Nobody moved.
The factory seemed to hold its breath.
Ethan stared at the stranger standing beside Gabriel.
Adrian Vale.
His alleged father.
A man who should have been dead for twenty-seven years.
The resemblance was undeniable.
It wasn’t simply the eyes.
It was the way Adrian stood.
The slight tilt of his head.
The shape of his mouth.
Even the faint scar above his right eyebrow looked familiar.
Ethan had seen that scar before.
Every morning in the mirror.
He swallowed.
“You’re not my father.”
Adrian’s expression didn’t change.
“I understand why you believe that.”
“Because my mother said you died.”
“She believed I did.”
“And Richard?”
“Richard knew I survived.”
Ethan turned toward Richard.
“You knew?”
Richard’s face was pale.
“I knew someone survived.”
“Someone?”
“You were a child.”
“That isn’t an answer.”
Richard lowered his gun.
Adrian looked at him.
“You still can’t tell him.”
Richard’s jaw tightened.
“You’re the last person who should speak about truth.”
Adrian smiled.
“Perhaps.”
Clara pulled against the ropes binding her.
“Can somebody explain what is happening?”
Alexander moved toward her.
“I’ll explain.”
Adrian interrupted.
“No.”
Everyone looked at him.
“Let Ethan hear it from his father.”
Richard laughed bitterly.
“You’re enjoying this.”
Adrian’s eyes hardened.
“You destroyed my family.”
Richard’s expression changed.
“You destroyed yourself.”
“No.”
Adrian took another step.
“You murdered Daniel.”
“You’re lying.”
“You poisoned him.”
“I didn’t.”
“You watched Margaret pull the trigger.”
Richard’s face went still.
Ethan looked between them.
“Who is Daniel?”
Adrian answered.
“My brother.”
Ethan froze.
“Then Margaret killed your brother?”
“She killed him because Edmund poisoned him.”
Edmund remained silent.
Ethan turned toward him.
“Is that true?”
Edmund smiled.
“You’re asking the wrong question.”
“What is the right one?”
“Why did Daniel deserve to die?”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed.
“He didn’t.”
Edmund shrugged.
“That’s your opinion.”
Ethan stepped forward.
“You’ve been manipulating everyone.”
Edmund smiled.
“Yes.”
“At least you’re honest.”
“Honesty isn’t virtue.”
Edmund looked around the factory.
“It’s leverage.”
Clara stared at him.
“You kidnapped me.”
Edmund looked at her.
“No.”
“Then who did?”
“Victoria.”
Clara turned.
Victoria stood near the machinery.
She looked exhausted.
“I did.”
Clara’s eyes narrowed.
“Why?”
Victoria lowered her head.
“Because I needed Ethan here.”
“You could have asked.”
“He wouldn’t have come.”
“He would have.”
Victoria looked at Ethan.
“No.”
Her voice broke.
“He would have come for you.”
Clara’s anger faltered.
Victoria continued.
“And that’s exactly what I needed.”
Ethan stepped toward his sister.
“You used her.”
“Yes.”
“You lied.”
“You shot yourself.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve been manipulating me.”
Victoria nodded.
“Yes.”
Ethan’s expression hardened.
“Why should I trust you?”
“You shouldn’t.”
That answer surprised him.
Victoria looked at him.
“But I can give you one thing.”
“What?”
“The truth.”
She reached inside her coat.
She pulled out a small envelope.
Then tossed it toward Ethan.
He caught it.
His name was written on the front.
Not Ethan.
Nathaniel.
His fingers trembled.
He opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
A young Margaret stood beside a man.
The man was Adrian.
Margaret was pregnant.
Ethan stared.
On the back was a handwritten message.
Our son will never belong to Richard.
Ethan looked up.
“Where did you get this?”
Victoria answered.
“From your mother’s room.”
Margaret?
Ethan looked toward the factory entrance.
She was gone.
His heart dropped.
“Where is my mother?”
Nobody answered.
“Where is she?”
Alexander looked away.
Richard closed his eyes.
Edmund smiled.
Then Ethan heard footsteps behind him.
He turned.
Margaret stood at the end of the factory.
Her face was wet with tears.
She looked at Adrian.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Margaret whispered:
“You survived.”
Adrian nodded.
“Barely.”
Margaret walked toward him.
Ethan watched.
There was no hatred between them.
Only grief.
Twenty-seven years of it.
Margaret stopped in front of Adrian.
“I thought you were dead.”
“I know.”
“Why didn’t you come back?”
“I tried.”
“Why didn’t you find me?”
“Edmund made sure I couldn’t.”
