I looked at the handwritten note again.
Build what they tried to break.
“Yes,” I said. “Announce it tomorrow.”
Mara smiled.
Victor exhaled.
Mr. Harrison closed his eyes briefly, like a man offering thanks to an old friend.
But the night was not finished.
At 10:43, my phone rang.
This time it was Ronald’s attorney.
Victor answered on speaker.
The attorney sounded exhausted.
“Mr. Dane, my client is prepared to return all materials belonging to Ms. Carter.”
Victor’s gaze flicked to me.
“Terms?”
A pause.
“He requests that Ms. Carter refrain from pursuing criminal complaints.”
Victor’s laugh was quiet and humorless.
“That is not a serious proposal.”
The attorney sighed.
“I understand.”
Then another voice came on the line.
Ronald.
Stripped of charm.
Raw with panic.
“Lexi.”
I said nothing.
“I made a mistake.”
Still nothing.
“I was angry.”
Nothing.
He breathed shakily. “You know me.”
That was the first true thing he had said.
