Chapter 5: The Coffee Shop

I chose the coffee shop, not Sienna.

Neutral territory. Public place. Easy exit if I needed one.

The Village café was small, cramped, loud with the hiss of espresso machines and indie music. The opposite of anywhere Flynn would go.

Which was exactly the point.

I arrived fifteen minutes early. Took a table in the back corner with sightlines to both doors.

And waited.

Felt ridiculous being this paranoid.

Felt vindicated when Sienna walked in precisely on time, scanned the room like a professional, and spotted me immediately.

We were both running from something.

She looked different today. Jeans. Simple sweater. Hair in a ponytail. Minimal makeup.

Younger. More vulnerable.

Her pregnant belly was obvious without the designer dress hiding it.

Dark circles under her eyes. She hadn't slept either.

"Thank you for coming," I said.

"Thank you for calling."

We stared at each other. Awkward.

What was the protocol for meeting your husband's other wife?

The barista appeared. Young guy with a man bun. "What can I get you?"

"Cappuccino," I said.

"Same," Sienna said.

We both laughed. Despite everything.

"He probably bought them for both of us," Sienna said after the barista left.

"He brought me croissants this morning. From Maison Kayser."

Something flickered across her face. "That's his apology move. He brought them to me once a week during our marriage. After every fight."

First shared experience.

First moment of understanding. We weren't each other's enemy.

The enemy was Flynn.

"Tell me everything," I said. "From the beginning."

Sienna wrapped her hands around her coffee cup when it arrived. Like she needed the warmth.

"I met Flynn at a charity gala. I was twenty-four. Working as a junior reporter. He was twenty-seven. Building his company."

Same as me. Same type of event.

"He was charming. Attentive. Swept me off my feet. Proposed after six months."

My stomach dropped. "Six months?"

"Fast, I know. But I thought..." She shook her head. "I thought it was romantic."

Six months. The same timeline as us.

"My family approved. The Ashfords. We're old money. Real estate. Flynn seemed perfect. Successful. Ambitious."

"The wedding was a fairy tale. Honeymoon in Santorini."

I went very still.

Santorini. Where Flynn had promised to take me "someday."

"The first year was perfect," Sienna continued. "Or I thought it was. Then things changed. Small things at first."

Her voice went flat. Reciting facts.

"Comments about my clothes. You'd look better in this. That color doesn't suit you. Suggestions about friends. They don't understand us. Maybe see them less. Encouraging me to quit my job. You're so stressed. You don't need to work."

I knew every word before she said it.

"He convinced me my family was manipulating me. Trying to come between us. I stopped seeing them as much. Stopped seeing anyone, really. It happened so gradually I didn't notice until I was completely alone."

My throat tightened.

"By year three, I had no friends. Was estranged from my family. Had quit journalism. I was just Mrs. Flynn Lancaster. I'd lost Sienna Ashford completely."

She looked at me. Really looked.

"When did you start changing your hair for him?"

"Six months in. He said he loved blonde hair."

"He told me he loved platinum blonde. I was brunette naturally."

We both dyed our hair for him.

Both lost ourselves.

"What made you leave?" I asked.

"Year five. I found irregularities in our household accounts. My journalist instincts kicked in. I started investigating quietly."

She pulled out her phone. Swiped through photos.

"Shell companies. Money laundering. Offshore accounts. Illegal dealings with foreign entities."

My hands went cold.

"I confronted him. He was furious. Then he threatened me. Said if I exposed him, he'd destroy my family. Turned out the Ashford Industries had debts. Flynn had secretly bought them. He could bankrupt my family."

"So you backed down?"

"I kept gathering evidence. Planned my escape for months. Then I found evidence of worse crimes. Not just financial. Potential connection to violence."

"Witness protection became an option. I took it. Left a note saying I needed time to think. To protect my family from his revenge."

"He told me you said you needed to find yourself."

Sienna's laugh was bitter. "He's rewritten history."

"Why come back now?"

Her hand moved to her belly. Protective.

"Because of Daniel."

"Daniel?"

"Daniel Torres. Tech security expert. I met him while I was in hiding. Working with a journalist network. He was investigating the same crimes."

She swiped to a photo. A man. Maybe thirty-five. Kind eyes. Warm smile.

"Flynn's company was part of something larger. The Covenant. A network of elite criminals. Flynn wasn't the mastermind. Just a member."

The Covenant. The word sent chills down my spine.

"Daniel and I fell in love. We worked together. Gathering evidence. We planned to go public."

Her voice cracked.

"Then Daniel was killed. Car explosion. They called it an accident. But I knew. It was murder."

"I was four weeks pregnant. Didn't know until after his death."

Tears were running down her face now. She didn't wipe them away.

"The grief almost destroyed me. But the baby gave me purpose. I decided to finish what Daniel started. Expose The Covenant. Take down Flynn."

"But I needed leverage. So I came back. Claimed the baby was Flynn's."

She met my eyes.

"The truth? This baby is Daniel's. I'm using the ambiguity as protection."

I should have been shocked. Should have felt betrayed by the lie.

Instead, I understood.

"I'm not proud of it," Sienna said. "But Daniel died for this. I won't let his death mean nothing."

"Why tell me the truth?"

"Because you're asking the right questions. Because you're starting to see who Flynn really is."

She paused.

"And because I've seen how this ends if you stay. You lose yourself completely. By the time you realize it, it's too late to remember who you were."

"I'm already not sure who I am," I said quietly.

"Then let's find out together. Help me take him down. Get your life back. Get justice for Daniel. Stop Flynn before he destroys someone else."

"I don't even know what I'd be helping with."

"Investigation. Evidence gathering. You have access I don't. You live with him."

I should have said no.

Any reasonable person would have said no.

My husband's ex-wife. Who might be mentally unstable. Who was asking me to spy on him. Who'd just admitted to an elaborate lie about her baby's paternity.

Reasonable people don't form alliances with that person.

But I kept seeing her face when she talked about losing herself.

Kept hearing my own thoughts echoed in her words.

Kept remembering how I'd googled "sociopath quiz" at 2 AM because I didn't trust my own judgment anymore.

And I kept thinking about Daniel Torres. Someone who died trying to expose the truth. Someone who loved Sienna enough to risk everything.

Flynn had never risked anything for me. He'd only ever asked me to risk everything for him.

"What would you need me to do?" I asked.

Sienna's exhale was relief and determination mixed.

"For now? Just pay attention. Note anything unusual. Keep records. And most importantly, don't let him know you're questioning things."

"So lie to my husband about investigating him."

"No." Sienna's voice was firm. "Protect yourself while figuring out the truth. There's a difference."

I wasn't sure there was.

But I agreed anyway.