Chapter 13: Every Move Has a price
1202 Words
The drive away from the restaurant was unusually quiet.
Rain clouds had begun gathering over the city, casting long shadows across the streets. Inside Lucien's black sedan, only the soft hum of the engine broke the silence.
Selena rested her elbow against the window, watching pedestrians hurry along the sidewalks. Her expression remained calm, but her mind replayed every word Ethan and Aria had spoken during lunch.
Nothing had changed.
They still believed they were the ones controlling the game.
The only difference was that this time, she knew every move they intended to make before they made it.
Lucien glanced at her briefly before returning his attention to the road.
"You've been thinking since we left."
Selena smiled faintly.
"Am I that easy to read?"
"Not to everyone."
His answer was simple, yet it made her heartbeat skip.
Most people saw only the version of Selena she allowed them to see.
Lucien, however, noticed the little thingsâthe way her fingers tapped against the armrest whenever she was planning something, the slight crease between her brows whenever she was solving a problem, the quiet look in her eyes whenever memories of her previous life surfaced.
He never asked questions she wasn't ready to answer.
That was one of the many reasons she trusted him.
"I confirmed something today," Selena said softly.
"Ethan suspects someone is targeting him."
Lucien nodded.
"I noticed."
"But he doesn't suspect me."
"Not yet."
Selena looked out the window again.
"That's exactly where I want him."
The car entered the underground parking garage of Dregor Holdings.
After parking, Lucien switched off the engine but didn't immediately get out.
Instead, he reached into the back seat and retrieved a slim black folder.
"I was waiting until after your meeting to show you this."
Selena accepted it.
"What is it?"
"My investigation into Hart Group."
She opened the folder.
The first few pages contained financial reports.
Nothing unusual.
Then she turned another page.
Bank transfers.
Hidden accounts.
Payments made to companies that existed only on paper.
Her expression slowly hardened.
Just as she remembered.
Except...
There were more transactions than in her previous life.
"They're moving money faster than before," she murmured.
Lucien nodded.
"I thought the same."
Selena continued reading.
Several signatures had clearly been forged.
Millions had disappeared over the last two years.
Enough to destroy the company if exposed.
Yet Ethan had somehow convinced the board everything was perfectly normal.
"He'll never admit it willingly," Selena said.
"He won't have a choice forever."
Lucien leaned back in his seat.
"What are you planning?"
A slow smile spread across her face.
"I'm going to let him dig his own grave."
Lucien chuckled quietly.
"I should have guessed."
...
Across the city...
Ethan stormed into his office, slamming the door hard enough to make everyone outside fall silent.
His assistant hurried after him.
"Sir..."
"Cancel every appointment this afternoon."
"But the investorsâ"
"I said cancel them!"
The assistant immediately nodded and left.
Ethan loosened his tie before collapsing into his chair.
Nothing made sense anymore.
The anonymous leak had already cost him two major investors.
Now rumors about financial irregularities were beginning to circulate among the board members.
Someone was feeding information to the media.
Someone who knew far too much.
His phone buzzed.
Aria.
He answered immediately.
"Did anything happen after I left?"
Aria hesitated.
"I don't know how to explain it."
"Try."
"Selena isn't reacting the way she used to."
Ethan frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"I tried making her feel guilty."
"And?"
"It didn't work."
He remained silent.
Aria continued.
"She looked at me like... like she could see through me."
A strange feeling settled in Ethan's chest.
For years, Selena had been predictable.
She forgave easily.
Trusted completely.
Loved without questioning.
Now...
She looked at him like a stranger.
Something had changed.
He simply didn't know what.
...
Meanwhile...
Back at her apartment, Selena spread the documents across her dining table.
Every page confirmed another piece of the puzzle.
She grabbed a notebook and began writing names.
Executives.
Lawyers.
Investors.
Shell companies.
Then she drew lines connecting them.
Her eyes suddenly stopped on one particular transaction.
Five million dollars.
Transferred to a company she didn't recognize.
No...
Not unfamiliar.
Different.
The name had changed.
But the registration number...
It matched a company Ethan had secretly used in her previous life.
Her breathing slowed.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
He was adapting.
Which meant he had become more cautious.
That made him more dangerous.
Her phone rang.
It was the private investigator Lucien had hired months ago.
"Miss Selena."
"What did you find?"
"We identified the owner of the shell company."
She straightened.
"Who is it?"
"Ethan's uncle."
Silence filled the room.
She remembered the man.
Quiet.
Polite.
Always standing in the background during family gatherings.
No one ever suspected him.
Not even Selena.
In her previous life, he had escaped every investigation because all attention had been focused on Ethan.
This time...
He had exposed himself too early.
"Keep watching him," Selena instructed.
"I want to know where he goes, who he meets, and every transfer he authorizes."
"Understood."
The call ended.
Selena closed her notebook.
Another enemy had just stepped into the light.
...
That evening, she stood on the balcony overlooking the glittering skyline.
The cool breeze brushed against her hair.
A familiar memory flashed before her eyes.
The charity gala.
In her previous life, it had been the night everything began falling apart.
Aria had deliberately spilled wine on herself before accusing Selena of pushing her.
Guests whispered.
Photographers captured Selena's angry expression at the worst possible moment.
Ethan had comforted Aria publicly while privately telling everyone Selena had become emotionally unstable.
Within days, the rumors had spread throughout the city's elite.
Doors closed.
Invitations disappeared.
Business partners kept their distance.
She had walked straight into their carefully prepared trap.
This time...
She already knew where every trap had been placed.
A slow smile appeared on her lips.
Instead of avoiding the gala...
She would make it the stage for Ethan's humiliation.
Not enough to destroy him.
Not yet.
Just enough to make everyone question the perfect image he had spent years building.
She wanted him nervous.
Desperate.
Paranoid.
People made careless mistakes when fear took over.
And Ethan's biggest mistake was still waiting to happen.
As she turned to return inside, headlights flashed briefly below her apartment building.
A black SUV sat across the street.
Its windows were too dark to see inside.
Selena frowned.
The vehicle had been there for almost ten minutes.
Slowly...
The driver's side window rolled down.
A man wearing a black cap lifted his phone and took a photograph of her balcony.
Click.
Before Selena could react, the SUV sped away into the night.
Her instincts screamed that this wasn't a coincidence.
Someone was watching her.
Someone who knew exactly where she lived.
She stepped back into the apartment and locked the balcony door.
For the first time since her rebirth, a feeling she hadn't experienced in months settled over her.
Not fear.
Expectation.
The game had just become far more dangerous.
And somewhere in the darkness...
A new player had entered the board.
- Writer
