The Billionaire’s Secret: What Was Hidden Behind the Broken Watch

"Get Leah and Ethan into the panic room! Now!" Grant yelled, shoving David to the floor as Marcus drew his weapon and began firing through the shattered glass of the foyer windows.

The peaceful silence of the estate was torn apart by the roar of gunfire and screeching tires. Vance’s private mercenaries, armed to the teeth, flooded the front courtyard, lay fire against the mansion's concrete walls.

"This way!" Grant shouted, grabbing Leah by the arm while holding Ethan close to his chest. They sprinted down the long mahogany hallway toward the private wing of the house.

Ethan buried his face in Grant’s shoulder, crying silently, his small hands holding tight to Grant’s jacket. "Mr. Grant, I’m scared!"

"I’ve got you, Ethan! I won't let anything happen to you!" Grant promised, his chest heaving as bullets shattered the framed artwork along the corridor.

They reached the heavy steel door of the reinforced panic room disguised behind a bookcase in Grant’s master suite. Grant punched in the six-digit security code, and the steel door clicked open with a heavy hydraulic hiss.

"Get inside," Grant ordered, pushing Leah and Ethan through the threshold.

"Grant, come with us!" Leah begged, clutching his arm, her eyes filled with terror. "You can't fight them out there!"

"If I hide in here with you, Vance’s men will blow the door down with thermite," Grant said, looking into her eyes with absolute resolve. "I have to draw them away and get the evidence to the federal prosecutor before they destroy everything Scott died for."

He reached into his pocket, pulled out Scott’s silver watch, and gently placed it into Ethan’s small hands.

"Hold onto this for me, Ethan," Grant whispered, smiling despite the chaos raging outside. "Your dad gave this to me when I was lost. Now it’s yours to guard."

Ethan looked at the worn silver timepiece, his eyes shining with tears, and nodded bravely. "I'll keep it safe, Mr. Grant."

Grant shut the heavy steel door, locking them safely inside, just as the inner doors of the master bedroom were kicked open.

Standing in the doorway was Victor Vance, holding an assault rifle, a cruel, triumphant smile plastered across his face.