Chapter 6 - Evelyn’s Voice
Evelyn’s face filled the console screen. She looked hollow, her cheekbones sharp and eyes bruised with exhaustion, sitting in a dimly lit motel room. The contrast from the radiant, laughing woman Julian had loved in secret tore at his chest.
"Julian," Evelyn whispered through the speaker, her voice trembling. "If you are seeing this, I didn't make it to you myself. I am so sorry. I hid Leo from you not to hurt you, but to keep him alive."
Maya stared at the screen, tears silently tracing lines down her dusty face. Julian gripped the wheel, every breath burning his lungs.
"Your father discovered our relationship," Evelyn continued, swallowing hard. "He threatened to wipe my family off the map. When I tried to run, I discovered what was hidden in the Sterling Logistics warehouse in Boston. Unregistered arms shipments. When Arthur realized I had seen the manifests, he put a bounty on my head. I lived as a ghost for six years."
She paused, looking off-camera where a baby cooed. A faint smile touched her cracked lips. "He has your chin, Julian. And your stubborn will. Don't trust Arthur. Don't trust the family lawyers. The only person who can take this evidence to the federal prosecutor is David Vance, my brother. He is in Chicago."
Evelyn leaned closer to the lens. "I never stopped loving you. Protect our boy."
The video cut to black. Julian sat motionless, the world collapsing around his shoulders. His father had hunted the woman he loved.
May you like
Suddenly, Maya cried out. Julian looked up to see headlights beaming directly through the snow-laden trees. They had been found.
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