Margaret looked at Edmund.
He smiled.
“I was protecting the family.”
She laughed through her tears.
“You destroyed it.”
“No.”
Edmund’s voice was calm.
“You destroyed yourselves.”
Adrian reached for Margaret’s hand.
She allowed him to take it.
Ethan watched them.
Then asked:
“Why did you let me believe Gabriel was my father?”
Margaret looked at him.
“I didn’t.”
Ethan frowned.
“What?”
“Gabriel told you that.”
Gabriel stepped forward.
“I was trying to protect you.”
Ethan turned toward him.
“You let me believe you were my father.”
“I loved you.”
“That doesn’t answer the question.”
Gabriel’s face tightened.
“I thought being your father was the only way I could keep you alive.”
Adrian spoke quietly.
“He wasn’t wrong.”
Ethan looked at him.
“Then why didn’t you come for me?”
Adrian’s eyes filled with pain.
“Because Richard had you.”
“I was your son.”
“Yes.”
“You should have fought for me.”
“I did.”
“When?”
“Every day.”
Ethan shook his head.
“You weren’t there.”
“I know.”
Adrian’s voice cracked.
“And that is the one thing I will regret until I die.”
Silence.
Clara watched Ethan’s face.
But twenty-seven years of lies had taught him not to trust easily.
Then something moved behind Adrian.
A shadow.
Ethan noticed.
“Adrian.”
Adrian turned.
A gunshot exploded.
Adrian staggered.
Margaret screamed.
Ethan caught him before he hit the ground.
“Dad!”
The word escaped Ethan’s mouth before he could stop it.
Adrian looked up at him.
A faint smile appeared.
“You called me Dad.”
Ethan pressed his hand against the wound.
“Don’t talk.”
Adrian coughed.
“I’m sorry.”
“Stay awake.”
Ethan looked around.
“WHO SHOT HIM?”
Everyone was shouting.
Richard raised his gun.
Alexander disappeared into the shadows.
Victoria ran toward the machinery.
Edmund simply stood still.
Then Clara screamed.
“ETHAN!”
He turned.
A man was behind her.
He had a gun pressed against her head.
The same distorted voice Ethan had heard over the telephone spoke from the darkness.
“You were warned.”
Ethan froze.
The man stepped into the light.
Ethan stared.
It was a face he recognized.
A face from his childhood.
A face from the old photographs.
A face he had never expected to see again.
Nathan Calloway.
Richard’s older brother.
A man everyone believed had died before Ethan was born.
Nathan smiled.
“Now you finally understand.”
Ethan’s blood ran cold.
“You’re the one behind all of this.”
Nathan shook his head.
“No.”
He pressed the gun closer to Clara’s temple.
“I’m the one who has been cleaning up your family’s mistakes.”
Ethan stared at him.
“What do you want?”
Nathan smiled.
“Your inheritance.”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed.
“Take it.”
“I don’t want the money.”
“Then what?”
Nathan’s smile disappeared.
“I want Room Zero.”
Silence.
“You already know where it is.”
“No.”
Nathan’s eyes hardened.
“Only your mother knows how to open the final chamber.”
Ethan looked toward Margaret.
She was staring at Nathan in horror.
Nathan smiled.
“Don’t worry, Margaret.”
He raised the gun slightly.
“I’ll make sure your son gets to see what’s inside.”
Margaret whispered:
“Ethan, don’t trust him.”
Nathan laughed.
“That’s the problem.”
He looked at Ethan.
“You’ve trusted everyone except the person who has been telling you the truth.”
“Who?”
Nathan’s eyes shifted toward Edmund.
“Ask your grandfather what happened the night you were born.”
Edmund’s expression changed.
For the first time— he looked afraid.
And Ethan realized the man everyone had been calling the mastermind might not be the most powerful person in the room.
Not even close.
Nathan pulled Clara backward.
“Now.”
He pointed toward the old factory elevator.
“Bring me the key.”
Ethan looked at Margaret.
Then at Adrian bleeding on the floor.
Then at Clara.
Finally, he looked at Edmund.
“What key?”
Edmund said nothing.
Nathan smiled.
“The one hidden inside your mother’s wedding ring.”
Ethan’s eyes widened.
Margaret instinctively covered her hand.
Nathan laughed.
“Exactly.”
The factory lights suddenly went out.
A struggle erupted in the darkness.
A gun fired.
Someone screamed.
And when the emergency lights finally came back on—
Margaret was gone.
So was Nathan.
So was the ring.
And on the concrete floor, written in blood, were three words:
ROOM ZERO OPENS.