AMARA'S POV
Victoria is the stalker.
Gabriel stares at the red message on the window. His face has gone white.
Your aunt? Are you sure?
She always signs her messages V. His voice is hollow. She's been watching us this whole time.
I back away from the window. Why? Why would she do this?
Control. Power. She's done it before. Gabriel pulls out his phone. Dials. James. I need you to pull every text, every call, every piece of evidence on Victoria Stone. Now... I don't care if it's 1 AM. Do it.
He hangs up. Looks at me. Pack a bag. We're leaving.
What? Where?
Anywhere but here. She knows where we live. What we're doing. Everything. He's already moving. Throwing clothes in a suitcase. We go somewhere she can't find us. Figure out our next move.
Gabriel, slow down
I won't let her hurt you. He stops. Cups my face. I love you. Which means Victoria will use you to get to me. We leave. Now.
Twenty minutes later, we're in Gabriel's car. Driving through empty New York streets at 2 AM.
Where are we going? I ask.
Safe house. Upstate. My mother bought it years ago. Victoria doesn't know about it.
How can you be sure?
Because my mother kept it secret. Her escape plan. If she ever got away from my father. His jaw tightens. She never got to use it.
We drive in silence for an hour. Finally pull up to a small cabin. Remote. Surrounded by trees.
Inside, it's dusty. Forgotten. But cosy.
Gabriel locks the door. Checks all the windows. We're safe here. For now.
I sink onto the couch. Everything's moving too fast. What does Victoria want?
To destroy me. She's been trying since my mother died. Gabriel sits beside me. My mother left me everything in her will. The house. Savings. But Victoria contested it. Said my mother wasn't sound mind when she wrote it. The courts sided with me. Victoria's hated me ever since.
That was fifteen years ago.
She holds grudges. He runs a hand through his hair. When I took over the firm, she tried to get the board to vote me out. Failed. When I started winning big cases, she spread rumors I was unethical. Failed. Now she's trying to destroy my marriage.
But why? What does she gain?
If our marriage is exposed as fraud, I go to prison. The firm collapses. She swoops in, takes over everything. Finally wins.
My stomach turns. So this was never about protecting you from repeating your mother's mistakes.
No. That was the excuse. Control is the real reason. Gabriel takes my hand. I'm sorry. I brought you into this.
I chose this. You didn't force me.
But I didn't tell you how dangerous my family is.
Your family is one person. And we'll stop her.
How? She has evidence of our arrangement. The contract. Proof we planned the marriage for visa fraud.
Then we destroy her evidence.
Gabriel looks at me. What?
She's been stalking us. Breaking into the penthouse. Tampering with security. That's illegal. We go to the police. File charges. Get a restraining order.
She'll leak the marriage fraud.
Maybe. But we have proof of real feelings now. The interview. The texts. Our relationship. I squeeze his hand. We fight her. Together.
Gabriel pulls me close. Kisses my forehead. How did I get so lucky?
You didn't. You just finally stopped fighting what you wanted.
He smiles. Kisses me properly.
We fall onto the couch. Tangled together. Safe. For now.
Morning. Gabriel's on his laptop. Victoria's been using burner phones. Hiring people to follow us. She paid someone to shoot at us.
To scare us.
To control us. Make us paranoid. He shows the screen. She wanted us to fall for each other. Thought it would make the fraud more obvious when she exposed it.
She underestimated us.
I have an idea. Risky. We set a trap. Make Victoria think she's won. I call her. Say I'm ready to confess everything if she leaves you alone.
She'll never believe it.
She will if I sound desperate. Gabriel looks at me. Can you trust me?
Always.
He calls Victoria. Speaker on.
Hello, nephew. Enjoyed my message?
You win. I'll end the marriage. Confess the fraud. Turn myself in. Just leave Amara out of it.
How noble. Why would I agree?
Because I'm giving you everything. The firm. My reputation. Just leave her alone.
Victoria laughs. You're in love with her. How pathetic. Meet me tomorrow. The old Stone estate. Come alone. If I see your wife, the deal's off.
She hangs up.
She took the bait, Gabriel says.
What's the plan?
I wear a wire. Get her to confess. Police arrest her.
I'm coming with you.
Amara
You said together. I hide. She won't see me. Backup.
He nods. If anything goes wrong, you run.
I promise.
We spend the day preparing. Gabriel rehearses what to say. I memorize the estate layout from online photos.
That night, we lie in bed. Neither of us sleeping.
I'm scared, I admit.
Me too.
What if this doesn't work?
Then we run. Disappear. Start over somewhere Victoria can't find us.
You'd give up everything? The firm? Your life here?
Gabriel turns to face me. For you? In a heartbeat.
I kiss him. Let's make sure it doesn't come to that.
Agreed.
We hold each other until dawn.
Tomorrow, we face Victoria.
Together.