Chapter 2 The Catalyst

Lila stood at The Willow's Nook door, sunlight warming her face as she stared after the man who evidently owned her family's store. Confusion mingled with the smog of burning anger she could not quite articulate. Her grandmother had never said anything about selling the bookstore. Annalize always spoke about it as if it were an extension of her life-something she could never let go.

As the man disappeared around the corner, Lila stepped back into the building, closing the door behind her by the jangle of the bell above it. She leaned her back against the wood and let out a shaky breath. The eyes were burning with an urge to cry, yet there were no tears. She had used them all in the glowing weeks following her grandmother's death. Now only that protesting hollow ache of ambiguity remained.

She scanned the room. The sun streamed through the large windows, and the golden light fell on the shelves she had just cleaned. It was almost as if the store was saying to her, don't give up; fight for what you and your grandma loved. But how can one fight if one doesn't know where to begin?

Lila walked through the room and sat on the stool behind the counter, elbows bent on worn wood while she rested her chin in her hands as her mind searched. Who bought it? And why did her grandmother sell it without a word? Questions. That's all she had to console herself with. No answers.

Far across the city, in the heart of it was a man in a corner office that had views of sprawling glass and steel. It was a pristine room, clearly bearing the hallmarks of minimalism defined as luxury. Dominating the space was a mahogany desk, reflecting like glass in its polish, with sleek black chairs on either side. Along the walls were bookshelves, brimming with leather-bound tomes with neat, meticulous arranging. Everything shouted power and control.

Seated behind the desk was Grayson Wolfe, CEO of Wolfe Enterprises. The sharp, angular planes of his features were as chiseled as that skyline behind him. His dark hair, simply edged back, showed not the faintest iota of gray, and yet suggested an air of sophistication. He had piercing gray eyes and extremely strong, dark lashes. His jaw, set perpetually, expressed something that might hint at having been a bit unyielding. He was undeniably handsome but as cold as ice. He was a man who calculated and measured the world in terms of assets and liabilities.

Grayson leaned back in his chair, his long fingers beaded before his chin while he stared at the sheets gleaming on his computer screen. All those numbers meant a lot to him, but at the same time nothing. They signified achievement, advancement, and control-the bases upon which his empire was built. But while reading them, his mind was apparently elsewhere, anchored to memory, to a spot he had tried so hard to forget.

Willow's Corner.

The intercom on his desk crackled to life, followed by a voice that was calm and professional. "Mr. Wolfe and Elliot Hayes are here to see you."

Grayson straightened up, and his expression hardened even further. "Send him in."

Elliot Hayes, a loyal aide and trusted ally who had just entered, was in his late thirties, with a finely trimmed beard and a perpetual air of effectiveness. One arm has a leather folder, another has a tablet.

"Grayson," Elliot takes up like that, evenly formal as always, "I just have to give you confirmation. "The purchase of Willow's Corner has been concluded, and the deed with the ancillary documents is presently being processed."

Grayson nodded his head once, his expression revealing nothing. "Good."

Elliot hesitated, studying his boss for a moment before continuing. "If I may ask, why this particular interest in such an old, abandoned place? Willow's Corner is well outside our usual projects. And for Project X specifically-"

"It fits the parameters," Grayson cut in, his tone crisp.

Elliot raised an eyebrow but did not dwell on it. Instead, he flipped the folder open and extracted a few pages. "Well, there is another complication. Most of the owners in Willow's Corner have agreed to sell, but some have stood their ground. The highest profile in that list is The Willow's Nook, literally at the heart of the site. And it's owned by a person called Lila Bennett."

The jaw of Grayson tightened at the name of the bookstore, but he quickly covered it up. Leaning forward, he propped his elbows on the desk as he leveled an intense stare at Elliot. "She's not going to sell?"

Elliot nodded. "It seems so. She's been living here since her grandmother passed away, and from what we've learned, she has no intention of letting go of the place. "It's central to the project, though, so if we want to move forward, we're going to have to convince her."

Grayson sank back in his chair while his mind went through the information. He had known there would be opposition-it was always in these kinds of projects. But The Willow's Nook was more than that to him: it was a place he had purposely buried from his past, a relic from a time he had worked so hard to forget.

He detested Willow's Corner. The cobbled streets, the quaint feel, the suffocating small-town gossip-all of it contributed to a life he ran away from. The Willow's Nook was different. It was not just a place he hated; rather, it was a location where painful memories resided, where efforts were made through every calculated decision to erase.

"Do we have the legal leverage to make her sell?" Grayson asked in a voice impossible to label as cold.

Elliot shook his head. "Not at the moment. She has the right to refuse unless we can present a compelling case. We could negotiate with her, but from what I've seen, she's... determined."

Grayson smiled, just the tiniest hint of a smirk, but it was not one of humor. "Determined, you say?"

"Yes," Elliot replied. "And if I'm to be honest, sir, I don't think she's quite easily persuaded."

Grayson's smirk disappeared at once and was replaced with his customary cold demeanor. "You see, Elliot, everyone has a price. What is hers?"

Elliot hesitated for a moment, then said, "Understood. But I'd like to forewarn you: she may not be very amenable under pressure."

Grayson's eyes narrowed. "So we'll have to find another way."

As soon as Elliot stepped out of the office, Grayson adjusted his chair to face the window. Below stretched a city testifying to the empire that he built and ruled with ruthless determination. Even at this successful phase of his life, Willow's Corner shadowed his mind. The memory that kept haunting him like a ghost at quiet moments added fuel to his relentless chase to reshape living on his own terms.

Buying Willow's Corner was not merely about Project X. It was about power - the power of denying history and replacing it with something new and more superior. But he knew better than anyone else deep down that he still carried within himself some other reason, something that he would never bring to consciousness, that he would even deny to himself.

Willow's Nook was not just a structure. It stood for everything he had lost in time.

And at this time, it was now in the hands of a woman called Lila Bennett.

For the first time in years, Grayson felt this fluttering thing inside him - an emotion he couldn't name. Was it anger, or regret? Or was it something else entirely? Whatever it was, he shoved it aside and concentrated on the job at hand.

Lila Bennett might not sell, but she has never met Grayson Wolfe, and he always gets what he wants.