Elena's POV
I'm in trouble, I whisper into the phone.
Where are you? Damien's voice is sharp, urgent.
A figure steps out from behind a car—tall, male, wearing a dark hoodie that hides his face.
Elena, answer me! Where
The phone is ripped from my hand.
Victoria smashes it against the concrete. The screen shatters.
No witnesses, she says calmly. No rescue.
Are you insane? I stare at the broken phone in horror. He knows I'm in trouble! He'll come looking
Good. Let him come. Victoria's smile is cold. Let him find you here with Marcus. Let him draw his own conclusions.
The hooded figure moves closer, and I realize with sick clarity—this isn't random. Victoria planned this. Every detail.
Who is that? I demand, pointing at the figure.
Insurance, Victoria says. In case you don't cooperate.
Marcus shifts uncomfortably. Victoria, you said we'd just talk to her. You didn't say anything about—
Shut up, Marcus. Victoria's voice cracks like a whip. You want to protect yourself? Then do exactly what I say.
I back away, looking for an exit. But Victoria's positioned herself between me and the elevator. The hooded figure blocks the ramp to street level.
I'm trapped.
What do you want? I ask.
I want you to confess. Victoria pulls out a second phone—recording. Right here, right now. Tell the truth about how you and Marcus stole the code together three years ago. How you planned it, executed it, and how you've been blackmailing him ever since to keep quiet.
That's a lie!
Is it? Victoria's eyes gleam. Because I have evidence that says otherwise. Emails between you two. Bank transfers. Security footage that's been... enhanced to show what really happened.
My stomach drops. You're framing us.
I'm revealing the truth, Victoria corrects. The truth that you two conspired together. The truth that you've been manipulating Damien for years. The truth that sets me—and Marcusfree.
I won't do it. I look at Marcus. Tell her. Tell her none of this is true.
Marcus won't meet my eyes. Elena, just... just do what she says. Please.
No! The betrayal cuts deep. I protected you! I gave up everything for you! And now you're—
You did it for Damien! Marcus finally looks at me, and his eyes are desperate, scared. You keep saying you did it for me, for my mother, but we both know the truth. You did it because you loved him too much to make him choose between his brother and justice.
The words hit like a punch.
And now he's investigating, Marcus continues, his voice breaking. James is digging up everything. The real money trail. The real code analysis. In a few weeks, maybe days, they're going to figure out it was me. And when they do, Damien will He stops, his face crumpling. He'll destroy me. His own brother.
Because you betrayed him! My voice echoes off concrete. You stole from him, let me take the fall, and now you want to frame me again to save yourself?
I don't have a choice!
You always have a choice! I'm shouting now, three years of anger finally exploding. You chose to steal. You chose to let me suffer. You chose to become this person!
Enough. Victoria steps between us. I don't care about your drama. I care about results. She holds up the recording phone. Confess. Now. Or I send everything I have to the police—including evidence that you broke into Vertex servers last week to cover your tracks.
I didn't
Doesn't matter if you did or didn't. I have logs that say you did. Victoria's smile is terrifying. You'll be arrested within hours. And while you're sitting in a cell, I'll be consoling poor Damien about how his brother was manipulated by his ex-fiancée. How you seduced Marcus, used him, and destroyed everything Damien built.
The hooded figure moves closer. I still can't see his face.
Who is he? I ask again, my voice shaking.
Just someone who owes me a favor, Victoria says. Someone who'll make sure you understand I'm serious.
The figure reaches into his jacket.
My heart stops.
Is that a weapon? A phone? What
Victoria, this is going too far! Marcus steps forward. You said intimidation, not—
I said whatever it takes. Victoria doesn't even look at him. You want to protect yourself, Marcus? Then shut up and let me work.
Footsteps echo from the parking garage entrance.
We all freeze.
Elena! Damien's voice carries through the space. Elena, where are you?
He's here. He came.
Victoria's expression shifts from triumph to calculation in a heartbeat.
Perfect, she breathes. Even better than I planned.
She grabs my arm, her nails digging in. Here's what's going to happen. Damien's going to round that corner and find you with Marcus. You're going to be so flustered, so obviously guilty, that he'll finally see the truth—you two have been working together all along.
He won't believe that.
Won't he? Victoria's laugh is cruel. You're in a secret meeting with his brother. Your phone's destroyed. You're clearly hiding something. What else is he supposed to think?
She shoves me toward Marcus. I stumble, and Marcus catches me automatically—his hands on my arms, holding me steady.
And that's exactly when Damien appears around the corner.
He stops cold.
His eyes take in the scene: me in Marcus's arms, Victoria standing nearby looking concerned, the hooded figure in shadows.
Damien, I start, pulling away from Marcus. This isn't
Damien, thank God! Victoria rushes to him. I followed Elena down here because I was worried. I found her meeting with Marcus in secret. I think they've been planning something.
