The diamonds felt heavy in Elara's palm—cold, sharp, and bought with the currency of her own soul. She was no longer just the girl who stayed; she was a shareholder in Julian's sins.
Two nights later, while Julian was out "closing a gap" in the foundation's books, a message appeared on Elara's personal phone. It wasn't from Julian. It was an address for a dimly lit tea house in the old quarter of the city, followed by a single letter: S.
Elara found Sophia sitting in a velvet-lined booth at the back of the shop, looking more like a queen in exile than a business consultant. She didn't have a tea cup in front of her; she had a laptop and a thick stack of bank ledgers.
"You took the earrings," Sophia said, her voice a low, dangerous purr. "I saw them on your nightstand when I dropped off the audit files. I expected better of you, Elara. Or perhaps, I expected worse."
"I did what I had to do," Elara replied, sliding into the booth. "I'm in this now. Julian and I—"
"Julian is a sinking ship," Sophia interrupted, turning the laptop screen toward Elara. "Look at the dates. He didn't just move money to cover his lifestyle. He moved money into offshore accounts under your name, Elara. If the police trace the final wire transfer, it doesn't lead to him. It leads to the 'loyal' girlfriend who was 'planning her life' with him."
The air in the tea house felt suddenly thin. Elara stared at the screen. There it was: her signature, her social security number, and a series of transfers totaling nearly half a million dollars.
"He's not just using you as a shield," Sophia whispered. "He's using you as a fall guy. When the police come back—and they will—he'll claim he was the visionary and you were the one skimming from the top while he was 'distracted' by his love for you."
Elara felt the silver charm bracelet—the cheap one—digging into her wrist. "Why are you telling me this? You're his sister. You're part of this."
"I'm a survivor," Sophia said, sliding a USB drive across the table. "Julian is becoming a liability. He's getting sloppy because he thinks you'll never leave. On this drive is the evidence that the offshore accounts were set up from his IP address, not yours. It's your get-out-of-jail-free card."
"What do you want in exchange?" Elara asked, her fingers hovering over the drive.
"I want the foundation," Sophia said, her eyes flashing with a cold ambition. "Help me bury Julian, and I'll make sure your name is cleared. You can go back to your gallery. You can go back to Maya. You can go back to being the girl who walked away."
Elara looked at the USB drive, then out the window at the city lights. If she took it, she was betraying the man she had promised to die for. If she didn't, she was heading straight for a prison cell.
The "Hill" was finally crumbling.
"I'll think about it," Elara said, her voice sounding like a stranger's.
She walked out into the night, the USB drive hidden in the same pocket as the diamond earrings. She had two versions of the truth now. One made her a queen, and the other made her a ghost.