PART 4
For nearly ten seconds, Julian said nothing.
I could hear the airport announcement behind him, followed by the muffled movement of hundreds of travelers dragging suitcases across polished floors.
Then he laughed.
It was a small laugh.
Cold.
Controlled.
The kind of laugh he used whenever he wanted to convince someone that they had misunderstood the situation.
“Fighting back?” he finally said. “Claire, you don’t even know what you’re fighting.”
“I know enough.”
“No,” he replied. “You know what I wanted you to know.”
That sentence made my stomach tighten.
I leaned back in my chair.
“Then tell me.”
“I think you’ve already said enough tonight.”
“I’m still listening.”
“You shouldn’t be.”
His voice had changed.
The warmth was gone.
The husband who had kissed my forehead only hours earlier had disappeared completely.
What remained was the man underneath.
“You’re making this much harder than it needs to be,” he said.
“For whom?”
“For you.”
I smiled despite myself.
“That’s interesting.”
“What?”
“You’re threatening me from an airport.”
Silence.
“You’re the one who ran, Julian.”
“I didn’t run.”
“You packed a suitcase at two in the morning, drugged your wife, took jewelry that wasn’t yours, and went to an international terminal with your mistress.”
“I didn’t drug you.”
There it was.
The denial.
Instant.
Automatic.
“I didn’t say you did.”
Another silence.
I could practically hear him realizing his mistake.
He had just volunteered information I had never mentioned.
“You’re recording this, aren’t you?” he asked.
“No.”
“Good.”
I didn’t tell him that Eleanor had instructed me to preserve every communication.
I didn’t tell him that the call was being documented.
I didn’t tell him that Marcus Bell was already reviewing the financial records.
Instead, I asked quietly,
“Where are you going?”
“Somewhere you can’t follow.”
“Chloe coming with you?”
“She has nothing to do with this.”
I almost laughed.
“She’s wearing my grandmother’s necklace.”
“She thought you gave it to her.”
“No.”
“She believed it was a gift.”
“From you?”
“Yes.”
That was interesting.
Julian had apparently told Chloe the necklace belonged to him.
Another lie.
Another piece of evidence.
“Did she believe the rest of your story too?”
“What story?”
“That I was useless.”
He sighed.
“Claire, this marriage has been over for a long time.”
“Then why did you need to drug me before leaving?”
He didn’t answer.
I closed my eyes.
There it was.
The silence I needed.
Not an admission.
Not legally.
But enough to tell me he was afraid.
“You’re going to regret this,” he finally said.
“No.”
“You don’t know what I’m capable of.”
“I know exactly what you’re capable of.”
“You don’t.”
“I know you forged my signature.”
Silence.
This time, it lasted much longer.
My heartbeat increased.
Then Julian said,
“Be careful.”
“I’m always careful.”
“You’re going to destroy yourself.”
“I think you’ve already tried that.”
He lowered his voice.
“Claire.”
“What?”
“Check your email.”
The call ended.
I stared at the phone.
For several seconds, I didn’t move.
Then my laptop chimed.
One new email.
No subject.
No message.
Just a single attachment.
I didn’t open it.
Instead, I forwarded the entire email to Eleanor.
Then I waited.
Thirty seconds later, she called.
“Don’t open it.”
“I wasn’t going to.”
“Good.”
“What do you think it is?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Can Marcus inspect it?”
“He’s already doing it.”
I looked at the clock.
