Chapter 7
Elena sat in the passenger seat of her father’s car, watching through tinted windows as Julian burst out of his corporate headquarters downtown, looking frantic and disheveled. Arthur kept the engine idling quietly around the corner, maintaining a safe distance while Richard’s security team monitored the situation via secure radio links. “Are you sure you want to do this, Elena?” Arthur asked softly, his hand resting gently on the gear shift. “You don't have to face him face-to-face until the courtroom hearing next week.” Elena turned her head, the bruising on her cheek now fading into a dull yellow and green, and met her father’s gaze with absolute resolve. “If I don't look him in the eye and show him that I am no longer afraid, he will always have a ghost left inside my head,” she said steadily. She opened the car door before Arthur could argue further and walked across the paved courtyard toward the glass doors of the building, her posture straight and her head held high. Julian stopped dead in his tracks as he saw her approaching, his eyes widening in a mixture of hope and furious indignation. “Elena! Have you finally come to your senses?” he demanded, taking a quick step toward her with an oily, practiced smile that failed to reach his dead eyes. Elena stopped three paces away, keeping a safe and impenetrable boundary between them. “I came to return your spare house keys, Julian, and to let you know that the restraining order was officially served to your office ten minutes ago,” she said, her voice clear, calm, and completely devoid of the trembling hesitation he was accustomed to exploiting. Julian’s smile vanished instantly, replaced by a dark, ugly scowl as he lunged forward, but two plainclothes security guards hired by Richard Vance materialized from the shadows, blocking his path with quiet, immovable authority. “Don't ever speak to me, look at me, or attempt to contact me again,” Elena added, dropping the metal ring of keys onto the concrete patio between them. She turned her back on him without a second glance, walking steadily back toward her father’s waiting car while Julian screamed impotent obscenities into the afternoon air.
