Ella stared at Rita's post until the words blurred.
They lied.
Two simple words, but they shook her system like a punch to the chest. Her fingers trembled as she gripped the back of the couch.
Ben hovered just behind her, reading every line with a tightening jaw. His breath came out in a low, frustrated huff, the kind that carried both anger and disappointment, mostly at himself for letting Rita slip through their fingers.
Lucas stood completely still, the phone still in his hand, eyes narrowed. "She didn't waste a second," he muttered, almost growling under his breath. "She's been waiting for this moment."
Ella swallowed, her throat burning. "There's a timer, Lucas. A countdown. She's announcing something."
Ben stepped around her, gently taking the phone from Lucas' hand. His fingers brushed Ella's, grounding her for a second. He scrolled slowly, each swipe dragging tension further into the room.
A timer blinked on Rita's page:
24:00:00. Truth Drops Tomorrow.
Ella's stomach twisted painfully. "Ben… this can ruin everything."
Ben grunted lightly, rubbing a harsh hand across his beard. "Not if we get ahead of it."
Lucas moved closer, voice calm but strained. "Rita knows how to shape a narrative. The timing, the vagueness, the public framing, this isn't random. This is crafted to build suspense. Fear. Curiosity. Sympathy."
Ella muttered, "She knows exactly how to manipulate people's emotions."
Lucas nodded. "She's going to release something big. Or something that looks big."
Ben dropped onto the couch with a heavy exhale, fingers gripping the phone so tightly Ella worried it might crack. "We need to know what she's planning."
Ella sat beside him, her thigh shaking uncontrollably under the weight of her anxiety. "Reed said she wasn't stable. He said she was collecting things. Twisting stories. Building a version of events that makes her look like the victim."
Lucas crossed his arms. "People love a victim story. Especially a dramatic one."
Ben muttered, "Especially when it's a lie."
Ella's voice broke slightly. "If she has old photos… videos… or takes things out of context—Ben, people will believe her. They always believe the loudest voice first."
Lucas nodded grimly. "Unless the other side moves faster."
Ella jerked her head up. "Meaning what?"
Lucas tapped the side of his head, thinking quickly. "Meaning we need to disarm her before the clock hits zero."
Ben groaned, leaning forward, elbows sinking into his knees. "Give me a second. I need to think."
Ella watched him quietly. His shoulders carried too much. Too many battles. Too many scars Rita had helped carve into his life.
She reached for his hand. He didn't pull away.
Ben squeezed her fingers gently, eyes closing for a moment. "I won't let her destroy us, Ella. I swear to you."
Ella nodded, even as fear twisted deeper.
Lucas paced slowly, each step measured. "We need access to her accounts."
Ella blinked. "Her social media?"
"All of it," Lucas replied. "If she's planning something that requires a countdown, she didn't post it from her main device. She probably used a scheduled system."
Ben muttered under his breath, "Of course she did."
Lucas continued, "But to get into that… we need Reed. He knows her passwords. Or at least the pattern she uses."
Ella tensed. "Do you trust him that much?"
"No," Lucas said plainly. "But we don't need trust. We need access."
Ben stood abruptly, pacing now. "Then bring him here."
Lucas nodded. "Already texting him."
Ella let out a low groan. "I can't believe this is happening…"
Ben stopped pacing and turned toward her, his expression softening. "Hey." He cupped her face gently. "Look at me."
She lifted her eyes, tired and overwhelmed.
"You're not alone in this," he murmured, thumb brushing under her jaw. "I'm right here."
Ella nodded slowly, but her chest still felt too tight, like someone was sitting on it. "I just… I don't want everything we've built to get ruined because of her madness."
Ben sighed softly. "She's not stronger than us."
"Maybe not," Ella whispered, "but she's desperate."
Lucas' voice cut through gently, but serious. "Desperation makes people unpredictable."
Ella rubbed her hands together, muttering, "That's what scares me."
The room fell quiet again.
Too quiet.
Then Lucas' phone buzzed.
He glanced at it and snorted sharply. "Reed is on his way. Fast. Probably panicking."
Ella exhaled shakily. "Good."
Ben walked to the window, pulling the curtain aside to look out at the city lights. "She's trying to frame us before we expose her."
Lucas nodded. "That's what manipulators do. Strike first. Claim victimhood. Paint themselves as the fragile one. It puts the public on their side before the truth even comes out."
Ella muttered, "She's not fragile. She's dangerous."
Lucas agreed. "Dangerous people hide behind fragility all the time."
Ben's fist clenched. "What exactly could she drop tomorrow that would ruin us?"
Lucas tilted his head. "Photos of you two arguing… edited audio… staged injuries… old footage… fake documents… or a narrative built so well that it doesn't matter if it's true."
Ella whispered, "People won't question it."
"No," Lucas replied softly. "People love drama more than truth."
Ben groaned, dragging a hand through his hair, pacing again. "We have twenty-four hours."
Ella felt the weight of those hours settle on her bones. "Twenty-four hours to stop her."
Lucas nodded. "So we start now."
Twenty minutes later, Reed arrived; breathless, sweating, hair sticking to his forehead. He looked like he'd run across half the city.
Ella muttered, "You look terrible."
Reed grumbled, "I feel terrible."
Ben crossed his arms. "What does she have, Reed?"
Reed swallowed hard. "A lot."
"Define 'a lot,'" Lucas said flatly.
Reed rubbed his palms together anxiously. "Voice recordings. Screenshots, fake ones. Emails she wrote from alternate accounts to herself. A medical file she edited. Photos from years ago where she looks sad or hurt, but she's using them as proof of abuse. Videos where she pretends to cry. Timelines she rewrote. And she wrote a whole… whole essay about how Ella stole her life."
Ella felt something inside her sink. "She's insane."
Reed nodded miserably. "She's building a case that she was emotionally and psychologically abused by Ben… manipulated by Ella… and abandoned by everyone."
Ben's nostrils flared. "I never laid a damn finger on her."
Reed muttered, "She knows that. But she doesn't need truth. She needs sympathy."
Ella whispered, "We need everything. Every file. Now."
Reed nodded quickly. "I brought my old laptop. She used it sometimes. She forgot to wipe a few folders."
Lucas stepped forward instantly. "Give it."
Reed handed it over.
Lucas opened it.
Ben and Ella leaned in.
And the screen filled with files, dozens of them, some labeled, some hidden in deep folders, some sitting openly as if she wanted someone to find them and panic.
Ella's breath caught. "God… she's been planning this for months."
Lucas' voice dropped to a low hiss. "And now we get ahead of her."
Ella whispered, "How?"
Lucas' eyes hardened.
"By tearing her lies apart before she drops them."
Ben rested a hand on Ella's back, steadying her. "We end this."
Ella nodded, heart pounding.
"Together."
And for the first time, the fear in her chest shifted, slowly into something else.
Resolve.
Because now they had the truth.
And with Lucas on their side…
They finally had a fighting chance.