Chapter 9 - THE MAN WHO TRIED TO ESCAPE
Liam Foster was arrested at a private aviation terminal outside New York.
He carried two passports.
Several electronic devices.
And documents connected to accounts under different names.
The arrest made headlines.
INVESTMENT MANAGER DETAINED IN MULTIMILLION-DOLLAR FRAUD INVESTIGATION.
Chloe watched the report from her apartment.
For a moment, she felt nothing.
Then she began crying.
Not because she missed him.
Because the man she'd planned to marry had become a stranger in handcuffs.
Investigators continued examining the financial scheme.
Nathaniel Cross was questioned.
Several accounts were frozen.
Witnesses were interviewed.
The evidence from Arthur's flash drive became central to the investigation.
But the question of Arthur's death remained unresolved.
Chloe refused to assume murder without proof.
She wanted the truth.
Not a story that merely fit her pain.
Dominic visited her one evening.
He brought dinner from a small Italian restaurant.
Chloe opened the door.
He smiled faintly.
“Peace offering.”
She looked at the bags.
“Pasta?”
“Your favorite.”
She hesitated.
Then stepped aside.
“Come in.”
They ate at the kitchen table.
No guards.
No expensive dining room.
No secrets.
At least, Chloe hoped so.
After dinner, Dominic looked at her.
“I owe you another apology.”
She set down her fork.
“For what?”
“For treating information like something I could control.”
Chloe studied him.
He continued.
“I spent years believing power meant knowing more than everyone else.”
He swallowed.
“But that didn't protect Gabriel.”
Silence.
“And it nearly cost you your life.”
Chloe looked down.
“I don't need you to save me.”
Dominic nodded.
“I know.”
“I need people who tell me the truth.”
He met her eyes.
“Then that's what I'll do.”
For the first time, Chloe believed him.
Not completely.
May you like
Not blindly.
But enough to begin again.
