The word hung in the air between them—chaos—like a dark cloud threatening to descend. Rebecca felt her stomach knot, her pulse quickens. She had feared that Mercer was after something terrible, but this was worse than she could have imagined.
"What do you mean, chaos?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "What is Mercer planning to do?"
Adrian took a long, slow sip of his drink, as if savoring the fear radiating from her. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and deliberate, each word dripping with malice.
"Mercer isn't just some power-hungry sociopath," Adrian said, leaning back in his chair. "He's playing a bigger game. One that goes beyond Ashgrove, beyond anything you can understand. He's been gathering people, building his network, and when the time comes, he's going to tear everything apart."
Samuel narrowed his eyes, his hands clenching into fists on the table. "Tear what apart? The town? The world?"
Adrian gave a cold smile. "Everything."
Rebecca recoiled, her heart pounding in her chest. She had known Mercer was dangerous, that he thrived on control and manipulation, but this was different. This wasn't about power. This was about destruction.
"You're lying," Rebecca said, shaking her head. "Mercer wouldn't just destroy everything. He's too calculated for that. He wouldn't ruin his own empire."
Adrian's smile faded, his expression turning hard. "You don't know him like I do. Mercer doesn't care about an empire. He cares about the game. And in his game, there are no winners—only survivors."
The weight of Adrian's words pressed down on her, suffocating her with their implication. Rebecca glanced at Samuel, searching for any sign that he had a plan, some way out of this nightmare. But his face was set in a grim mask, his mind racing as he tried to process the revelation.
"So, what does he want with us?" Samuel asked, his voice tight with anger. "Why involve us if he's planning to destroy everything?"
Adrian shrugged. "Because you're part of the puzzle. You, me, her—everyone Mercer's ever touched. We're all pieces in his game, and when the time comes, he'll use us to tip the scales."
Rebecca's pulse quickened. "Tip the scales how?"
Adrian leaned in, his voice lowering to a conspiratorial whisper. "Mercer's not just a man, Rebecca. He's something else. Something darker. And he's been building an army—a network of people like us, people he's manipulated, controlled, broken. And when he's ready, he'll turn us against each other."
Rebecca's blood ran cold. "Turn us against each other? What do you mean?"
Adrian's eyes gleamed with a dark intensity. "Mercer thrives on chaos, on fear, on destruction. He knows how to pull the strings, how to push people to their breaking points. And when he does, he'll unleash us on the world. It'll be a bloodbath."
Rebecca felt a wave of nausea wash over her. The thought of being used as a pawn in Mercer's twisted game was more than she could bear. She had spent so long running from him, trying to escape his influence, but now it seemed that there was no escape.
"How do we stop him?" Samuel asked, his voice hard and determined. "There has to be a way to stop this."
Adrian's smile returned, colder than ever. "There is. But it won't be easy."
Rebecca leaned forward, her heart pounding in her chest. "What is it? How do we stop Mercer?"
Adrian hesitated for a moment, as if weighing his options. Then, with a slow, deliberate movement, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, black notebook. He placed it on the table between them, his eyes locked on Samuel.
"This," he said, tapping the notebook with his finger, "is the key to stopping Mercer. It's everything I've gathered over the years—everything I know about his network, his plans, his weaknesses."
Samuel reached for the notebook, but Adrian pulled it back, holding it just out of reach. "But there's a catch."
Rebecca's eyes narrowed. "What catch?"
Adrian's smile widened, a predatory gleam in his eyes. "You'll need to do something for me in return. Something…dangerous."
Samuel's expression darkened. "What do you want?"
Adrian leaned back in his chair, his fingers drumming on the table. "There's someone I need you to find. Someone who's been hiding from Mercer for years, just like you. But this person has information—information that could turn the tide in our favor."
Rebecca felt a knot of dread form in her stomach. "Who is it?"
Adrian's eyes gleamed with dark amusement. "Her name is Marissa Vale. She's the last person Mercer hasn't been able to control. And she's the key to bringing him down."
Samuel's jaw tightened. "Where is she?"
Adrian shrugged. "That's the tricky part. She's been in hiding for years, moving from place to place. But I have a lead—a place she was last seen. Find her, and I'll give you everything you need to stop Mercer."
Rebecca's heart pounded in her chest. This was it—the moment where everything hung in the balance. If they could find Marissa, they might have a chance to stop Mercer and end his reign of terror once and for all. But if they failed…
She didn't want to think about what would happen if they failed.
Samuel stared at the notebook in Adrian's hand, his expression unreadable. Then, after a long moment of silence, he nodded. "We'll find her."
Adrian's smile widened, satisfaction gleaming in his eyes. "Good. I'll be waiting."
---
The night outside the bar felt colder, the wind biting at their skin as Samuel and Rebecca stepped into the darkness. The weight of what they had just learned pressed down on them, suffocating them with its enormity.
Rebecca pulled her jacket tighter around her shoulders, her mind racing. "Do you think we can trust him?"
Samuel didn't answer right away, his gaze fixed on the road ahead. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and filled with determination. "We don't have a choice."
Rebecca shivered, not just from the cold, but from the weight of what lay ahead. Mercer's web of chaos was larger than they had ever imagined, and now, they were caught in the middle of it.
But as they walked toward the car, Rebecca couldn't shake the feeling that there was something Adrian wasn't telling them—something darker, something more dangerous.
And as they drove into the night, toward the unknown, Rebecca couldn't help but wonder if they were heading straight into Mercer's trap.