SPARKS AND SCARS I
1651 Words
The early morning chill clung to Ava’s coat as she stepped out of her hotel, coffee in one hand and steel in her spine.
Midtown buzzed with the manic rhythm of a city that never slept, and today, Ava matched its pulse beat for beat. She had barely slept. Her mind had spun all night, replaying Julian’s last words, the anonymous threat, and the photo leak that reeked of sabotage.
This wasn’t just a scandal anymore. It was a setup.
Back in her temporary office at Sinclair & Rowe’s New York branch, Ava wasted no time. The moment Olivia arrived, coffee in hand and apology in her eyes, Ava looked up from her laptop.
“Tell me you have something.”
Olivia nodded, setting the cup down. “We traced the photo leak. It first appeared on a fringe gossip blog called Insider Uncut. Run anonymously. Sketchy backend encryption, but we got a digital fingerprint off the upload—same IP used in a data breach that hit a tech startup last year.”
Ava narrowed her eyes. “Connected to CrossTech?”
“Indirectly. The startup was acquired by one of CrossTech’s subsidiaries six months ago. It was a quiet acquisition, buried in the quarterly earnings report. No fanfare.”
Someone was digging deep into Julian’s empire—pulling strings in the shadows, stirring chaos. And they weren’t sloppy. They were sending messages.
Ava stood, shrugging into her blazer. “I’m going to see him.”
Olivia didn’t ask who. She just nodded. “Be careful.”
---
CrossTech HQ loomed like a fortress—sleek, sharp-edged, and guarded by layers of bureaucracy and biometric locks. But Ava had clearance now. And she wasn’t in the mood to be stopped.
Julian was already in his office, pacing, phone to his ear. When she walked in without knocking, he paused mid-sentence. “I’ll call you back,” he said, hanging up and tossing the phone on the desk.
“You saw it,” he said flatly.
She tossed a printed copy of the blog post onto the table. “I saw it. So did the rest of the world.”
Julian scrubbed a hand down his face. “I didn’t leak it, Ava.”
“You think I did?” she shot back.
“No.” His voice softened. “But someone wants the world to think we’re in bed together again. Figuratively or otherwise.”
She crossed her arms. “And the message I got last night—‘go home, Ava’—is that just a coincidence too?”
His eyes darkened. “You got a threat?”
She nodded. “Anonymous number. Same tone as the article. Same intent. Someone doesn’t want me here.”
Julian moved around the desk, close enough to lower his voice. “I don’t like this. Whoever’s behind this leak—they know too much. About CrossTech. About you. About us.”
Us.
She hated how the word still had weight.
He continued, “If Ethan Mori’s part of this, he’s not working alone. And this… this has the fingerprints of someone with money, motive, and a serious grudge.”
Ava studied him. “Someone like your competitors?”
Julian shook his head. “They don’t play this dirty. And if they did, they’d go after product weaknesses, not my past.”
A pause.
Ava said, carefully, “Then who would?”
Julian didn’t answer. But she saw something flicker in his expression—doubt, or maybe guilt.
And then it hit her.
“You’re holding something back.”
He looked at her. Silent.
“I warned you, Julian,” she said coldly. “No secrets.”
He hesitated, then reached into a drawer and pulled out a flash drive. “This came to me anonymously three days ago. No note, no sender. Just a file labeled ‘Echo-01.’ I haven’t opened it. I was going to give it to IT.”
Ava took the flash drive, her fingers tightening around it. “Then we’ll open it together.”
---
Back at her hotel suite, Ava plugged the drive into a secure laptop. Julian stood behind her, arms crossed, watching the screen like it might explode.
The file was encrypted—but not well. A simple decrypt command revealed a video feed.
Ava pressed play.
Grainy security cam footage flickered to life. A lab. High-end. CrossTech’s logo visible on the glass wall. A timestamp from four months ago.
A figure stepped into the frame.
Ethan Mori.
He moved quickly, accessing a terminal. Downloaded something to a hard drive. Then another figure appeared—a woman, tall, dark-haired, wearing a CrossTech badge.
Ava leaned in. “Who’s that?”
Julian was pale. “That’s Isla Vance.”
“Who?”
“She’s... she was our head of cyber infrastructure. Brilliant. A little reckless. She left the company two months ago. Said she wanted to travel.”
