LOGINSylvia The night air was warm when I pulled up to Logan’s house, my hands gripping the steering wheel longer than usual. My heartbeat was loud in my ears, echoing a mixture of nerves and something else, something I hadn’t allowed myself to feel fully in weeks. Logan had been busy, of course, and I had been busy too, but something in me couldn’t ignore it anymore.I climbed out of the car and took a deep breath, adjusting my jacket. The streetlights cast long shadows on the driveway, and for a moment, I hesitated at the door. What if he wasn’t in the mood to talk? What if he was too tired? What if my presence… stirred something he didn’t want?But my thoughts ended as soon as his voice called out, deep and familiar, as the door swung open.“Well, look who decided to show up,” he said, leaning against the doorframe, a slow smirk pulling at his lips.I swallowed, trying to appear casual, though I felt my stomach tighten. “I wanted to see how you’re doing,” I said, stepping inside. “And…
EmilyI didn’t sleep that night.No matter how many times I closed my eyes, all I saw were headlines, courtrooms, cameras, and Sylvia’s face on every screen. The company’s name dragged through mud. Stock prices wobble. Partners calling. Donors hesitating.Everything we built was shaking.And whether I liked it or not, Sylvia was at the center of it.By morning, I had made my decision.I called for an emergency board meeting.The boardroom felt colder than usual when I walked in.Long glass table. Leather chairs. The company logo shining proudly on the wall like it had no idea what kind of storm was happening outside. Board members sat quietly, murmuring to one another, phones in hand, eyes serious.They all knew why we were here.I took my seat at the head of the table and folded my hands together, keeping my expression calm. Inside, my heart was racing.This had to be done carefully.“Thank you all for coming on such short notice,” I began. “I know everyone’s schedules are tight.”Mr
KateEmily arrived ten minutes late.I noticed everything, her careful steps, the way her eyes scanned the street before she knocked, the tension hidden behind her makeup. She tried to look calm, but I could smell fear on people like perfume. Fear always announced itself, no matter how expensive the cover was.I opened the door myself.“Emily,” I said with a smile. “You look thinner.”She rolled her eyes lightly. “Stress will do that to you.”I stepped aside to let her in. “Come in. You’re safe here.”She hesitated for half a second before walking in. That hesitation amused me.The house was quiet, warm, and carefully designed to look harmless. Cream walls. Soft couches. A small shelf of books I never read. Anyone walking in would think this was the home of a bored woman hiding from the world.That was the point.Emily removed her coat and sat down slowly, crossing her legs. “You really like disappearing, don’t you?”“I like control,” I corrected, pouring wine into two glasses. “Disap
Logan The building smelled like sweat, bleach, and lies.That was the first thing that hit me as Victor and I stepped into the holding facility. It wasn’t a regular police station. It was one of those quiet places, off the books, gray walls, no windows, no noise. The kind of place where people came when the law needed help asking questions it couldn’t ask out loud.The kind of place I hated.And needed.Victor walked beside me, his face calm, but I knew him well enough to recognize the tension in his shoulders. He was angry too. Just better at hiding it.“They’re in separate rooms,” the officer leading us said. “We ran their phones, bank accounts, and contacts. Nothing useful. No messages. No money trail. They’re clean.”“People like that are never clean,” I said coldly.The officer stopped in front of a metal door. “They’re not talking. At all.”Victor glanced at me. “Then we make them.”The officer hesitated, then unlocked the door and stepped aside. “You have ten minutes each.”Th
SylviaWeeks had passed since the hospital incident.Weeks of pain, questions, whispers, and slow healing.I was better now, not fully healed, but strong enough to stand, to walk, to face the world again. The bandage on my head was gone, replaced by a faint scar hidden under my hair. The bruises on my arms had faded, but the memory of hands gripping me too tight still lived under my skin.Today was the second court proceeding.And this time, there would be no wheelchair.I stood in front of the mirror early that morning, staring at my reflection. I looked… different. Thinner. Sharper. Like someone who had been broken and forced to rebuild herself quickly.Logan stood behind me, adjusting his tie. Violet hovered near the door, checking her phone repeatedly. Victor was already outside, coordinating security.“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Logan asked gently.I met his eyes in the mirror. “If I don’t show up again, they’ll keep saying I’m hiding and there is nothing to hide.”He n
SylviaThe noise reached me before I saw anything.It was not the normal hospital noise, the soft beeping of machines, quiet footsteps, low voices. This was louder. Messier. Like chaos pressing against glass.Voices overlapped. Cameras clicked nonstop. Someone shouted a name.My name.“Sylvia Rhodes!”I froze in my wheelchair just outside the elevator. Violet’s hand tightened on the handle behind me, and Victor immediately stepped forward, his body blocking half my view.“What is going on?” I asked quietly.Logan didn’t answer right away. I could feel his tension even without looking at him. His jaw was tight, shoulders rigid, like a man bracing for impact.Then I saw them.Reporters. At least twenty of them. Maybe more. They filled the hospital lobby like a flood that had broken through a dam. Cameras pointed forward. Microphones stretched out on long poles. Phones held up, already recording.Security guards tried, and failed, to keep them behind a thin line.The moment someone spott







