Chapter 9: Exposed

The security guards ushered them into the mahogany-paneled office like two condemned men walking toward the gallows. Julian’s heart was hammering against his ribs, but he caught Leo’s gaze—a flicker of defiance that told him they were far from finished.

Halloway tossed the tablet onto her desk and poured herself a drink. "Sit. Both of you. You look like you’re about to pass out."

"I’d rather stand," Julian said, his voice cold. "And I’d rather know why you think a board-approved embezzlement scheme makes you untouchable."

"It makes me a partner," Halloway said, taking a slow sip. "It makes me necessary. But keep talking. I love watching you two try to grasp the scale of the game you’re playing."

Leo pulled out a chair and sat, leaning back with a lazy, dangerous grin. "Necessary? Or just convenient? The board wouldn't be too happy if the public found out their 'Golden Boy' and 'Action Hero' were being used as money laundering conduits."

Halloway didn't flinch. "Try to sell that headline. The press will call it a conspiracy theory from two washed-up actors trying to deflect from a scandal. You lose every time."

"We have the logs, Halloway," Julian said, stepping closer to the desk. "You sent the instructions for the mob. That’s not corporate policy. That’s personal. That’s illegal."

"It’s leverage," she countered. "And you know what the best kind of leverage is? It’s the kind you didn't see coming."

"Are you threatening us again?" Leo asked, his tone dropping into a low, mocking hum. "Because I think we’re past the point of intimidation."

"Oh, I’m not threatening you with the mob anymore," Halloway said, her eyes pinning Julian to the spot. "I’m threatening you with the truth, Julian. Or rather, the version of it that ruins you forever."

Julian felt his stomach drop. "What are you talking about?"

"The San Francisco warehouse fire," she said, her voice smooth as silk. "Three years ago. The insurance payout was nice, wasn't it? Very clean. Very tidy. I wonder how your fans would react to the police report that got ‘misplaced’ by the agency’s legal team?"

Julian’s face went white. "That was an accident. I was in the building."

"And you walked out without a scratch while your business partner didn't," she added, checking her nails. "The police report suggested negligence. I have the original copy, Julian. The one with the arson investigator’s preliminary notes."

"You’re lying," Leo snapped, his hands gripping the arms of his chair. "You’re making things up to keep us under your thumb."

"Am I?" Halloway tapped her tablet. "I have it right here. It’s a very interesting read. It completely contradicts your 'hero' persona, doesn't it? Imagine the tabloids digging into that."

Julian’s breath hitched. "You wouldn't."

"I’m an agent, Julian. I’d do anything to protect my interests. And right now, you’re an interest that needs to be brought to heel."

Leo stood up, his face flushed with genuine anger. "You’re a parasite."

"I’m a survivor," Halloway corrected. "And you two? You’re assets. Now, here is the new reality. You are going to sign the engagement announcement, you are going to smile for the press, and you are going to stop digging into the server. If I find even one packet of data missing, that file goes to every news outlet in the country by morning."

"You’re backed into a corner, Halloway," Julian said, his voice shaking but firm. "If you leak that, you’re implicated. You were the one who ‘misplaced’ the report."

"I’ll survive it," she said, dismissively. "I’ll lose a commission; you’ll lose your life. Are we clear?"

"What if we say no?" Leo asked, stepping into the space between Halloway and Julian.

"Then I start the countdown," she replied, checking her watch. "You have twenty-four hours to decide if you want to be a married couple or a tabloid tragedy. I suggest you pick the former."

"You’re playing a dangerous game," Julian whispered.

"I’m playing the only game there is." She looked at the door. "Get out. I have a firm to run."

They walked out of the office in a daze, the fluorescent lights of the hallway feeling like they were burning their skin. They didn't speak until they reached the privacy of the underground parking garage.

Leo slammed his hand against the concrete pillar. "She’s not bluffing. That fire report... does she actually have it?"

Julian slumped against the side of the car, his eyes closed. "The agency handled everything after the fire. They told me it was settled. I didn't think... I didn't know they kept the original files."

"She’s been holding this over you for years," Leo said, his voice thick with realization. "Every 'PR pivot,' every contract—she’s had you on a leash."

"I thought I was just unlucky," Julian whispered, his hands trembling. "I thought she was helping me."

"She was managing you," Leo said, his jaw tight. "And now she’s decided to cash in."

"What do we do? If we go to the board, she burns me. If we stay quiet, she owns us."

Leo looked at the empty parking space, his eyes hardening. "We don't go to the board. We go underground. We find someone who isn't on her payroll."

"Who? Everyone in this town answers to her."

"Not everyone," Leo said, pulling his phone out. "I know a guy. A fixer. He’s dirty, but he hates Halloway more than he likes money."

"And if she’s watching our phones?"

"Then we make sure she sees exactly what she wants to see." Leo reached out, grabbing Julian’s shoulders. The contact was electric, a grounded connection in the middle of their collapse. "Listen to me, Jules. We have twenty-four hours. We play the part. We smile, we toast, we announce the engagement. And while she’s celebrating her 'win,' we tear her empire down from the inside."

Julian looked at him, searching for the ego, the mask, the performance. He didn't find any of it. He just found the only person in the world who was as trapped as he was.

"She’s going to kill us if she finds out," Julian said, a grim smile touching his lips.

"Let her try," Leo muttered, his eyes glinting with a dangerous promise. "But first, we have to kiss for the cameras one more time."

"I hate this," Julian said, though he didn't pull away.

"I know," Leo whispered, leaning in until their breaths mingled in the cold, stagnant air. "That’s what makes the ending so much better."

A shadow moved at the far end of the garage, the distinct click of a heel echoing off the walls. Julian and Leo froze, turning just as a phone light flickered on, illuminating the familiar, chilling smile of Halloway standing in the distance.

"Tick-tock, boys," she called out, the sound bouncing through the concrete tomb. "Twenty-three hours and fifty-nine minutes left."