Chapter 5: The Girl Who Died

"That's a lie," Julian said quickly, but his eyes were panicking. "Eva, you're clearly having some kind of mental breakdown."

"Am I?" I pulled out my phone and opened the photos I'd taken in my past life—photos I'd hidden and saved before I died.

Photos of Julian and Clara together at hotels, kissing, touching, laughing at me behind my back.

I threw my phone on the table. "Explain those."

Julian grabbed the phone, his face going white as he scrolled through the pictures.

My father took the phone from him, looking at each photo with shaking hands.

"When were these taken?" my father asked quietly, dangerously.

"Does it matter?" I said. "The point is, I'm not marrying a man who betrayed me with my own stepsister."

"Eva," Julian started, but my father held up his hand.

"Get out," my father said to Julian, his voice like ice. "Get out of my sight right now."

Julian looked between us, then practically ran from the room.

My father turned to me, and I saw something in his eyes I'd never seen before. Respect maybe. Or fear.

"You've changed," he said slowly.

"Yes," I agreed. "I'm not your puppet anymore."

"This job with Black—it's a mistake. You don't belong in this world."

"You're wrong," I said. "I belong here more than I ever belonged in your house pretending to be someone I'm not."

Lucas's hand touched my lower back briefly, a silent gesture of support.

My father noticed and his eyes narrowed. "What exactly is your relationship with my daughter, Black?"

"Professional," Lucas said smoothly. "Though I can't say I'm not impressed by her. She's smarter than you gave her credit for."

"She's my daughter. I know exactly what she's capable of."

"No," I said firmly. "You know what you wanted me to be capable of. Smiling, obeying, marrying rich, staying quiet. But that girl died."

My father stared at me for a long moment. "If you continue down this path, don't expect any support from me."

"I never expected anything from you anyway," I said. "We're done here."

I turned and walked out, my legs somehow steady even though my heart was racing.

Lucas followed, closing the conference room door behind us.

"That went better than expected," he said once we were back in his office.

"Better? My father basically disowned me."

"But you didn't back down. That's what matters."

I sat down hard in the chair, all the adrenaline draining out of me at once. "Where did you get those photos?"

I looked up sharply. "What?"

"The photos on your phone. They were taken months ago, but you only found out about Julian and Clara recently. How?"

My blood went cold. I'd been so angry I didn't think about the timeline making no sense.

"I... I hired a private investigator a while ago," I lied quickly. "I had suspicions."

Lucas studied me, his eyes seeing too much. "You're lying. But I'll let it go for now."

"Why?"

"Because everyone has secrets, Eva. Even me. The question is whether your secrets will destroy you or make you stronger."

Before I could respond, his office door burst open and Clara stumbled in, her makeup running, tears streaming down her face.

"Eva, please, you have to listen to me," she sobbed, reaching for me.

I stood up, stepping away from her hands. "Don't touch me."

"It wasn't like that. Julian said you didn't love him anymore. He said you were just marrying him for money."

"So that made it okay to sleep with him?" I asked coldly.

"I love him," she cried. "I really love him. You never did."

Lucas moved between us. "Miss Lancaster, you need to leave my office immediately."

"No, I need to talk to my sister," Clara said, trying to push past him.

Lucas didn't budge. "Security is on their way. You can leave walking or dragged. Choose."

Clara looked at me one last time, her eyes desperate and full of fake tears. "Eva, please. We're family."

"No," I said quietly. "We were never family. You were just waiting for a chance to take everything from me."

Two security guards appeared at the door.

Clara backed away, her tears suddenly stopping as anger flashed across her face. "You'll regret this. Julian and I—we'll make you pay."

"Get her out," Lucas ordered, and the guards escorted Clara away, her shouting echoing down the hall.

Once she was gone, I collapsed back into the chair, my whole body shaking.

"Drink this," Lucas said, handing me a glass of water.

I drank it all in one gulp, trying to calm my racing heart.

"Your family is a mess," Lucas observed, pouring himself whiskey from the cabinet.

"Tell me something I don't know."

He sat across from me, studying my face. "Why do you really want revenge, Eva? Most people just want to move on."

I met his eyes. "Because they killed me."

"Metaphorically?"

"Does it matter?" I asked. "They took everything from me. My trust, my future, my chance at happiness. They deserve to suffer."

"And you think working for me will help you destroy them?"

"Yes," I said firmly. "You're the most powerful man in this city. With your resources and my knowledge of their weaknesses, we can ruin them completely."

Lucas swirled his whiskey, a small smile on his lips. "You're more ruthless than you look, Eva Lancaster."

"Good," I said. "Ruthless is exactly what I need to be."

His phone buzzed with a message. He read it and stood up. "The Morrison signing is in one hour. Go fix your makeup and meet me at the car."

I stood up on shaky legs and headed for the bathroom down the hall.

In the mirror, I looked like I'd been through a war. My eyes were red, my hair messy, my lipstick smudged.

But underneath all that, I saw someone different. Someone harder. Someone dangerous.

I fixed my appearance, reapplied my makeup, and pulled my shoulders back.

When I walked back out, Lucas was waiting by the elevator.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Always," I said.

As the elevator doors closed, he turned to me. "One more thing, Eva. Whatever secrets you're hiding, they better not interfere with business."

"They won't," I promised.

"Good. Because if they do, I won't protect you. Understand?"

"I understand."

But as we rode down in silence, I wondered how long I could keep my rebirth a secret.

And what Lucas would do if he ever found out the truth.