2026-02-02 08:13:47The SUV stayed two car lengths behind him. Not close enough to be aggressive. Not far enough to be coincidence.
Ethan merged smoothly into traffic, posture relaxed, hands steady on the wheel. Speed didn’t change. Breathing didn’t change. Panic was loud, and he had already buried loud things.
The encrypted phone vibrated once. Unknown: Confirm tail.
Ethan checked the rearview mirror casually, like any bored commuter. Headlights. Same grille. Same patience. Confirmed, he typed.
Good. Don’t lose them.
Ethan’s lips twitched. So this was the lesson. He turned left at the next light. The SUV followed. Right turn. Followed.
Three blocks later, Ethan slowed just enough to let a taxi slide between them. The SUV adjusted instantly. Professional.
The city stretched out around him, late-night Lagos energy still alive. Street vendors closing up. Music bleeding from open windows. Neon signs flickering like tired eyes.
Ethan didn’t rush. He let the SUV believe it had control. The phone buzzed again. ''They’re mapping you. Let them.''
Ethan pulled into a busy fuel station and parked beside a pump. He stepped out, stretched like a man killing time.
The SUV rolled past the entrance. Didn’t stop. Didn’t need to. Ethan paid in cash, didn’t buy fuel, just a bottle of water. The attendant didn’t question it.
Back in the car, he waited ten seconds. Then he pulled out. The SUV reappeared in his mirror almost immediately. Good reflexes, Ethan thought.
The phone vibrated. ''What do you notice?''
Ethan scanned details. No plates on the front. Tinted windows too dark to be legal. No attempt to intimidate. They want information, not confrontation, he typed.
Correct. Which means you’re valuable.
Ethan’s jaw tightened slightly. Value always came with expectations. He drove toward the industrial district, long roads, fewer witnesses. The SUV stayed disciplined.
At a red light, a motorcycle squeezed between lanes, engine screaming. For a second, the SUV was blocked. Ethan rolled forward slowly.
The light turned green. He accelerated just enough to widen the gap. The SUV surged, engine growling. Ethan smiled faintly. Still chasing. The phone buzzed.
Don’t test them too hard. You’re not ready.
Ethan turned down a narrower road lined with shuttered warehouses. Streetlights were spaced too far apart, leaving long stretches of shadow.
The SUV hesitated. Then followed. Ethan slowed. The SUV slowed. He stopped. The SUV stopped thirty meters back. Silence pressed in. Ethan cut the engine.
The SUV’s engine stayed on. The phone buzzed. This is where most people panic.
Ethan stared through the windshield. “I’m not most people,” he murmured.
He stepped out of the car. The SUV’s headlights flicked brighter. A door opened. A man stepped out slowly. Tall. Broad shoulders. No weapon visible
. Calm in the way men were calm when they expected obedience. “Wrong place to break down,” the man said.
Ethan closed his door quietly. “Car’s fine.”
“Then you’re lost.”
“No,” Ethan replied. “I stopped.”
The man studied him. “You don’t look scared.”
Ethan shrugged. “Should I be?”
The man smiled slightly. “Depends on how attached you are to your name.”
Ethan tilted his head. “Which one?”
The smile vanished. The phone buzzed in Ethan’s pocket. ''Say nothing else.''
The man took a step closer. “You disappeared fast, Mr. Hale.”
Ethan didn’t react. “I said”
“I heard you,” Ethan interrupted calmly. “I’m just deciding if you deserve a response.”
The man laughed once. “Careful.”
“Why?” Ethan asked. “You followed me. Not the other way around.”
A second man stepped out of the SUV. Shorter. Watching everything. “You’re not as broken as we were told,” the first man said.
“Who told you anything?” Ethan asked.
The man ignored the question. “People like you don’t vanish without help.”
Ethan nodded slowly. “People like you don’t tail strangers without permission.”
Silence tightened. The first man studied Ethan’s face like he was reading fine print. “What do you want?” the man asked.
Ethan met his eyes. “You’re the ones watching me. You tell me.”
A beat passed. Then the man smiled again. This time, with interest. “Maybe we’re watching to see what you’ll do,” he said.
Ethan exhaled softly. “You’re late.”
The man’s brow creased. “Late for what?”
“For relevance.”
