RULES
650 Words
They are not staying on the porch." Evelyn dropped her duffel bag onto the hardwood floor, marched straight to the glass doors, and pointed toward the patio.
Two men in dark suits stood near the timber railing, watching the driveway.
Julian set her second suitcase down by the kitchen island, unbuttoned his jacket, and tossed it over an armchair. "They aren't on the porch, Evelyn. They are on the perimeter."
"They are five feet from my coffee table," she said, turning to face him with her arms crossed.
"Fourteen feet," Julian replied, unclipping his watch and setting it on the marble counter. "And given that your apartment building is currently undergoing structural draining, fourteen feet is generous."
"Generous to who?" Evelyn asked, refusing to take off her coat. "We agreed on security. We didn't agree on a military blockade."
Julian reached into his pocket, pulled out a slim stainless-steel keycard, and slid it across the island toward her. "That key card opens the walkway connecting this wing to the main house. The circuit is localized. No cameras inside, no staff entry without your permission. The guards remain outside."
"And when I need to buy groceries?" Evelyn asked.
"My driver takes you," Julian said.
"If I want to step out for fresh air?"
"A guard walks behind you."
Evelyn let out a sharp laugh. "I'm a financial analyst, Julian, not a high-value hostage."
"You are carrying my child," he said, leaning back against the edge of the counter. "That makes you an immense point of leverage to three rival firms, two tabloid syndicates, and a clinic director trying to cover her own tracks."
Evelyn walked up to the opposite side of the island and planted both hands flat on the marble. "I accepted housing because my ceiling caved in. I did not sign over my basic freedom."
"The front door isn't locked," Julian said, gesturing toward the entryway. "You can walk down the drive, call a cab, and check into a hotel right now. But the moment you step past those gates, I stop managing your privacy. Aegis Clinic's legal team has already let slip to two media outlets that a 'procedural anomaly' happened today."
Evelyn felt her hands go cold. "They leaked it?"
"Not your name," Julian said. "Not yet. But reporters will have that patient registry by morning. You check into a public hotel tonight, and you'll have cameras in your face by breakfast."
Evelyn stared at him across the counter. He hadn't raised his voice once, yet he had effectively backed her into a corner using pure facts.
"You knew about the leak before you brought me here," she said.
"I anticipated it," Julian replied.
"How convenient for you."
"It's just math, Evelyn."
She looked down at the silver key card resting between them, then back up at his face.
"The guards stay past the garden line," Evelyn said, tapping her nail against the card. "Not on my patio. And you ring the front doorbell like anyone else."
Julian picked up his watch from the counter, strapped it back onto his wrist, and nodded once. "Fair enough."
Before she could take a step back, his phone buzzed against the marble top. Julian picked it up and swiped at the screen. "Vance here."
He listened in silence for three seconds, his calm expression flatlining completely.
"Repeat that," Julian commanded into the receiver.
Evelyn watched his jaw tighten as the caller spoke from the other end.
"Where was it traced?" Julian asked.
Another beat of silence passed before he lowered the phone and laid it face-down on the counter next to her keycard.
"What is it?" Evelyn asked, taking a step closer. "What happened?"
"That was my security team," Julian said. "The leak didn't come from Aegis."
"Then who was it?" Evelyn asked.
Julian looked her dead in the eye. "Your ex-boyfriend. Daniel just sold his statement to the press.
- Writer
