The Tycoon Heir

Chapter 6: Live and Let Die

Nathan stood transfixed, staring out the window as the mob outside the house seemed to emanate menace, their intentions clear, as they made their way toward the front door. Every fiber of his being was screaming at him to run, but his legs refused to move.

Dr. Hayes was calm, though. She tugged on his arm and jerked him from the window. "Nathan, we don't have time for fear. Follow me!"

"What are we going to do?" Nathan stuttered, his mind racing. "They'll kill us both!

Her eyes, older and sharper, met his and held steady. "Listen to me. If they've come, it means they've bypassed or otherwise disabled your father's failsafe. They no longer have a need for you alive. You are in danger, Nathan."

The chill ran down his spine, but he made himself focus. "What about you? Why are you so calm?

She gave him a sad smile. “Because I’ve made my peace with what’s coming. You, on the other hand, still have a chance.”

Dr. Hayes led him deeper into the house, her steps quick but measured. She stopped at a far corner of the small living room, where an old cabinet stood against the wall. She pushed it aside with surprising strength, revealing a narrow, dark passage behind it.

This leads out to an alleyway behind the house," she said, her tone urgent but calm. "It's not much, it'll get you far enough to disappear."

Nathan stared hard into the opening, his heart thudding in his chest. "Why are you doing this? Why not come with me?

She shook her head, her eyes showing a trace of regret. "I've done enough to ruin your life, Nathan. I erased your memories, made you doubt yourself, and allowed those people to control you. This is my chance to make things right, even if just a little."

"You don't have to stay," Nathan said, his voice breaking. "You can still fix this.

Dr. Hayes placed a hand on his shoulder, her grip firm. “I’ve already made my choice. My part in this story ends here. Yours is just the beginning.”

Nathan struggled to find the right words, but nothing came. He felt a strange mix of gratitude, guilt, and helplessness.

“Go,” she said firmly. “Don’t waste the chance I’m giving you.”

She turned and started toward the living room. Nathan caught her arm. "Wait," he said, his voice shaking. "What if I don't make it? What if they find me?"

Dr. Hayes paused, looking back at him with a flicker of hope in her tired eyes. "You're stronger than you think, Nathan. You have your father's blood. Trust yourself.

She had spun about and disappeared into the lounge before he could get a word out. Nathan just stood there for a moment, his ears tracking the sound of her feet, fading. He squeezed his fists and made himself move, stepping into the dark hallway.

Dropping into a crouch, he began crawling through the narrow space, heard the front door burst open, voices yelling. He felt a cold panic grasp him, yet he urged himself on, the weight of Dr. Hayes's sacrifice heavy on his shoulders.

Coming out into the alley, cool night air struck his face as if to wake him. He looked back at the house, with guilt gnawing at him, but there was no time for faltering. He turned and ran, disappearing into the shadows.

The movement in Nathan's legs forced another step and another step without choice, cold night wrapping him. His heart ran against his chest, shallow gasps for air came more frequently than normal, his thoughts a hurricane inside of him: 'They don't need you anymore. They don't need you alive, and that puts you in danger.

He had no plan in place, and every step farther from the house made the life of a person very vulnerable to the unknown. Suddenly, when his hand touched the rear pocket of his trousers, it felt like something was wrong in his pocket. He paused behind an alley, panting, reaching inside and pulling out a folded piece of paper.

It was a note small and in haste.

"Access your father's legacy. Admin office, HQ. Put your fingerprint on the portal. Trust yourself."

Nathan's breath caught. His father's legacy? The words lanced through his chest in curiosity, anger, and a healthy dose of disbelief. Why now? Why after everything? For years, he had been a punching bag, a scapegoat, a shadow of the man he could have been. Now, in this very moment, he was being told that he did have a purpose, something to claim.

The skin bubbled with anger as the note was clutched. His father had left him something. Something worth dying for  he considered bitterly. But that got readily sobered by this strange and sudden will. For the very first time in years, this was his decision, rather than being at someone else's behest.

He flagged a passing cab down. The driver eyed him with suspicion as he got aboard, disheveled and frantic.

Where to?" asked the driver.

Nathan hesitated, then said firmly, "Headquarters of the Voss Corporation."

The driver raised an eyebrow but didn't ask questions. As the city lights blurred past the window, Nathan's thoughts raced.

What could my father have left me? Why would he leave it hidden in a place like that?

His feelings were jumbled up in his mind once happy, once angry, just angry with himself for having wasted so much of his life thinking that he was worthless; angry at his wife and her family for using him as a pawn. Still, there was a flicker of happiness, too for once, he felt like he was more than a background character in someone else's story.

And then there was freedom: sweet, bitter, intoxicating freedom.

As the taxi pulled up to the towering headquarters of the Voss Corporation, a shiver ran down Nathan's spine. He had been inside this building before, and it was both exhilarating and terrifying to be about to enter the place that had so long served as the source of so much suffering.

"Keep the change," he muttered, flicking a few bills at the driver before getting out.

The lobby was grand and imposing with marble floors and towering glass walls. Nathan's heart raced as he walked inside, the echo of his footsteps in the great space.

"Can I help you?" the receptionist asked suspiciously.

Nathan didn't say another word. He stepped right past her, his gaze onto the elevators. Quite a number of the people turned their heads as he walked by, whispering to one another. Nathan seemed to ignore them, already fixated on the admin office.

As he was reaching the elevator, a burst of adrenaline well and truly coursed through him. Finally, he was taking control.

But then, right as the doors of the elevator slid open, a voice popped out clear as day.

He turned to see his boss, her face twisted in rage. "What the hell are you doing here? After everything you've done, you've got the audacity to show your face?"

Nathan's jaw tightened. "I don't have time for this."

"Time for what? Embezzling more money? You're pathetic!" she spat, stepping closer. "I always knew you were …”

She never finished because, before another word could escape her lips, Nathan's fist connected with her face. She stumbled backward as shock morphed into fury. He didn't stop. He hit her again, and again, the years of frustration finally bursting free with every punch.

Then, he heard the unmistakable sound of heels on the marble floor. His heart fell as he turned to see his wife entering the building, her expression cold and calculating.

Time is running out.

Nathan spun and ran up the stairs, the ache in his legs and burning of his chest forgotten. Just ahead now was the office. He flung the door open; his eyes scanned the space for the portal.

There it was-a sleek, metallic panel embedded in the wall, pulsing faintly. He rushed to it, his trembling hand reaching out.

But before his fingers could reach it, a shot went off in the air.

Pain exploded in his arm as a bullet went through his flesh. He screamed, hitting the floor, his hand slipping from the portal as a smudge of blood trailed after it.

Above him, Nathan saw his wife standing at the door with a gun in her hand, a smug smile on her face.

Did you really think you could outsmart us, Nathan?" she sneered, taking a step closer. "You're nothing. You've always been nothing."

Nathan laughed-a bitter, hollow sound that echoed through the room.

"What's so funny?" she demanded, the gun aimed at his head.

"I just realized…," Nathan said, his voice weak but defiant. "You're afraid of me. That's why you're doing this. Because you know, deep down, I'm more than you'll ever be."

She had her face screwed up in anger, pulling the trigger.

The world went black.

In that darkness, Nathan's body was floating-weightless, numb. And then, in that void, he heard one clear voice: "Do you want to live?" 

The words in space wavered like the thinnest of lights.

Nathan had hesitated, his mind racing. At that moment, every instant of his life flashed before him. Ridicule, pain, betrayal  and yet hope, those faint glimmers of purpose that kept him going.

YES or NO.

Louder this time, and Nathan firmed his fists, resolution congealing within.

"Yes," he whispered.