The phone buzzed again. ''Enough.''
Ethan took a step back. “I’m leaving now.”
The man laughed. “That wasn’t a request.”
Ethan’s gaze hardened. “Neither is this.”
He turned, walked back to his car, and got in. The SUV’s engine revved. The second man muttered, “Let him go.”
“What?” the first man snapped.
“He’s not bluffing,” the second man said quietly. “And he’s not alone.”
The first man hesitated. Ethan started the engine. He drove off slowly. The SUV didn’t follow. Across town, Maya paced barefoot across the living room. “This is ridiculous,” she said. “No one just disappears.”
Lucas leaned against the counter, amused. “You’re giving him too much credit.”
Caleb sat silently, scrolling his phone. “You’re quiet,” Maya snapped.
Caleb looked up. “I’m thinking.”
“About what?”
“About how calm he was,” Caleb said. “When you told him to leave.”
Lucas laughed. “Calm men break.”
Caleb shook his head. “No. Calm men decide.”
Maya froze. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Caleb stood. “It means I think we underestimated him.”
Maya scoffed. “Derick?”
“Yes,” Caleb said firmly. “Derick.”
Her phone buzzed. Unknown number. She hesitated, then answered. “Hello?”
Silence. Then, “Tell Lucas to stop using my couch.”
Maya’s blood ran cold. “Derick?” she whispered.
The line went dead. She stared at the phone. Lucas frowned. “What?”
Maya swallowed. “Nothing.”
Caleb’s eyes widened. “Who was that?”
“No one,” she said too quickly.
But her hands were shaking. Ethan parked beneath an overpass and shut off the engine. The phone buzzed immediately. Well done.
They weren’t amateurs, Ethan typed.
No. They were curious.
Ethan leaned back. “About what?”
About who made you invisible.
Ethan stared at the concrete above him. ''And now?''
''Now they’ll talk, And when people talk, we listen.''
Ethan closed his eyes briefly. He didn’t feel triumphant. He felt… aligned. The phone buzzed again. Next task incoming. You won’t like it.
Ethan smiled faintly. “I didn’t do this to be comfortable,” he said.
The message appeared. ''You’ll attend Maya’s social circle. As someone else.''
Ethan’s smile faded. ''That’s impossible.''
No, the reply came. ''That’s the point.''
Ethan opened his eyes. The city hummed around him, unaware that something had shifted—quietly, permanently. Derick Hale was gone.
Ethan Black had just been noticed. And attention, once earned, never came without consequences.
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CHAPTER 9 — WHEN GHOSTS BLEED
The engine growled as Ethan pushed the car past its comfort. Red lights blurred into streaks. The city bent around him, familiar roads turning sharp and narrow as he cut through traffic with ruthless precision.He didn’t use sirens. Didn’t need them. Fear cleared paths faster than authority ever could. Jonas’s voice crackled through the earpiece. “Teams are five minutes out.”“Too long,” Ethan replied.“You’re not equipped for direct engagement.”Ethan turned hard onto Maya’s street. “I’m equipped for inevitability.”Silence followed. Jonas knew better than to argue now. Ethan parked three buildings down, engine still running.He stepped out, jacket unzipped, movements unhurried. Anyone watching would mistake him for another late-night passerby. That mistake would cost them.He crossed the street, eyes scanning reflections, windows, parked cars, puddles of old rain. The building loomed ahead, lights dark except for one apartment on the third floor. Maya’s.The front door was ajar. Eth
CHAPTER 8 — THE PRICE OF BEING HEARD
Lucas liked to talk when he felt safe. Ethan had learned that years ago, back when Lucas still borrowed money and promised repayment with dramatic sincerity.Now, safety looked different. It was confidence inflated by victory, by the belief that Derick Hale was dead and buried. That belief made men sloppy.The feed played silently on the wall. Lucas paced his apartment, phone pressed to his ear, drink in his other hand. His laughter was loud, careless.The kind that came from thinking the storm had passed. Jonas watched Ethan from the corner of his eye. “We can mute the audio if you want.”“No,” Ethan said.Jonas nodded to a technician. Sound filled the room. “…telling you, man, it’s clean,” Lucas said. “No body, no mess. Guy just cracked. Happens all the time.”Ethan’s jaw tightened, just a fraction. Jonas leaned closer. “You recognize the voice on the other end?”Ethan listened. The voice was distorted, filtered, but the cadence was sharp. Professional. Curious. “No,” Ethan said. “B
