Rebirth It All

Chapter 8: Ties That Bind

The more I learned about Leo’s life and Elliot’s betrayal, the more the world around me began to feel like a collapsing house of cards. It was no longer just about reclaiming my company or my name; it was about exposing the network of lies that had allowed Elliot to thrive while I was left in the shadows.

I had learned the hard way that the world I once commanded was not as easily regained as I had hoped. Elliot’s empire was built on more than just business deals—it was built on secrets, manipulation, and calculated destruction. But as much as I wanted to tear everything down, something kept me tethered to this version of my life. Leo’s life. I couldn’t abandon him.

Rosa’s words echoed in my mind. Leo was loyal to you. Those words made it hard to just dismiss Leo as a mere pawn in Elliot’s game. No, Leo had become something more. And if I was going to reclaim my life, I had to confront Leo, understand the man he had become, and unravel how his path had become so intertwined with mine.

The first step was to find him.

The days since I met with Rosa had passed in a blur of plans and distractions. I had followed her advice—laid low, kept a low profile, and slowly pieced together more of Leo’s activities. From the scraps of information I managed to gather, Leo had become something of a local hero in certain circles. He was known in the impoverished neighborhoods, the places where Orion Industries had once helped to provide jobs and opportunities, and where now, under the weight of Elliot’s mismanagement, it had left a trail of broken promises.

It was clear Leo had tried to carry the mantle, but the system was too far gone. And now, he was lost, like me—caught between worlds he couldn’t escape.

I needed to see him.

I found Leo at one of the few places where I knew he might be—an old warehouse at the edge of the city, a place that had once been the heart of Orion Industries’ distribution network. It was now a hollowed-out shell, barely functioning. I had heard rumors that Leo had been using it as a base for his activities, working with local organizers to keep things running in the communities that had been hit hardest by the company’s downfall.

When I arrived, the area was eerily quiet. The warehouse loomed in front of me, a giant monolith of rust and disrepair. It was late in the evening, the sky bruised with the deep purples and oranges of dusk. I hesitated for a moment before I approached the entrance.

Inside, I could hear muffled voices, a mix of laughter and conversation. I slipped in through a side door, careful to avoid detection. The dim light filtered through broken windows, casting jagged shadows across the dusty floor.

And then I saw him.

Leo Torres, standing in the middle of the room, surrounded by a handful of people. He was talking to them earnestly, his voice firm but kind. His presence was magnetic, drawing people in despite the rundown state of the place. The man I was seeing now didn’t match the image I had in my memories—he wasn’t the frightened, reluctant worker I had expected. He had transformed, in ways I hadn’t anticipated, into a leader.

Leo’s eyes met mine across the room, and for a moment, everything froze. Recognition flickered in his gaze, but he didn’t speak right away. There was a wariness there, a hesitance, as if he wasn’t sure who I was.

I took a step forward. “Leo,” I said quietly, my voice hoarse. “It’s me. It’s Orion.”

His expression remained unreadable. He didn’t immediately react. Instead, he looked over at the people surrounding him, as if seeking their approval—or perhaps trying to make sense of the situation. Slowly, they began to disperse, leaving Leo and me alone.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. This was the moment I had been waiting for, and yet, it felt like a fragile, delicate thing that could shatter at any second.

Leo finally spoke. “Orion?” His voice was low, unsure. “You’re… you’re really him?”

I nodded. “Yes. It’s me.”

He took a step back, his face clouding with confusion. “But how? How are you here?”

I could feel the weight of his disbelief in the air between us. “It’s a long story, Leo. A story I’m just beginning to understand myself. But right now, I need you to tell me everything. I need to know what’s happened. Why you’re here. Why everything feels so wrong.”

Leo ran a hand through his hair, a gesture I recognized as one of his moments of deep thought. He seemed torn, unsure of whether to trust me. But then, with a deep sigh, he finally spoke.

“You don’t remember?” Leo’s voice was cautious, his words hanging heavy in the cold, empty space of the warehouse.

