Chapter 8
The investigator gestured toward a seating area away from the departure lane.
“Mr. Mercer, we need you to step over here.”
Adrian did not move.
Not refusal.
Not compliance.
A man frozen between arrogance and consequence.
Elena remained seated.
That bothered him most.
She had not chased him through the terminal.
Had not shouted at Vanessa.
Had not grabbed the suitcase.
Had not begged him not to leave.
She sat with coffee and documents, calm enough to make his panic look louder than it was.
“Are you enjoying this?” he asked.
Elena’s face changed.
For one moment, the wound beneath the control appeared.
“No.”
He stared at her.
“I spent last night looking at the hotel reservation you made with her,” she said quietly. “I spent this morning reading transfer records while you texted me a heart emoji from the car.”
Vanessa looked at Adrian.
He said nothing.
Elena continued, voice steady again.
“I am not enjoying this. I am surviving it accurately.”
The phrase unsettled everyone.
Even the investigator’s eyes moved briefly toward her.
Adrian looked away first.
A boarding announcement sounded in the background, soft and ordinary.
Vanessa flinched.
“Our flight,” she whispered.
Adrian snapped, “There is no flight.”
The words came out crueler than he meant.
Vanessa recoiled.
Elena watched the final illusion break in her face.
The getaway had been romantic only while it worked.
Now it was evidence.
The investigator repeated, “Mr. Mercer.”
Adrian finally took one step away from the gate.
Then stopped beside Elena’s table.
His hand hovered near the folder.
Elena’s palm rested over it.
“Don’t.”
His eyes met hers.
“You have no idea how ugly this can get.”
She looked up at him.
“I do. That’s why I came where there are cameras.”
The terminal around them seemed to sharpen.
Airport cameras.
Security officers.
Witnesses.
The federal badge at the investigator’s belt.
May you like
Adrian slowly withdrew his hand.
Read Chapter 9 👉 Because Elena chose the airport for one reason Adrian understood too late: every move he made here belonged to a record.