CHAPTER 7 — ECHOES PEOPLE CAN’T EXPLAIN
Ethan didn’t leave immediately. That was the first deviation. He stood just outside the building, under the wash of white security lights, letting the city’s night air cool his skin.The rooftop’s laughter still echoed faintly above him, distorted by glass and height. The phone vibrated.Unknown: You were instructed to exit.Ethan typed with one hand. ''I did. I just didn’t vanish.''A pause. ''Careful.''Ethan slipped the phone into his pocket and stepped into the street. He walked instead of driving. That was the second deviation.The city rewarded walkers with truths drivers missed, arguments spilling out of bars, quiet deals in shadows, the real rhythm beneath curated noise.Ethan moved with the crowd, head down, posture unremarkable. His reflection appeared in a shop window. Adrian Cole looked comfortable. That disturbed him.A familiar voice cut through the air behind him. “Hey.”Ethan didn’t turn. The voice came closer. “Adrian.”He stopped. Caleb stood a few feet away, jacket
CHAPTER 6 — A FACE THAT DOESN’T EXIST
The file arrived at 4:03 a.m. Ethan was still under the overpass, engine off, city noise muffled by concrete and distance. The encrypted phone vibrated once, no warning, no urgency.He opened it. Identity Packet — ACTIVEA face appeared first. Not his. Mid-thirties. Clean haircut. Forgettable in a way that felt intentional. The kind of face people remembered only after it left the room, and even then, vaguely.Name: Adrian ColeOccupation: Independent logistics consultantHistory: Plausible. Boring. Verified.Digital Footprint: Eight years. Clean.Social Access Level: ModerateFlags: NoneEthan scrolled. Bank accounts. Rental history. Travel stamps. A handful of photos at networking events. Smiling beside people who didn’t matter. “Adrian Cole,” Ethan murmured.The phone buzzed. Unknown: Say it.Ethan didn’t hesitate. “I’m Adrian Cole.”Good.Tonight, you’ll attend a gathering, Invitation already sent.Ethan frowned. To who?The reply came with a location pin. His old world. Maya’s wo
CHAPTER 5 — WHEN SHADOWS MOVE
The SUV stayed two car lengths behind him. Not close enough to be aggressive. Not far enough to be coincidence.Ethan merged smoothly into traffic, posture relaxed, hands steady on the wheel. Speed didn’t change. Breathing didn’t change. Panic was loud, and he had already buried loud things.The encrypted phone vibrated once. Unknown: Confirm tail.Ethan checked the rearview mirror casually, like any bored commuter. Headlights. Same grille. Same patience. Confirmed, he typed.Good. Don’t lose them.Ethan’s lips twitched. So this was the lesson. He turned left at the next light. The SUV followed. Right turn. Followed.Three blocks later, Ethan slowed just enough to let a taxi slide between them. The SUV adjusted instantly. Professional.The city stretched out around him, late-night Lagos energy still alive. Street vendors closing up. Music bleeding from open windows. Neon signs flickering like tired eyes.Ethan didn’t rush. He let the SUV believe it had control. The phone buzzed again.
CHAPTER 4 — WATCHING WITHOUT BEING SEEN
The house hadn’t changed. That was the first thing Ethan noticed. Same porch light flickering like it always had.Same wind chimes Maya insisted were “calming.” Same white curtains that never quite closed all the way. Comfort preserved. Like nothing had happened.Ethan sat in the parked car across the street, engine off, hands resting loosely on the steering wheel. The encrypted phone lay face-up beside him, dark and silent. Observe. Do not engage.He watched Maya move through the living room, phone pressed to her ear, pacing in slow circles. “No, Victor, I don’t care how it looks,” she said, voice faint through the glass. “I want to know where he is.”She stopped pacing. Listened. Scoffed. “Don’t tell me to be patient. He doesn’t just disappear.”Ethan tilted his head slightly. She still believed she mattered enough to be chased. Caleb appeared from the hallway, rubbing his face.He took the phone from her hand.“Victor,” Caleb said, lowering his voice, “look… if he’s gone, isn’t that
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