Elaine's Fury: The Woman Reborn

days were the perf

smiled, I laughed, I discussed floral arrangements with my mother and hone

ad, and in her place was a woman forged in fury. Every fake smile, every hollow "I love you

at a bank they would never think to check. I made multiple encry

st event of the year, a spectacle of corporate power and success, live-streamed globa

t place to

oman who specialized in complex financial fraud and high-stakes divorces. We met in dingy coffee shops, far from th

e, her eyes scanning the documents on a heavily encrypted laptop. "Especially your father. This

was al

thing from them-but the earnings from my own investments I'd made over the years. I fu

made my skin crawl. One evening, he pulled me clos

king about?" he mu

e on that beach. I was thinking about how his hand

I lied, my voice s

ife is going to be perfect. Once the Nexus launch is fully rolled ou

hoked on it. His "real life" was wait

ce was damning, but I wanted some

ed he had a two-day "business trip" to Chicago. I knew

said, kissing him g

on. I told my mother I was going on a spa retreat

in my car

pped the steering wheel, my knuckles white. The quiet, tree-lined streets

wling lawn and a pink bicycle parked near the front door. It was a

arra's hand. She looked like any other suburban mom, dressed in yoga pants and a

as my

my pocket was a lock-picking set I'd ordered online and practiced with for hours in my closet.

hird try. I slid inside, closi

living room. A child's drawing of a stick-figure family-a man, a woma

ve. And every inch of it was

lived-in way. Clothes draped over a chair, a book left ope

ess, him in a linen shirt. They were laughing, looking at each other with pure, u

dy married.

and started taking p

ring. A different one. Bigger. I realized with a jolt of sickness that he was planning to propose to her again, publicly,

sound of a car pulli

d me. Julie

inside, pulling the door almost shut, leaving just a crack

d Juliette's voice, sharp and

cle Gabe," she snapped. "The payment is la

was talking

faintly hear my father's mu

your precious company on my sacrifice. But we both know who really orchestrated the Seraphim data theft. We both kn

n't Juliette's mistake. It was my father's crime.

for your freedom. And the price for Cole's future. You want him as CEO? Then you keep paying. Make t

hung

her perfume choking me. I waited, not daring to breathe, u

amily, the house, the fake exile, the

the truth was a weapo