Chapter Six
The sound of his voice was a balm and a shock all at once. "Where are you?" he asked, his tone crisp and guarded.
"Outside," I said, my voice a shaky whisper. "On the curb. I left the gala."
"Listen carefully," Julian instructed, and I could hear the methodical precision in his tone. "Walk five blocks north, to the corner of Grand and Fifth. There's a black sedan waiting. Tell the driver you're 'looking for the way to the stars.' He'll know what to do."
He hung up, leaving me with a cryptic instruction and a heart pounding with a mix of fear and relief. The streetlights blurred as I walked, my heels clicking on the pavement, each step a further departure from my old life. Every passing car seemed to be a threat, every shadow a familiar face coming to drag me back.
When I reached the corner, a sleek black car was idling at the curb. The driver, a tall man with a severe haircut, sat with an expressionless face. I repeated the phrase Julian had given me, my voice barely steady. "I'm looking for the way to the stars."
He nodded once, opening the back door for me. I slid inside, and he drove off without a word, the city lights streaming past like a phantom current. The drive was a silent blur until we pulled up to a towering, modern building—Julian's corporate headquarters.
He was waiting for me in a sterile, glass-walled conference room. The man I had wronged stood on the other side of a long, dark table, his arms crossed. He wasn't wearing a tuxedo anymore, but a simple black sweater and slacks. The change in clothes made him seem less like a rival and more like a man of purpose.
"Elara," he said, his eyes scanning me. "Sit."
I did, my hands clasped tightly in my lap. I was no longer the spoiled heiress in a gilded cage; I was a desperate woman with a secret. I had no idea how I would tell him the truth without sounding completely insane.
"I have two questions," Julian began, his voice devoid of emotion. "How did you know to give me that flash drive, and how did you know to warn me?"
"Because I know what's going to happen," I said, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. "I've lived through it."
His expression didn't change, but his jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. "Elara, I have the metadata from that drive. It points to a server owned by Veronica's company. The file was created by her. I know she set me up." He leaned forward, his gaze intense. "I don't need a fantastical story. I need the truth."
I took a shaky breath. "That is the truth, Julian. In my other life, I made all the wrong choices, starting with that gala tonight. I ruined you, and I ruined my family. The people you think are your enemies now will destroy everything we both have. I know because I saw it happen."
He stared at me for a long, quiet moment, his mind working through the impossible. A second before he spoke, I saw a flash of understanding in his eyes, as if he were connecting two facts that shouldn't have been related. "The flash drive," he said, more to himself than to me. "The information you gave me... no one else could have known that." He finally looked at me again, but this time, there was a quiet, shared understanding. "All right, Elara. I believe you."
"The real conspiracy," he continued, his voice low and serious, "is bigger than you think. Veronica isn't the only one involved. The flash drive was just the tip of the iceberg. I've already started my own investigation. The people who are trying to ruin us are far more powerful than you know, and we're going to need to work together if we want to stop them."