chapter 10:The Photograph

I couldn't go back to the penthouse. Not yet. Not with Flynn waiting, expecting explanations I couldn't give without exposing that I knew everything.

I sat in my car outside the storage facility. Boxes loaded in the trunk. And realized I had nowhere to go.

No friends left after three years of isolation. No family except a cousin who was also my husband's ex-wife and an uncle who'd kidnapped me.

I pulled out my phone. Stared at Sienna's number.

Then noticed. Three missed calls from Unknown.

A voicemail.

I pressed play.

A woman's voice. Accented. Asian, maybe.

"Ms. Winters, this is Mrs. Chen. Please don't go home tonight. Mr. Lancaster is... not himself. He's made calls. To people I don't trust. I've worked for this apartment eight years. I know things. You're in danger."

My blood went cold.

"There's a man you should meet. Someone who can help. His name is Marcus Rhodes. I'm texting you his number. Tell him I sent you. Tell him it's time."

The message ended.

A text came through. Just a phone number. Nothing else.

Flynn knew I was investigating. Somehow.

He was making calls. To who? Victor? The Covenant?

Mrs. Chen had been watching. Protecting me.

But who was Marcus Rhodes?

I googled the name.

Marcus Rhodes, CEO RhodesTech. Tech company. AI security. Billionaire. Self-made.

Age thirty-four.

The photo loaded.

Handsome. Serious eyes. Dark hair slightly longer than corporate standard.

Something about his face was familiar.

I stared at the photo. Memory tugging at the edges of my mind.

Three years ago. Before Flynn.

Coffee shop near my office. I'd grabbed coffee before a morning meeting.

A man at the counter. Rumpled. Defeated. Exhausted.

Clearly going through something terrible.

His card declined.

I'd stepped forward without thinking. "I've got it. Coffee and a bagel on me."

His surprised look. "You don't have to."

"I know. But it looks like you need it."

We'd sat together. Talked for an hour. He never said his name. I never asked.

He'd talked about betrayal. Stolen work. Legal battles that were destroying him.

I'd listened. Made him laugh once.

Then my meeting time came. I had to go.

Never saw him again.

But I'd remembered him sometimes. Those kind eyes. That genuine laugh.

That man was Marcus Rhodes.

I was certain.

Same eyes. Less haunted now.

Did he remember me?

My hand shook as I dialed.

Three rings.

"Rhodes." Deep voice. Professional.

"Mr. Rhodes, this is Aria Winters. Mrs. Chen gave me your number. She said you could help."

Pause on the other end.

Then, "Aria Winters. Or should I say Aria Lancaster?"

He knew who I was.

"I don't know what to call myself anymore."

"Where are you right now?"

"Queens. Safe Storage Solutions."

"Is Flynn with you?"

"No. I'm alone."

"Good. Stay there. I'm sending a car. Driver's name is Dante. Former military. Completely trustworthy. He'll bring you somewhere safe."

"I don't understand. Why are you helping me? We don't know each other."

His voice softened. "Actually, we've met. Three years ago. Coffee shop near Union Square. You bought me coffee and a bagel when my card declined. Talked to me like I was human when everyone else looked away."

He remembered.

"I remember you."

"You left before I could get your number. I looked for you for weeks."

My throat tightened.

"By the time I found you, you'd married Flynn Lancaster. My former best friend. The man who'd stolen everything from me. And I couldn't do anything but watch from a distance and make sure you were okay."

"Flynn stole from you?"

"My code. My company. My future. He built Lancaster Global on my work. I spent three years in court proving it. Finally won. But by then, you were already his wife."

My brain was connecting pieces.

Marcus was Flynn's victim too. He'd been watching me for three years. Protecting me.

"Mrs. Chen works for you."

"Mrs. Chen worked for my mother. When she defected from Chinese intelligence thirty years ago, my mother helped her. After my mother died, Mrs. Chen helped me."

Chinese intelligence. That explained a lot.

"When I realized Flynn married you, I asked her to get a position in your building. Keep an eye on you. Make sure you were safe."

I should have felt violated. Spied on.

Instead, I felt something else.

Someone had been protecting me. Someone cared.

"I know this is overwhelming," Marcus said. "I know you have no reason to trust me. But Flynn is dangerous. More dangerous than you know. And if he suspects you've discovered anything..."

"I discovered everything."

I told him. About Sienna. The drugging. Gloria's death. The storage unit.

I saved the identity revelation for later.

Marcus listened. Occasional sharp intake of breath.

Finally, "Aria, I'm so sorry. I should have done something sooner."

"You couldn't have known."

"I knew Flynn was dangerous. I knew marrying you was part of some plan. I should have warned you."

"I wouldn't have listened. I loved him."

"And now?"

"Now I want to destroy him."

"Good. Then we have the same goal."

A black SUV pulled up to the storage facility twenty minutes later.

A man got out. Six-four. Built like a tank. Military bearing obvious even in civilian clothes.

He walked directly to my car.

I got out cautiously.

"Ms. Winters? I'm Dante Caruso. Marcus sent me."

Italian accent. Kind eyes despite the intimidating appearance.

"How do I know you're really from Marcus?"

"He said to tell you: cream and sugar, everything bagel with lox."

My order from that coffee shop.

Marcus had remembered.

"Let's get you somewhere safe. Then we'll get your things from the penthouse."

"I need to text Flynn something. So he doesn't..."

Doesn't what? Come looking? Call Victor?

I composed a text. *Staying at hotel tonight. Need space to process Gloria's death. Don't wait up.*

Flynn's response was immediate. *Which hotel?*

I didn't answer.

I got in the SUV with Dante. My boxes from the storage unit went in the trunk of my car.

"We'll get your car later. Right now, priority is your safety."

As we drove away, I saw it.

Another car parked down the street. A man in the driver's seat.

Watching.

Dante drove in silence. Taking turns that made no sense. Doubling back. Checking mirrors. Professional evasion.

Finally, he spoke.

"Someone was tailing you. Lost them near LaGuardia."

My blood ran cold. "Flynn?"

"Or someone working for him. Or for the people he works with."

The Covenant. They knew I knew something.

Gloria's death wasn't a heart attack. It was a warning.

And I'd ignored it. Gone straight to the storage unit.

"Am I in danger?"

Dante met my eyes in the rearview mirror.

"Ma'am, with all due respect, you married Flynn Lancaster. You've been in danger for three years. We're just making you aware of it now."

Ahead, the lights of Manhattan glittered.

Somewhere in that city, Marcus Rhodes was waiting. The man who remembered buying me coffee. The man who'd been protecting me from the shadows.

And somewhere else, Flynn was realizing I wasn't coming home.

The war was about to begin.

But this time, I had allies.