The Billionaire’s Obsession with Green Ariza

Green was lying on Joseph's bed. The scent of him lingered on the sheets—expensive cologne, fresh linen, and something only he could carry. She buried her face in the pillow.

"Where are you, Joseph?" she whispered, voice cracking as she redialed his number.

Voicemail. Again.

Her heart thudded louder than the storm tapping against the windows.

She was back in her apartment. Her mother was pacing the living room, trying to console her.

"You need to calm down," her mother said. "He's a man, not a god. He'll be back."

"I don't need this right now!" Green snapped, eyes red, as she rushed to her room and slammed the door. Her phone vibrated in her hands. Not him. She flopped onto the bed, numb.

Her voice note played softly as she tried again.

"Joseph… please. Just say something. I'm scared. I didn't mean to hurt you… I don't even know what's happening anymore. Come back. Please."

She sent another. And another. Her tears soaked the pillow as she held his shirt against her face.

Elsewhere : The Black Room

The underground compound was carved into the side of a mountain. No windows. No light unless allowed. They called it The Black Room.

Inside, Joseph stood in a bulletproof suit, eyes locked on a digital map with Fredrick's security network highlighted in red. Around him were dossiers, satellite images, and screens showing camera feeds from Fredrick's estate.

Ken stood beside him. "This place is a fortress."

"I've walked through worse," Joseph said coldly.

Ken swallowed. "Are you sure about this?"

"No." He holstered his gun. "But I'm done letting him breathe."

Hours Later: Fredrick's Estate

The security system glitched. Lights flickered. The guards outside received a false alarm alerting them of an intruder on the west end of the compound. They split up.

In reality, Joseph was already inside.

How?

He had:

Hijacked the satellite security feed using a hacker he'd hired years ago for corporate warfare.

Planted a magnetic pulse chip in the estate's electrical hub weeks ago via a couriered wine shipment.

Entered through the underground wine cellar—Fredrick's pride and most vulnerable passage—using a thumbprint copy from an old handshake.

Neutralized two guards with tranquilizer darts and dressed as one.

Now, inside Fredrick's study, the lights shut off automatically. The room fell into darkness.

Footsteps echoed.

Fredrick turned sharply, instincts screaming—but there he was. Joseph. Standing in the dark shadows like a phantom, gun in hand, eyes full of hate.

"Well," Fredrick chuckled, "you really are your father's son."

Joseph said nothing.

Fredrick lunged toward the drawer where his gun was—but a bullet fired. Straight to his leg. He dropped, groaning in agony.

"How the hell did you get in here?" Fredrick screamed, clutching his bleeding thigh. "There were thirty men guarding this place!"

"I paid forty," Joseph said coolly. "The day you started coming for my girl was the day I decided to destroy you."

Fredrick chuckled weakly. "She's beautiful… but is she really worth dying for?"

Joseph fired again—same leg. Fredrick howled.

"She's the reason I'm alive."

Joseph stepped closer, gaze calm but seething.

"You killed my father. You dragged Green into your mess. You played a dangerous game."

He paused.

"I should put a bullet through your brain, but that's too easy." He cocked the gun. "You'll live… but you'll suffer. You'll never walk again. Every day in that hospital bed, you'll remember why. And you'll know I'm still out there."

Fredrick laughed through the pain. "You wouldn't dare."

"I already did."

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.

Four more shots—into both legs. Fredrick collapsed completely, shrieking.

Seconds later, the door burst open. Security. Chaos.

But Joseph was gone.

Out the hidden door, into the black car waiting at the cliffside. Vanished.

Green sat upright in bed, eyes wide. Her phone buzzed again.

A single message from an unknown number.

"He's safe. But not the same."

Her hands trembled. She dropped the phone, heart crashing in her chest.

Where are you Joseph?

—-

Green wasn't sleeping anymore. She'd lost weight, and the light in her eyes flickered. Joseph had vanished.

First, she called Ken. Dozens of times.

No answer.

Then she messaged him.

"Ken, please. I just need to know if he's okay. If he's breathing."

Still nothing.

Next, she tried bribing the guards stationed at one of Joseph's lesser-known mansions. She'd worn a simple black hoodie, dark shades, no security entourage. Just her and a trembling heart.

One of the guards eyed her warily as she approached the gate.

"Tell me where he is," she said, pulling out a gold card with unlimited spending access. "This has no limit. Say his location and I'll make sure your family never has to work again."

The man glanced at the card. Then at her.

"Miss Green… I don't know where he is."

"You're lying."

"I swear." His voice cracked slightly. "He disappeared. No one's seen him. No instructions. No check-ins. Nothing. It's like he… vanished."

Green's lips parted but no words came. She slowly lowered the card.

She even reached out to tabloids, something Joseph would have hated. Anonymous offers under a fake name, promising ten times the usual rate to anyone with confirmed sightings of him. But nothing came in. Not even a rumor.

It was as if he'd fallen off the edge of the earth.

That evening, Green stood outside his main mansion—the one with the lake in the back and a garden she'd once danced barefoot in.

She pressed her palm to the cold gate.

She wandered through the empty halls. The chandeliers glittered, the marble floors gleamed. Everything looked untouched. But he was gone.

She walked barefoot across the floor, then slowly sank to her knees in the center of the foyer. Her reflection swam on the polished marble.

Green hugged herself tightly, her arms trembling.

"Please come back to me…" she whispered. Her voice cracked as tears slid down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…"

She buried her face in her hands and sobbed.

Suddenly, her phone buzzed.

She reached for it quickly, heart racing.

Unknown Number: "Stop looking for him."

She stared at it. Then, another message arrived.

"If you want him alive, stay away."

Her breath caught in her throat.

The phone dropped from her hand.