Layla's POV:
"I... I remember now, I did meet this gentleman once before!"
Drawing a steadying breath, I forced my voice to remain calm. "I swear to you, I had no idea he was Brian," I whispered.
Between fits of coughing, I wove Emilia's tale for Orlando, carefully crafting each detail to ring with the sincerity he demanded.
In the story, Emilia had been a poor, helpless girl.
She originally had a bright future, but was suffocated by a terrible family.
Her unscrupulous father forced her to entertain debtors with drinks.
Of course, I hid the part about her being saved by "Layla".
Instead, I told him that Emilia had managed to escape on her own.
My words came out broken between sobs.
"I didn't know he was your enemy, and it's been so long, I really couldn't recognize him right away
