Chapter 2: The Document She Always Meant to Deliver
Part 2 ⬇️
I reached the edge of the stage just as Leo and Ethan were stepping down, gold medals catching the light around their necks.
Leo saw me first.
He didn't flinch.
He didn't smile.
He simply looked at me the way you look at a stranger you've already decided means nothing.
That was worse than hatred.
"Boys." My voice came out smaller than I intended.
"I'm Julian Mercer.
I think we need to talk."
Ethan tilted his head.
"We know who you are."
Three seconds of silence that felt like three years.
Then a hand closed around my arm — firm, calm, and completely in control.
Elena.
She looked nothing like the woman I had left crying in a hospital corridor thirteen years ago.
She was composed.
Elegant.
And she was smiling at me the way a person smiles when they have already won.
"Julian." She said my name like it was a minor inconvenience.
"I was wondering how long it would take you to walk over here."
"Elena, I—"
"Don't." Her voice dropped.
"Not here.
Not in front of them."
She turned to the boys and nodded once.
They walked away without looking back.
Then she reached into her jacket and placed a folded document against my chest.
"You'll want to read that before you say another word to me or my sons."
My hand shook as I took it.
The letterhead stopped my heart.
---
What's inside that document — and why did Elena bring it tonight of all nights?
The full truth is in the link below.
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