Shadows Of A Forgotten Spring

Chapter 123

Annie's fingers shook as she held onto her phone, her eyes skimming the message over and over. This was the third email in less than one week.

'I will be expecting my money in one week's time. If not, Alexander will know about your dirty, kinky side!

She clufched harder, her knuckles turning white as she wrestled her rage. The audacity!

Each passing second felt like a ticking clock, with her running out of time. If she did not do sotnething soon, all that she had fought for would crumble.

Annie clenched her jaw as her mind ran with the many possibilities. She had no idea where this coward was hiding. The email was so far untraceable, routed through multiple servers in different countries. Whoever was behind such routing was smart, too smart. But Annie just couldn't afford to lose this battle, not after everything..

Taking a deep breath, she started typing on her phone, her fingers moving with a deliberate steadiness she wasn't feeling inside. 'Where should I put the money?' she sent, swallowing hard as she hit 'send.' Her throat was dry, and her heart pounded against her ribs like a war drum. The reply came almost instantly: 'I will send you the location once the time is due.'

Annie let out a sharp, resigned breath. She had expected this. Of course, the blackmailer wouldn't give her any concrete information just yet. But she had tried, if only to confirm it.

The anger that had been simmering just below the surface of her calm exterior began to boil over. Her hands shook from both fear and anger. Angry at herself for not seeing this coming. She thought about Alexander. She couldn't let him find out.

She let out a sharp intake of breath as she dialed the number of her private investigator. It rang a couple of times before the now-familiar voice answered.

"Hello?" the man on the other end said cautiously.

Have you found out

the investigator replied, his tone

nails bit into her palm as she tightened her grip on the phone. Her voice turned cold and venomous now. "You're running out of time. Three days, that's all you have to find the source of that email. If not." She allowed herself a stop, to let it sink in. "You wouldn't like what happens

and a note of panic seeped into his tone, but Annie didn't give him the chance to finish. She hung abruptly, her

clenched fists. She had always prided herself on staying ten steps ahead, but now she was playing catch-up in a game she hadn't even realized she'd been drawn into.

in light. His heart almost stopped as his gaze fell upon Jake, who sat confidently on his couch. Jake's arms sprawled arrogantly across the armrests, his legs crossed, and his piercing glare carried the weight of a thousand accusations. It felt like

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him before he forced himself to recover. He straightened his back, trying to mask his

fridge, yanked it open, and grabbed a bottle of water. Twisting off the cap, he took a long sip, using the action to gather

flinch. "I'm here to give you one last warning,"

into the counter. "A warning Why waste your time tailing me when you could use your precious time into securing your would-be empire?" He had another sip, refusing

Jake said slow and deliberate. "I try to give you a chance. Don't

fired back,

the gaze capable of piercing

counter, the sound echoing through the apartment. He had heard enough. "Then do it," he said, stepping closer to Jake, his own anger finally breaking through. "Tell the world what I did if you're

stature exuding anger, his voice was even and cold, almost menacing. "Leave

keep composure. "That's not something you can order me