Chapter 18

Zina’s POV)

The night air was thick with unease, heavy enough to cling to my skin. I stood by the glass window of my room, watching Maya’s silhouette disappear through the estate gate. She had left in a hurry — too hurried for a casual errand. Her hands trembled when she grabbed her coat. Her eyes avoided mine.

Something wasn’t right.

I tried to shake the thought away, but my gut didn’t let me. Maya wasn’t the kind of woman to sneak out at night, especially after what happened at the gala. Ray had been acting strange too — his tone clipped, his eyes darker than usual. The energy in the house felt… fractured. Like everyone was hiding something.

And in the center of it all was Maya.

I grabbed my jacket, slipped my phone into my pocket, and followed.

By the time I reached the parking lot near the old convenience store, I saw her — standing under a flickering streetlight. She was nervously clutching her phone, pacing back and forth like a trapped animal.

Her voice carried faintly through the night air as I hid behind a silver SUV.

“Yes, I told you I’ll send it,” Maya said, frustration edging her voice. “I don’t have that kind of money right now.”

She paused, listening. Then her tone dropped to a whisper. “You promised you wouldn’t call again. Do you want me to lose everything?”

I frowned, my pulse quickening. Who was she talking to?

From the shadows near the vending machines, a man stepped forward — broad shoulders, dark cap pulled low, a cigarette glowing between his fingers. His security uniform was faintly visible under his jacket.

The same guard from Ray’s mansion.

Maya’s posture stiffened. She looked around nervously before shoving something into his hand — a brown envelope.

The guard didn’t even glance inside. He took a drag from his cigarette, exhaled smoke into her face, and said something that made her flinch.

I couldn’t hear the words, but her expression said enough — fear.

Real fear.

I crouched lower, my heart thudding against my ribs. The parking lot was mostly empty except for a few parked cars and the hum of a vending machine. The fluorescent light above buzzed inconsistently, casting short bursts of white over Maya’s face.

She looked smaller than usual, fragile even. The woman who once stood tall beside Ray now looked like she was shrinking into herself.

The guard leaned in, his voice sharp enough to carry fragments through the quiet night.

“More,” he demanded. “You think this is enough to keep my mouth shut? You’re messing with the wrong people.”

Maya’s voice cracked. “You already took everything I had!”

The guard smirked, flicking his cigarette to the ground. “Then find more. Because if your husband finds out what you did… it won’t just be you losing everything.”

I felt the blood drain from my face. Husband? What she did?

Was Maya… hiding something from Ray?

I shifted slightly to get a better view. My phone buzzed in my pocket — a message. From Zane.

Where are you?

I hesitated, typing quickly.

> Following Maya. She’s meeting someone suspicious.

No reply came. Just the faint click of a camera shutter somewhere behind me.

I turned, scanning the shadows — and there he was. Zane.

He stood across the street, half-hidden behind a car, his camera raised. The flash didn’t go off, but I could hear the faint mechanical snap every few seconds.

Zane wasn’t watching me. He was photographing them.

The guard grabbed Maya’s wrist suddenly, and she gasped. My fingers tightened around my phone, instinct screaming at me to step in — but before I could move, she yanked free and stepped back, her face a mask of both defiance and panic.

“Don’t call me again,” she hissed.

Then she turned, walking away quickly, her heels clicking sharply against the pavement. The guard’s laughter followed her, echoing off the cold walls of the parking structure.

Zane lowered his camera slowly, watching her leave. His jaw tightened.

He wasn’t surprised.

That realization made my stomach twist.

When Maya’s car disappeared down the street, I approached Zane, my breath coming fast. He didn’t look at me when I stopped beside him — his eyes were still on the parking lot, where the guard was lighting another cigarette.

“What the hell was that?” I whispered.

He finally turned his gaze to me. The streetlight caught the edge of his face, casting half of it in shadow. His eyes were cold, calculating. “Proof,” he said simply.

“Proof of what?”

“That Maya’s been lying.”

I frowned, shaking my head. “Lying about what? She looked scared, Zane. Whoever that man is, he’s threatening her.”

He exhaled sharply, lowering his camera. “You’re too trusting, Zina. People like Maya— they don’t get scared unless they have something to hide.”

His tone made something inside me bristle. I didn’t want to believe him. Maya wasn’t perfect, but she wasn’t deceitful. She couldn’t be.

Yet the images flashing in my mind said otherwise — the trembling hands, the envelope, the desperation.

“What are you going to do with those pictures?” I asked cautiously.

Zane glanced down at his camera, then at me. “That depends on her next move.”

He started walking toward his car, but I grabbed his arm. “Zane, stop. You can’t just—”

He turned sharply, his voice low and firm. “She’s playing a dangerous game, Zina. And if Ray finds out before we do, she’s done. We both know it.”

The words hit hard. Because deep down, I knew he was right. Ray wasn’t the kind of man to forgive easily.

But still — this wasn’t the way.

“She’s not our enemy,” I said quietly. “There’s something else going on here. Something we don’t see yet.”

He gave a humorless laugh. “Then maybe I’ll find out first.”

With that, he slid into his car and drove off, the sound of his tires fading into the distance.

I stood there, heart pounding, feeling the cold seep through my jacket. The security guard had vanished too, leaving only a cigarette butt glowing faintly on the pavement.

I crouched down, picking up the discarded stub. The faint smell of mint lingered — the same brand Ray used.

A chill ran down my spine.

Was it a coincidence? Or was Ray already involved in ways we didn’t understand?

My phone buzzed again. A new message — from an unknown number.

 If you care about Maya, tell her to stop digging. Or she won’t make it to next week.

My throat tightened as I stared at the words. The shadows seemed to stretch longer around me, swallowing the light.

Whatever Maya was hiding, it wasn’t just about money. It was bigger. Darker.

And now, someone knew that I was involved too.

I turned toward the direction Maya had gone, the phone trembling in my grip. A car passed, its headlights briefly illuminating the envelope the guard had dropped — its contents scattered on the ground.

Photos.

Of Maya and someone else.

And standing next to her in one of them — unmistakable even from the blurred image — was Ray.

My blood ran cold.

What the hell had Maya gotten herself into… and why did it look like Ray was part of it all along?