Chapter 6 - Shadows in the Forest
The next morning broke gray and misty, the storm clouds clearing just enough to let pale, watery sunlight filter through the dense pine canopy.
Outside, Orion’s cleanup crew had arrived—two discreet black SUVs parked quietly down the narrow dirt track. They worked with military precision, clearing away the debris, hauling Marcus Vance and his surviving goons away into the back of a transport van without leaving a single trace behind. By noon, the forest around the cabin was as silent and peaceful as it had been for the past three years.
Inside, Ren was busy boiling water for coffee, the rich, dark aroma filling the rustic kitchen.
Orion sat at the wooden table, going over encrypted messages on a secure satellite tablet. His clean-shaven jaw and fresh change of clothes—brought up by his security detail—restored his imposing, polished aura as the ruthless head of the Steel empire. Yet, every few minutes, his eyes drifted toward Ren as she moved quietly around the room.
"You don't have to keep staring at me like I'm a ticking bomb," Ren said without turning around, pouring hot water into two ceramic mugs.
"I'm not staring," Orion lied smoothly, locking the tablet screen. "I'm calculating."
"Calculating what? How much you owe me for gauze and stitches?" She walked over, setting a mug of black coffee down in front of him before leaning against the counter.
"I'm calculating how a woman with your surgical skill, your nerve, and your intelligence ended up living in a glorified log cabin chopping wood and talking to a mastiff," Orion replied, taking a slow sip of the bitter brew.
Ren stared down into her mug, her expression darkening. "People change their minds about the world, Mr. Steel. Sometimes the world breaks you so badly that the only way to put the pieces back together is to throw away the map."
"Who broke you, Ren?" he asked, his voice dropping into a low, hypnotic register that demanded an answer.
Before she could speak, a heavy thud echoed from the bedroom door.
Aldrich Steel appeared in the doorway, leaning heavily against the frame. He looked pale, but his eyes were bright and alert.
"The boy is right, my dear," Aldrich said, walking slowly toward them with the aid of a wooden cane Orion had carved for him that morning. "Secrets fester in the dark. And out here, you're sitting on a powder keg."
"What are you talking about?" Ren frowned.
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"Marcus Vance was just a symptom," Aldrich said, sinking slowly into a chair opposite Orion. "He didn't find us by accident. Someone inside the Seattle medical board leaked your old employment records to him three days ago. They were looking for leverage against Orion... and they stumbled right onto the nurse who vanished from St. Jude’s Memorial Hospital three years ago."
Ren froze. The mug slipped from her fingers, shattering against the wooden floorboards, hot coffee splashing everywhere.
