Shadow Of Her Past

CHAPTER 2: THE FLASH DRIVE

Chapter 2 – The Flash Drive

Ava slammed the door behind her, the click echoing like a gunshot in the stillness of her apartment. The city outside flickered in orange and steel through her floor-to-ceiling windows, but she barely saw it.

She dropped the flash drive on her marble countertop like it was a weapon. Because in the right hands — or the wrong ones — it was.

She hadn’t planned to steal it. Not really. But after Julian’s phone buzzed with an encrypted file transfer and his gaze lingered on her with that damned smirk, her instincts kicked in.

She couldn’t let herself be fooled again.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she plugged it into her laptop. A password prompt blinked at her.

“Of course,” she muttered. Julian didn’t do easy.

She typed in his favorite word — "Merlot." Wrong.

Then tried the name of the hotel they used to sneak off to, years ago.

“Velmont.”

Click.

A folder opened.

Inside: PDFs, recordings, photos — and one video file labeled "Control_V3."

Her heart thumped.

She clicked.

Ava’s face appeared on the screen, but it was from before — a boardroom meeting, her voice passionate, confident. The footage was grainy, clearly recorded without her knowledge. Then another clip — a voice call between Julian and Rachel.

"She’s asking too many questions," Rachel said.

"Then give her answers that bury her," Julian replied.

Ava stopped the video.

Her vision blurred. Not from tears. From rage.

But then, another file: “REDACTED_7.21.wav”

She clicked it.

Julian’s voice again, this time softer. "I don’t want her dead. Just… quiet. You promised no blood.”

Ava froze.

Did he mean her?

Or someone else?

The room felt colder, heavier.

Behind her, her phone buzzed. One message from a private number:

“You were never supposed to see that.”

Her stomach dropped.

Someone knew. And now they were watching.

---

🔥 End of Chapter 2

Tension escalating?

Ava now has evidence, but not the full truth.

Julian may have tried to protect her... or use her.

And someone dangerous is watching every move she made