Proof
Julie didn't intend to search Andrew's office again.
She intended to wait.
To observe.
To calculate.
But patience fractured when she found an encrypted external drive hidden beneath a false drawer lining.
Her pulse quickened.
She plugged it into the office computer after memorizing Andrew's passcode pattern days earlier.
Folders loaded slowly.
Financial transfers.
Shell corporations.
Offshore accounts.
Then—
Project Origin
Her breath stilled.
She opened it.
Meeting minutes.
Environmental suppression agreements.
Political lobbying transfers masked as disaster relief.
And—
Her father's name.
Highlighted in a compliance memo.
Patrick, Daniel – potential exposure risk.
Her vision blurred.
Attached was a recommendation:
Neutralize leverage before testimony.
Her hands trembled.
She copied the files onto a micro-drive Ethan had insisted she keep "just in case."
Footsteps approached.
Closer.
She pulled the drive free just as the office door opened.
Andrew stepped inside.
His gaze flicked to the illuminated screen.
Then to her hand.
"What are you doing?"
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"Looking at the truth," she replied.
He walked toward her slowly.
"You were not ready."
"You don't get to decide that."
Silence stretched tight.
"You approved this," she said quietly.
"I inherited it."
"But you didn't stop it."
His jaw tightened.
"I was consolidating power."
"And my parents were collateral?"
The word seemed to hit him.
But not enough.
See"I didn't order their deaths."
"You allowed them."
Silence.
He reached for her wrist.
Not violently.
But firmly.
"You will not involve that lawyer."
"I already have."
The admission hung heavy.
His expression shifted.
Not explosive anger.
Something colder.
"You're underestimating the scale of this."
"And you're underestimating me."
Their eyes locked.
For a moment, something raw surfaced beneath Andrew's control.
Fear.
Not of losing power.
Of losing her.
"Julie," he said quietly, "you don't understand what you're walking into."
She met his gaze steadily.
"Neither did my parents."
She pulled her wrist free.
And walked out of the office.
Leaving Andrew standing alone—
For the first time—
Without control of the narrative