“Your first round of capital was mine. The credit line that saved your company two years ago was mine. The acquisition that tripled your valuation was financed by me.”
Simone grabbed his arm.
“Julian, let’s go.”
But he was already broken.
“You lied to me!”
I smiled without humor.
“You tried to have me sterilized while I was pregnant. Let’s not talk about lies.”
I ordered security to escort them out.
Hours later, Vance Holdings collapsed.
But my victory was short-lived.
We went to Julian’s offices to recover documents related to my investments. Inside a safe we found an encrypted drive.
Ray managed to open it.
On the screen appeared blueprints of military installations and technology development centers belonging to the Montgomery Group.
I went cold.
This was no longer a simple marital betrayal.
“How did he get this?”
Before Ray could answer, red dots of laser light appeared on his chest.
A federal team came into the office.
At the front walked a tall man dressed in black.
I recognized him before my mind accepted what I was seeing.
“Sebastian…”
Sebastian Cole.
The man I was going to marry before a mission overseas supposedly ended his life.
The man whose funeral had destroyed me.
The man whose absence had left me vulnerable right before I met Julian.
Sebastian came closer.
“Forgive me, Rachel.”
“You’re dead.”
“That’s what we needed everyone to believe.”
He explained the truth to me.
Julian had been recruited years earlier by an international organization dedicated to trafficking military technology.
His marriage to me had not been a coincidence.
And Simone was not simply his lover.
She was his handler.
I was the target.
Sebastian had spent years following the operation from the inside.
I felt sick.
“So my entire marriage was a mission?”
“Yes.”
“And you knew?”
Sebastian lowered his eyes.
“I knew part of it.”