That's not true! I step toward Damien, but the look on his face stops me cold.
He's not seeing me. He's seeing what Victoria wants him to see—a guilty woman caught in a lie.
Is this why you needed to talk to him? Damien's voice is deadly quiet. Is this why you've been protecting him? Because you two are
No! The word tears out of me. Damien, please, listen
I'm done listening to lies. He turns to Marcus, and the pain in his eyes is devastating. Is it true? Have you been working with her behind my back?
Marcus opens his mouth. Closes it. His face is pale, terrified.
This is the moment. He could tell the truth right now. Confess everything. Set me free.
I— Marcus looks at me, then at Damien. I'm sorry, brother. I never meant for—
For what? Damien's voice breaks. For Elena to seduce you? For you to betray me with my own fiancée?
It's not like that! I'm almost crying now. Marcus, tell him! Tell him the truth!
The truth is, Victoria interjects smoothly, these two have been conspiring for years. I have proof, Damien. Emails, financial records, everything. They stole from you together, and now they're trying to cover it up.
Show me, Damien says.
Victoria pulls out a tablet, hands it to him.
I watch his face as he scrolls through whatever fake evidence she's manufactured. Watch the betrayal deepen with each swipe.
These emails... he whispers. These are from three years ago. From Elena's account to Marcus's.
Forged, I say desperately. Victoria made them up. None of this is real!
They look real to me. Damien's eyes are cold when they meet mine. Very real.
The hooded figure chooses that moment to step forward, pulling back his hood.
I gasp.
It's Richard Castellanos. The CEO of Helix Corp. The man who bought the stolen code three years ago.
Hello, Ms. Ashford, he says with a predatory smile. Surprised to see me?
What is he doing here? Damien demands.
Providing testimony, Victoria says. Mr. Castellanos has agreed to testify that Elena approached him three years ago with stolen code. That she and Marcus worked together to sell Vertex secrets.
That's a lie! I turn to Richard. You know it's a lie! You never
Didn't I? Richard's smile widens. I have bank records that say otherwise. Records showing payments to an offshore account in your name, Ms. Ashford. Payments that match exactly what I paid for the Cross Technologies code.
The parking garage spins.
This is it. The trap Victoria's been building. Not just framing me—framing me and Marcus together, with Helix Corp's CEO as a witness, with manufactured evidence that looks real.
We'll both go to prison.
And Victoria will have Damien all to herself.
I want all of you out of my building, Damien says, his voice hollow. Now.
Damien, please, I reach for him.
He steps back like I've burned him. Don't. Don't touch me. Don't talk to me. Don't— His voice breaks. I trusted you. Even after everything, I wanted to believe you were innocent. That there was some explanation.
There is! If you'd just listen
I'm done listening. He looks at Marcus, and the pain on his face is unbearable. You're fired. Both of you. Security will escort you out. If you're on Vertex property after tonight, I'll have you arrested for trespassing.
Brother, please— Marcus starts.
Don't call me that. Damien's voice is ice. You stopped being my brother the moment you betrayed me.
He turns and walks away, his footsteps echoing in the cavernous space.
I stand frozen, watching the man I love disappear around the corner.
Victoria's laugh breaks the silence.
Well, she says brightly. That went even better than expected.
You destroyed them, Richard says, impressed. Both of them. Nicely done.
I destroy anyone who threatens what's mine. Victoria looks at me with pure triumph. And Damien Cross is mine. He always has been. You were just too stupid to see it.
She walks away, heels clicking, leaving me alone with Marcus and Richard.
I'm sorry, Marcus whispers. Elena, I'm so sorry. I never meant for—
Get away from me. I can barely speak through the rage and grief choking me. You're a coward. You were three years ago, and you are now.
I turn toward the elevator, needing to get out, needing to breathe
Richard blocks my path.
Not so fast, he says. We need to have a conversation about your future.
I don't have anything to say to you.
Oh, but you do. His smile is cruel. Because I hold your fate in my hands now. One word from me, and the police arrest you tonight. One word, and you spend the next decade in prison.
What do you want?
Same thing I wanted three years ago. He leans close. Come work for me. Give me access to Vertex's systems. Feed me information. And I'll make all this evidence disappear.
My blood turns to ice.
Never.
Then enjoy prison. He pulls out his phone. I'm calling Detective Reeves right now. By morning, you'll
A hand shoots out, grabbing Richard's phone.
We all spin around.
James Park stands there, phone in hand, his expression colder than I've ever seen it.
I wouldn't do that if I were you, James says quietly.
Who the hell
I'm the man who's been recording this entire conversation. James holds up his own phone. Every word. Every threat. Every admission.
Richard's face goes white.
You just confessed to conspiracy, extortion, and corporate espionage, James continues. On recording. With witnesses.
He looks at me, and there's something like kindness in his eyes.
Elena, you should go. Now. Before this gets worse.
I don't wait to be told twice.
I run.