Chapter 5 The Ties That Bind

Grace's hands were cold as she looked at the phone, Henry's message weighing heavily on her like a smothering cloud. Lucas was staring at her intently, but she couldn't force herself to look him in the eyes. Not yet. Not when the whole truth was about to revealed, frightening the ruin all they'd begun to restore.

She breathed in, her throat stiff. The stillness between them was lengthy, filled with unsaid words. Lucas hadn't said anything since reading Henry's note, and Grace wasn't sure if his silence was an indication of patience or imminent calamity.

"You're not pulling out, are you?" Lucas' voice was soft and controlled, but it had an edge that made Grace's pulse jump a beat.

"I-I am not sure what you'd like me to say," Grace said, her voice barely audible.

He moved closer, his aura filling the room.

"I want you to tell me everything, Grace. All of it. You owe me that."

She flinched at the sharpness in his tone, but it was the truth. She did owe him the truth. He had a right to know, especially after everything they had been through.

"Lucas..." She sighed, closing her eyes. "I don't know where to start."

He sat next to her, leaning slightly forward, his gaze softening as he observed her.

"Start with Henry. What's he threatening you with?"

Grace took a deep breath, preparing herself for the confession she had been holding off for years. "Henry... is not the person you believe he is. He's not just some business partner-he was involved in everything. My father's financial mess, the shady deals... He played me. I was so preoccupied with my family's legacy that I failed to recognize what he had been doing to me."

Lucas scrunched his brows. "But you didn't know about it?"

"No, Lucas." I didn't know, "she replied while shaking her head." He involved me in everything. It began as a business, but soon turned personal. He made me think I was assisting him, that we establishing something together. But I was a pawn. A tool."

Lucas's lips pressed into a thin line. "So Henry's been blackmailing you all this time?"

"Yes," she replied quietly. "But it is beyond that. He isn't only blackmailing me. He's using my family's name, my father's debt, to control me. To make me do things I never wanted to do. The worst part is... I helped him. "I didn't realize it at that point, but I played directly into his hands." "Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Lucas' voice was gentle and practically too soft.

Grace stared at the floor. "I was ashamed, Lucas. I believed I was capable of doing it myself. I felt I could save you from it. And I didn't want you to think I was... like them."

There it was. The truth she had been hiding. The one she had buried so deep, afraid that it would make Lucas see her as weak, as a victim. But worse, she was afraid that it would make him see her as just another person willing to play dirty to win.

"I never thought you were like them," Lucas said, his voice full of quiet conviction. "But I needed to hear it from you. I needed to know who you were, Grace. What you're really up against."

Grace eventually glanced up at him and met his eyes. His eyes reflected something she hadn't witnessed in a long time: trust. Not naïve, naive trust, but the type that comes after a long struggle and is based on a common understanding.

And then, just as the gravity of his words began to set in, her phone rang again.

This time, the message was brief and cold, but it made her catch cold

"You can't avoid the truth, Grace. I am well aware of your family's filthy little secrets.

"You can't run from the truth, Grace. I know everything about your family's dirty little secrets. If you don't come to me, I will expose them all. And Lucas will never trust you again."

Grace' heart pounded in her chest. She felt the walls closing in again. Henry wasn't just playing games anymore. He was threatening everything.

"I need to leave," she said frantically, her voice quivering. "I need to meet him. Now."

Lucas stood up quickly, his hand on her arm before she could move. "You don't need to go to him. Whatever he's threatening, I'll handle it. I won't let him destroy you."

But Grace couldn't shake off her fear of approaching disaster. She realized that if she didn't confront Henry immediately, all she'd tried to hide would be revealed. She wasn't sure what Henry had planned, but she couldn't allow him win.

"I have to. "There's only one way to defeat him," she continued, her voice steady despite the horror she felt within. She nodded her head. "You don't understand. He has too much power over me."

"You think I can't handle him?" Lucas's voice had a dangerous edge now. "I've taken down worse men than him, Grace."

"I'm not referring to him, Lucas," she replied, her voice stopping in her throat. "I'm referring to myself. About everything he knows."

She could see the conflict in Lucas's eyes, the desire to protect her fighting against the reality of what Henry could do. And, just for a moment, Grace allowed herself to believe that he might really be able to protect her.

But the reality was, no one could save her from what Henry knew.

Lucas took a long breath, obviously attempting to contain his emotions. "If you go to see him, I will accompany you.

Whether you like it or not."

Grace looked at him, her heart hammering. She had never wanted him to get mixed up in her mess. She wanted to defend him and keep him out of it. But at this instant, she realized she could not battle it alone. She had made too many mistakes, and now, Henry was threatening everything.

"Alright," she whispered. "But we have to do this carefully. I can't trust him, Lucas. He'll use anything against me."

Lucas nodded, determination flashing in his eyes. "Then we'll make sure he is unsuccessful."

Grace and Lucas waited in the corridor, the prospect of what was soon to take place weighing heavily on them.

Grace had one last chance to take control of the situation-before Henry revealed everything. But she wasn't convinced whether Lucas was capable of protecting her from the reality.

As they went out into the dark hours of the night, a black SUV arrived outside of the mansion. The door flung wide, unveiling none other than Henry Lawson.

"Grace," he said with a smirk, his eyes narrowing as he took in the sight of Lucas standing beside her. "You didn't think you could hide forever, did you?"