Ethan's POV
The interrogation room was cold.
I sat at a metal table, handcuffed, watching two detectives stare at me like I was a criminal.
"Let's go over this again," Detective Morrison said, her voice sharp. "You claim Vincent Park stalked you. But these text messages from your phone tell a different story."
She showed me the texts again. Threats I never sent. Words I'd never say.
"I didn't write those," I said for the tenth time. "Vincent hacked my phone. He planted evidence—"
"Convenient." Detective Chen leaned forward. "Here's what I think happened. You and Adrian Vale planned to frame Vincent. Maybe you were angry about his stalking complaint against Adrian. Maybe you wanted revenge."
"That's not—"
"You lured Vincent to that abandoned building. Your friend Lucas brought a gun—"
"Lucas isn't my friend! I barely know him!"
"—and when things went wrong, Lucas got shot. Now you're trying to blame Vincent for everything."
My hands clenched into fists. "Vincent tried to kill me! Adrian took a bullet saving my life!"
"Or Adrian shot himself to make the story more believable." Detective Morrison's eyes were cold. "We've seen it before. People will do extreme things to cover their tracks."
"You think Adrian shot himself?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "Why would anyone—"
"Love makes people do crazy things." She pulled out a tablet. "We found Adrian's journal. Want to know what it says?"
She read: "'I'll do whatever it takes to keep Ethan close. I don't care if it's wrong. I don't care if he hates me. I need him.'"
My stomach twisted. Those words sounded like—
"Sounds familiar, doesn't it?" Detective Chen smiled grimly. "Sounds exactly like what Vincent claimed. That Adrian is obsessed with you. That this whole situation is two people fighting over you, and you're playing them against each other."
"That's not true!"
"Then explain the money." Morrison showed me bank records. "Three thousand dollars withdrawn from Adrian's account, paid to Mrs. Peterson at the housing office. He bribed her to make you roommates. That's premeditation, Mr. Cross. That's stalking behavior."
"He did that because—" I stopped. Why did Adrian bribe the housing office? Because he loved me? Because he wanted to be close to me?
When I said it out loud, it did sound like stalking.
"I see you're starting to understand." Morrison's voice softened slightly. "Look, we know you're young. Maybe you didn't mean for things to go this far. Maybe Adrian manipulated you. If you cooperate, tell us the truth, we can help you."
"I've told you the truth!"
"Have you?" Chen pulled out more papers. "Because we have statements from three students who say they saw you and Adrian arguing violently. One says they heard Adrian threaten you."
"What? That's impossible—"
"Jessica Martinez. She lives two doors down from your dorm. She heard Adrian say, quote, 'You'll never escape me.'"
I remembered that night. Adrian had said something like that, but it was taken completely out of context. We were arguing about the roommate situation, and he'd said something like "You can't escape this—we're stuck together all year."
But twisted differently, it sounded sinister.
"And then there's Emma Sterling," Morrison continued.
My heart stopped. "Emma? What about her?"
"She gave a statement saying you seemed obsessed with her. That both you and Adrian were competing for her attention in an unhealthy way."
"Emma said that?" I felt like the ground was disappearing under me. "But she helped us! She tracked Vincent's IP address! She—"
"Ms. Sterling says she was trying to help you see that both Vincent and Adrian were dangerous. That she was trying to protect you from them."
This couldn't be happening. Emma had been on our side. She'd believed us.
Unless—
"Someone close to you has been helping me this whole time."
V2's words echoed in my head.
"Emma's the traitor," I whispered.
"Excuse me?" Morrison leaned closer.
"Emma Sterling is working with someone called V2. They're framing us. They're—" I stopped, realizing how insane I sounded.
The detectives exchanged glances.
"V2?" Chen said slowly. "Who is V2?"
"I don't know, but they're the real mastermind behind everything! Vincent was just—" I struggled to explain. "Vincent was being used! V2 is the one who—"
"Mr. Cross." Morrison's voice turned gentle. Pitying. "I think you need psychological evaluation. The trauma of being stalked, the stress of the shooting—it's clearly affecting you."
"I'm not crazy!"
"No one said you were crazy. But you're talking about mysterious masterminds and conspiracies—"
"Because it's TRUE!"
The door opened. A woman in a business suit walked in.
"Detectives, I need to speak with Mr. Cross. Alone."
"And you are?" Morrison asked.
"His lawyer. Sent by his parents." The woman handed them a card. "My client will not be answering any more questions without legal representation."
The detectives looked annoyed but left.
The woman sat down across from me. She had sharp features and calculating eyes.
"Mr. Cross, my name is Victoria Blackwood. I'm here to help you."
"My parents sent you?"
"Among others." She pulled out a folder. "I've been following your case closely. Very closely. And I believe you."
Relief flooded through me. "You do?"
"I believe Vincent Park is a stalker. I believe Adrian Vale was trying to protect you. And I believe someone else is orchestrating all of this." She smiled. "In fact, I know who."
"Who? Who is V2?"
Victoria leaned forward. "Before I tell you, I need you to understand something. The person behind this has been planning for years. They're smart, connected, and very dangerous. And they want something specific from you."