The footage didn’t lie. Isla handed Ethan a slip of paper—coordinates? A password? Then the two vanished offscreen.
Ava turned to Julian. “So your leak is older than you thought. And someone’s been planning this for months. Maybe longer.”
Julian sat heavily on the armrest of a chair. “I trusted them both.”
“Well, someone’s cashing in on that trust.”
Ava stared at the paused frame on the screen. Something about Isla nagged at her. She felt like she’d seen the woman before. Not in person—in photos. Maybe an industry event?
“Send me her file,” Ava said. “Employment history. Social media. Anything.”
“I will.”
Ava unplugged the drive. “This isn’t just sabotage, Julian. This is a long con. Someone planted these people inside your company, waited, and then triggered the perfect storm.”
Julian looked up. “And dragged you into it.”
Her voice was calm. “I’m already in it. Might as well win.”
He smiled faintly, despite the tension. “Still a storm chaser.”
Ava gave him a hard look. “And you’re still trouble wrapped in charm.”
Their eyes locked. A beat passed.
Then Ava turned away. “I need to talk to Lena. We’re building a new timeline.”
Julian stood. “Ava—”
She paused at the door.
“Be careful,” he said. “Whoever sent that message… they don’t want you just gone. They want you silenced.”
She didn’t flinch. “Let them try. And don't forget, we've a conference meeting tomorrow regarding the Horizon Gala”
And she left.
The next day....
The conference room was glass-walled, sunlight streaking across the glossy table as if spotlighting the battlefield. Ava stood at the head of the table, the perfect image of composure in a cream blouse and tailored navy slacks. But inside, her pulse thundered.
Julian had arrived early, seated at the far end of the table like a king surveying his court. His charcoal suit was immaculate, his watch glinting like armor. He didn’t look at her. Not really. Just that infuriating flicker of amusement in his eyes—like he knew she was about to snap.
This was their first joint planning session for the upcoming Horizon Gala, the tech company’s biggest annual event, and their first time being forced to collaborate since that brutal reunion.
“I reviewed the preliminary concept deck,” Julian said smoothly, flipping through the printed presentation with a practiced hand. “It’s clean. Polished. Safe.”
“Safe?” Ava’s voice was cool, but sharp. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“It is. This is our relaunch. We need bold. Disruptive. Not... vanilla PR.”
The entire room went silent. Her assistant shifted nervously. Ava didn’t flinch.
“If you wanted fireworks, maybe you should’ve hired a magician, not a communications firm.”
Julian leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled. “Oh, I hired the best. But I didn’t realize she’d stopped taking risks.”
That hit harder than she expected.
Flash.
The memory slammed into her like a punch: Julian, five years younger, barefoot in a vineyard in Tuscany. Laughing as he kissed her wine-stained lips and promised they’d conquer the world—together.
Back in the boardroom, Ava blinked, pushing the memory aside. “You want fireworks?” she said, stepping forward. “Fine. Let’s light a few matches.”
They spent the next hour locked in a tug-of-war, proposing and countering ideas for the gala—from keynote speakers to venue choices to the controversial holographic product reveal Julian wanted.
Every time he pushed, she pushed harder. Yet beneath the barbs and ego, something electric lingered. A crackling tension that had nothing to do with work.
After the meeting, Ava stepped into the hallway, trying to catch her breath. She could still feel the heat of Julian’s gaze trailing her.
“Ava,” came his voice behind her. Low. Unapologetic. Dangerous.
She turned slowly.
“We used to be on the same side,” he said.
She met his eyes. “We used to be a lot of things.”
And walked away.
Later that night, the flashbacks came uninvited.
—Ava dancing barefoot in Julian’s old loft, music playing, sunlight pouring in. —The night he first told her he loved her, the world shrinking to just them. —The silence after the betrayal, when everything cracked open.
Present day Ava stood in front of her bathroom mirror, staring at her reflection like it might offer answers.
Working with Julian again wasn’t just inconvenient. It was dangerous. For her heart, for her focus, for the secrets she buried.
But she wasn’t that young lady anymore.
And if Julian Cross thought he could bulldoze her, charm her, or outplay her—he was about to find out just how wrong he was.
- Writer
