before Ethan was born.
His fortune vanished after a family scandal.
“He had no surviving heirs,” Ruiz said.
Daniel shook his head.
“He did.”
Ethan.
Claire looked away.
“Your father was Arthur's illegitimate son,” Richard said.
Ethan's mouth went dry.
“And Morrow wants the inheritance?”
Richard shook his head.
“That's only part of it.”
“What else?”
Richard looked toward the church.
“Morrow wants the evidence that Arthur left behind.”
A loudspeaker crackled.
Thomas spoke.
“Richard.”
Richard raised his head.
“You're wasting time.”
Thomas continued.
“Ethan is not your enemy.”
Richard laughed bitterly.
“I know.”
Thomas smiled.
“Then bring him to me.”
Richard looked at Ethan.
“Do you trust me?”
“No.”
Richard nodded.
“You shouldn't.”
Then he shoved Ethan into a hidden passage beneath the mausoleum.
Claire screamed.
Richard slammed the door.
Ethan landed on stone steps.
Darkness surrounded him.
He looked up.
“Richard!”
No answer.
Claire's voice echoed from above.
“Ethan!”
Then another voice.
Thomas.
“Come down.”
Ethan's stomach dropped.
A light switched on at the bottom of the stairs.
Thomas stood waiting.
Behind him was a steel door.
And beside the door was a child.
A boy.
Twelve years old.
Same face.
Same eyes.
Same scar beneath the eyebrow.
Ethan stared.
The boy stared back.
May you like
Thomas smiled.
“Meet your brother.”
