Chapter 82: When the Truth Refuses to Stay Hidden
The city was too loud that night.
From the glass walls of the penthouse, Manhattan glittered like nothing had ever gone wrong. Lights blinked. Cars moved. People lived their lives without knowing that somewhere above them, a carefully built lie was beginning to crack.
Scarlett stood by the window, her fingers lightly gripping the edge of the curtain. Her reflection stared back at her, calm on the surface, but her eyes betrayed everything.
She was tired.
Not the kind of tired that sleep could fix, but the kind that settled deep inside the chest. The kind that came from pretending for too long.
Behind her, the door clicked open.
She did not turn around. She already knew who it was.
"You're still awake."
Julian's voice was low, steady, but there was something beneath it tonight. Something restless.
Scarlett let out a quiet breath. "I could say the same thing."
