Chương 5
“Block the number.”
“Why?”
“Because whoever sent this wants a reaction.”
“And if they’re telling the truth?”
“Then they will have more than a vague warning.”
I looked at him.
“You sound like Julian.”
His expression changed.
That was unfair.
I knew it.
But I said it anyway.
“I’m sorry.”
“No.”
He shook his head.
“Don’t apologize for being angry.”
I placed the phone down.
“I don’t know who to believe.”
“That is probably the most honest thing you’ve said today.”
I frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“It means you’re finally allowing yourself to question things.”
I did not answer.
Because he was right.
For years, I had accepted explanations because accepting them was easier than admitting something was wrong.
The next afternoon, I went with Arthur to Vance International.
I almost refused.
I did not want to walk into a world where people knew my name.
But staying hidden felt different now.
It no longer felt humble.
It felt like surrender.
The headquarters building was enormous.
My father’s name was engraved on the lobby wall.
I stopped when I saw it.
Arthur noticed.
“You okay?”
“Seeing my name next to yours feels strange.”
He smiled slightly.
“It’s been there since you were born.”
“I never wanted that.”
“I know.”
We entered a private conference room.
Three people were waiting.
A lawyer.
A financial officer.
And my father’s longtime business partner, Daniel Reed.
Daniel stood immediately.
“Clarissa.”
His voice carried genuine warmth.
“I’m glad you’re safe.”
Safe.
The word bothered me.
“I’m not sure I was unsafe.”
Nobody answered.
That silence told me more than words could.
Arthur sat at the table.
“Show her.”
The lawyer opened a folder.
Inside were printed reports, emails, and transaction records.
I looked between them.
“What is all this?”
“Information related to Apex Group,” Daniel said.
“Why do you have it?”
“Because six months ago, Julian approached us.”
My heart stopped.
“Why?”
Daniel hesitated.
Arthur answered.
“He wanted investment.”
I stared at him.
“Julian came to you?”
“Yes.”
“And you never told me?”
Arthur looked down.
“You were married to him.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“No.”
His voice was quiet.
“It isn’t.”
The anger returned.
Not the explosive kind.
The exhausted kind.
The kind that comes after too many disappointments.
“What happened?”
Daniel opened another document.
“Julian wanted Vance International to become a strategic partner in an Apex expansion.”
“Did you agree?”
“No.”
“Why?”
“Because the numbers did not make sense.”
I looked at the papers.
“What kind of numbers?”
“Debt.”
The room became still.
“Julian was hiding financial pressure from his board.”
I looked at the signature on the document from the unknown sender.
“He signed something.”
Arthur nodded.
“Yes.”
“What?”
Daniel exchanged a glance with him.
“A commitment that placed significant personal responsibility on him if the acquisition failed.”
I looked at the papers again.
The gala.
The mistress.
The humiliation.
Suddenly, everything felt connected.
Not in a simple way.
In a way that made my chest ache.
Julian had not just been chasing status.
He had been desperate.
That did not excuse what he did.
But it changed the shape of the truth.
My phone rang.
This time, the name appeared clearly.
Julian Cross.
Everyone in the room became quiet.
I stared at the screen.
Three years ago, I would have answered immediately.
Yesterday, I would have answered because I wanted an explanation.
Now I hesitated because I finally understood something.
Answers had a price.
And I was no longer sure I wanted to keep paying it.
I pressed accept.
“Clarissa.”
His voice sounded different.
Tired.
“Where are you?”
I looked around the room.
At my father.
At the documents.
At the life I had walked away from.
“At my father’s office.”
Silence.
Then Julian whispered.
“You really went back.”
I closed my eyes.
“Yes.”
Another pause.
“Then you know.”
I tightened my grip on the phone.
“Know what, Julian?”
His breathing became uneven.
“That everything is falling apart.”
I held the phone tighter.
“Everything?”
Julian exhaled slowly.
“The board is investigating the acquisition.”
I looked at the documents spread across the table.
“Because of the report?”
“Yes.”
“Who sent it?”
“I don’t know.”
The answer came too quickly.
I noticed.
“You’re lying.”
A long silence followed.
“I don’t know who sent the report.”
“That wasn’t what I asked.”
Julian did not respond.
For the first time in years, I could hear the things he was not saying.
“Did you know about the problems before the gala?”
“Clarissa.”
“Answer me.”
My voice surprised me.
It was not loud.
It did not need to be.
“Yes.”
The room around me disappeared for a moment.
I stared at the papers.
Six months.
Six months of him coming home late.
Six months of him telling me the company was under pressure.
Six months of me believing I was supposed to be patient.
“How long?”
“I was trying to fix it.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
Another pause.
“Since last year.”
I closed my eyes.
Last year.
Our second anniversary.
The night he canceled dinner because of an emergency meeting.
The night I sat alone at a restaurant table for almost an hour before going home.
I had bought him a watch.
He never saw it.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I thought I could handle it.”
I almost laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was familiar.
Everyone always thought they could handle everything alone until the damage reached someone else.
“You didn’t tell me because you thought I would leave.”
“No.”
The answer was immediate.
Then slower.
“Maybe.”
I looked toward my father.
Arthur was watching me carefully.
Not listening.
Waiting.
“I need to know something.”
“What?”
“Was Chloe part of this?”
Julian went quiet.
That silence was enough to make my chest tighten.
“Julian.”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“She came into the company because she had connections.”
“That is not an answer.”
He rubbed his face.
I could hear the exhaustion in his voice.
May you like
“Chloe knew investors.”
“And?”