"What?"
"Your silence." She showed me a document. "They want you to confess to framing Vincent. Say you and Adrian made it all up. In exchange, all charges against you will be dropped. Adrian will receive medical care and no jail time. Vincent will go to a psychiatric facility instead of prison. Everyone walks away."
"But that's admitting to something we didn't do!"
"I know. But it's the only way to end this." Victoria's eyes bore into mine. "Unless you're willing to fight. Really fight. Because fighting means exposing everything. And when I say everything, I mean secrets that will destroy lives. People you care about will get hurt."
"What secrets?"
"The truth about why Vincent became obsessed with you. The truth about who helped him. The truth about—" She paused. "The truth about your parents, Ethan."
My blood went cold. "What about my parents?"
"They knew Vincent when you were children. They knew he was dangerous. And they made a deal with his family to keep everything quiet. A deal that's protected them for years. But if you fight this case, that deal becomes public."
"What deal? What are you talking about?"
Victoria slid a photo across the table.
It showed my dad shaking hands with an older man. The man looked familiar—he had Vincent's dark eyes.
"That's Vincent's father. Robert Park. He's a federal judge. Very powerful. Very connected." Victoria's voice was matter-of-fact. "When Vincent attacked you on the playground at age eight—"
"He didn't attack me. He just—"
"Pushed you off the swing set. Sent you to the hospital with a concussion. Don't you remember?"
Memories flooded back. Ones I'd buried. Vincent's face twisted with rage. The ground rushing up. Pain exploding in my head.
"My parents said I fell," I whispered.
"Your parents lied. Because Judge Park offered them money. A lot of money. Enough to pay off their debts, buy their house, send you to good schools. All they had to do was say it was an accident. Move you to a different school. Never press charges."
I felt sick. "My parents took money to protect Vincent?"
"They took money to protect you. To give you a better life." Victoria's expression softened slightly. "They're not evil, Ethan. They made a choice. A hard choice. But if this goes to trial, all of it comes out. Your family's financial history. The cover-up. Your parents could face charges for obstruction of justice."
"So my options are—confess to something I didn't do, or destroy my family?"
"Essentially, yes."
I put my head in my hands. This was impossible. How could I choose?
"There is a third option," Victoria said quietly.
I looked up. "What?"
"Help me catch V2. Become bait one more time. But this time, we do it right. We record everything. We get proof that will stand up in court."
"Who is V2?"
Victoria smiled. "Someone who's been part of this story from the beginning. Someone who's been playing all of you like chess pieces. Someone who—" Her phone buzzed. She checked it and her face went pale. "Oh no."
"What? What is it?"
"Adrian left the hospital." She showed me a text from an unknown number: "The game is on. Adrian's on his way to me. If you want to save him, you'll come too. Both of you together. That's what I've wanted all along. Room 666, Mercy Hospital, psychiatric ward. You have 20 minutes. Come alone or Adrian dies. -V2"
"Adrian's walking into a trap!" I jumped up, but the handcuffs stopped me. "We have to help him!"
"The police won't believe you. They think you're delusional." Victoria pulled out a key and unlocked my handcuffs. "But I believe you. And I'm going to help you save him."
"Why? Why are you helping me?"
Victoria's expression turned dark. "Because V2 killed someone I loved. And I've been waiting years for them to make a mistake. You and Adrian are that mistake. You're the pieces that don't fit their perfect plan."
"Who did they kill?"
"Someone who got too close to the truth. Someone named—" She stopped, listening.
Footsteps approached. Fast.
"That's impossible. No one knows you're here," I said.
Victoria's face filled with horror. "Unless—"
The door burst open.
Emma Sterling stood there, holding a gun.
"Hello, Ethan," she said sweetly. "Surprise. Did you miss me?"
Victoria moved to shield me, but Emma fired.
The shot hit Victoria in the leg. She collapsed, crying out in pain.
"Sorry, Victoria. You've been a thorn in my side for too long." Emma stepped over her, keeping the gun trained on me. "Ethan, we're going for a ride. Adrian's waiting."
"Emma, why—"
"Why am I V2?" She laughed. "Oh, Ethan. I'm not V2. I'm V3. There's a whole chain of command you don't know about. And at the top—" She pulled me toward the door. "—is someone who's been watching you since before you were born. Someone who has plans for you. Big plans."
"I don't understand—"
"You will. Soon. Very soon." Emma pressed the gun against my back. "Now walk. Adrian's waiting. And trust me—you want to get there before time runs out. Because if you're not both there in eighteen minutes, Room 666 explodes. With Adrian inside."
My heart stopped. "You planted a bomb?"
"I didn't. V2 did. I'm just the messenger." Emma smiled. "Tick tock, Ethan. Better hurry. Wouldn't want Adrian to die right after finally confessing his love for you. That would be so tragic."
She pushed me toward the exit.
Behind us, Victoria called out weakly: "Ethan—don't trust—anyone—"
But her voice faded as Emma dragged me into the hallway.
Toward Room 666.
Toward Adrian.
Toward whoever was waiting at the top of this nightmare.
And I had eighteen minutes to save the boy I was just starting to realize I loved.