I met his gaze and shook my head. “I remember enough,” I said, my voice steady but laced with the weight of my confusion. “I remember building something great, something that mattered. I remember betrayal. And I remember you, Leo—but not like this. Not standing in my place. What happened to you? What happened to us?”

He let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head as if to suppress the tide of emotions threatening to spill over. “What happened?” he repeated, his tone sharp and cutting. “You disappeared, Orion. You vanished, leaving a mess behind for the rest of us to clean up. Elliot took over, made promises to fix things, to keep people afloat. But instead of saving anyone, he bled everything dry. The people, the company… the communities you claimed to care about. They’re all in ruins now.”

His words landed like a blow. I had built Orion Industries as a beacon of hope, a place that gave people opportunities and security. Had it all been a lie?

“That wasn’t my choice,” I snapped, my frustration boiling over. “You think I wanted this? Someone forced me out, Leo. Someone orchestrated all of this—Elliot did. You don’t think I’d have fought to keep what I built if I could?”

Leo stepped closer, his jaw clenched. “And yet here we are. You, standing here after all this time, claiming to be the victim. Do you even understand what happened to the people you left behind? The workers who lost their jobs? The families that were torn apart?” His voice cracked as he continued, his anger shifting into something more vulnerable. “My brother, Mateo—he’s gone, Orion. He died in one of those factories while you were… wherever you were. And no one cared. Not Elliot. Not the board. Not even you.”

I froze, his words striking a chord deep within me. I hadn’t known. How could I have? But the guilt gnawed at me all the same.

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly, the words feeling painfully inadequate.

“Sorry?” Leo’s laugh was sharp and humorless. “Sorry doesn’t bring Mateo back. It doesn’t fix what’s been broken. You were so consumed with building your empire that you didn’t even see the cracks forming beneath it.”

I opened my mouth to argue, but the weight of his words silenced me. Was he right? Had I been so blinded by my ambition that I’d failed to see the consequences of my actions?

“I thought I was helping,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

“You thought,” Leo said bitterly. “But the reality is, people like me were left to pick up the pieces. And now, you show up, expecting what? That I’ll just hand everything back to you? That we can pretend like none of this ever happened?”

His anger was justified, and yet, I couldn’t let it deter me. “I don’t expect anything,” I said firmly. “But I do know that Elliot is the root of all this. And I need your help to take him down. If we can expose him, we can start to make things right.”

Leo looked at me skeptically, his arms crossed. “And then what? You take your company back and leave the rest of us to fend for ourselves again?”

“No,” I said, the conviction in my voice surprising even me. “This isn’t just about me. It’s about fixing what’s broken—for everyone. For the people who trusted me and for those who were hurt because of me. Including you.”

The silence between us stretched, thick with unspoken emotions. Finally, Leo let out a long sigh, his posture relaxing just slightly. “You’re serious about this?”

“I am,” I said. “But I can’t do it alone. I need you, Leo. I need someone who knows what’s really going on, someone who can help me untangle the mess Elliot has made.”

He studied me for a long moment, his eyes searching mine. “This won’t be easy,” he said at last. “Elliot has people everywhere. The moment we start digging, he’ll know.”

“I’m not afraid of him,” I said, meeting his gaze.

Leo smirked, though there was no humor in it. “You should be. The man’s a snake, Orion. And he doesn’t leave loose ends.”

“All the more reason to stop him,” I said.

Leo nodded slowly. “All right,” he said. “I’ll help you. But this isn’t just about taking down Elliot. It’s about making things right for the people he’s hurt. You owe them that much.”

“I know,” I said, a sense of determination settling over me. “And I won’t let them—or you—down.”

Leo extended his hand, and I took it, a silent agreement passing between us. As we shook, I felt a flicker of hope for the first time in what felt like forever.

As we left the warehouse together, I couldn’t help but feel that this was only the beginning. Elliot’s empire was vast, his reach seemingly endless, but he had made one crucial mistake: he underestimated us.

And that would be his downfall.