Chapter 28 The Lawsuit
They're back in New York when Kairo's lawyer calls.
"Felix's legal team filed a response." Caleb Cole's voice is grim over the speakerphone. "They're claiming creative inspiration. Not theft."
Zephyra sits at their kitchen table. She didn't touch the coffee. She has not slept for three days.
"What does that imply?" Her voice is hoarse.
"It means they're arguing that working together blurred creative boundaries. That the designs emerged from collaboration. That ownership can't be clearly established."
"But I have the originals." She looks at Kairo. "Dated. Time-stamped."
"They're claiming you both contributed ideas verbally. Those sketches are just one part of the process." Caleb sighs. "It's weak. But enough to make this messy."
"How messy?" Kairo asks.
"Media circus messy. This is going to be public. Very public."
He's correct.
By the next morning, news is everywhere.
"Designer War: Former Lovers Battle in Court"
"Fashion's Messiest Breakup: Zephyra Lione- Draven Accuses Ex of Theft"
"Did Rising Star Steal Designs? Or Is She a Bitter Ex?"
The headlines make her sick.
Her phone explodes. Interview requests. Comments. Questions.
The fashion community splits. Some support her. Some question her motives.
"She dated him for three years. How can she prove what's hers?"
"This feels vindictive. Like she can't handle him moving on."
"Maybe they really did create together."
The doubt is poison. Seeping into everything.
Zephyra stops reading the comments. But the damage is done.
A week passes. Then two.
The legal team gathers evidence. Testimonies from professors. Classmates who remember her designs. Documentation of her creative process.
Kairo is relentless. His lawyers are sound. Protecting her with all they have.
"We're building an airtight case." Caleb assures her. "Felix's team knows they are losing."
But time has a cost.
Zephyra's stress mounts. She can't eat. Can't sleep. Can't focus on new designs.
Every sketch reminds her of Felix. Of betrayal. Of theft.
She's in the studio when she finally breaks.
Kairo finds her on the floor. Surrounded by ripped sketches. Sobbing.
"I loved him." The words tear out of her. "I gave him everything. My heart. My trust. My work. And he stole from me. How could he steal from me?"
Kairo sits beside her. Pulls her into his arms.
"I know it truly hurts."
"You know I keep thinking about all those years." She gasps between sobs. "While I was broken. I thought I was not good enough. He was using my design. Profiting from my pain."
"He's a thief." Kairo's voice is fierce. "And thieves get caught."
"But what if people think I'm just bitter?" She looks at him. Eyes red. Devastated.
"You can prove it." He wipes her tears. "You have the evidence. The truth."
"I trusted him." Her voice breaks again. "How could he do this to someone he claimed to love?"
Kairo is quiet for a moment. Then says something that changes everything.
"Because he never loved you."
The words hit like ice water.
"What?"
"He never loved you, Zephyra." Kairo's voice is gentle but honest. "He loved what you could give him. Your talent. Your ideas. Your potential. If he had loved you, he couldn't have done this."
The truth of it settles in her bones.
Felix didn't love her. Maybe he never did.
He loved her usefulness. Her creativity. Her value.
"Love does not steal." Kairo continues. "Love does not betray. Love does not build success on someone else's stolen dreams. What he did? That's not love. That's exploitation."
She cries harder. But differently now. Not grief. Release.
Mourning not what she lost. But what she never had.
Three weeks into the legal battle, Caleb calls again.
"We have a development." His voice is excited. "Jean-Marc Laurent's estate executor contacted us."
Zephyra's stomach drops. "What? I thought Laurent was dead."
"He is. Six months ago. But his executor has been going through his files. Found something interesting."
"What?"
"Documentation. Emails. Recordings." Caleb pauses. "Laurent kept detailed records of his relationship with Felix. Including evidence of the threats. And Felix's responses."
"That helps us?" Kairo asks.
"More than helps. Laurent's executor wants to testify. Says his employer's behavior was reprehensible. I want to make it right."
Zephyra's hands shake. "Testify to what?"
"To everything. The obsession. The threats. And most importantly—to the fact that Felix showed Laurent your designs. Claimed them as his own. Used them to secure funding."
The room spins.
"He has proof?" Her voice is slightly a whisper.
"Dated emails. Photos of the sketches. Laurent's notes describing them as 'Felix's original work.'" Caleb sounds triumphant. "This proves Felix was lying from the beginning."
"When can he testify?" Kairo demands.
"That's the thing." Caleb hesitates. "He wants to meet with Zephyra first. In person. Says he has information she needs to hear. About Felix. About Laurent. About everything."
"What kind of information?" Zephyra asks.
"He wouldn't say over the phone. Just that it's explosive. That it changes everything."
Silence fills the kitchen.
A dead man's executor wants to testify. Has evidence. Has secrets.
"Should I meet him?" Zephyra looks at Kairo.
"That's your choice." He takes her hand. "But I'll be with you. Whatever you decide."
She thinks about Felix. About theft. About five years of stolen dreams.
"Set up the meeting." She tells Caleb. "I want to know everything about it."
Two days later, they sit in Caleb's conference room. Waiting.
The door opens. A man in his sixties enters. Distinguished. Sad eyes.
"Ms. Draven. Mr. Draven." He nods to each of them. "Thank you for this meeting. I'm Robert Chen. I was Jean-Marc Laurent's personal assistant for twenty years."
"You wanted to testify?" Zephyra asks.
"Yes. But first, there's something you need to understand." Robert puts a folder on the table. "About why Laurent targeted Felix. And about what Felix really knew."
"What do you mean?" Kairo's voice is sharp.
Robert opens the folder. Pulls out documents. Sets them in front of Zephyra.
"Laurent kept detailed journals. Every conversation. Every interaction. Every deal made with Felix." Robert's expression is grim. "And according to these records, Felix wasn't a victim. He was a willing participant."
Zephyra stares at the documents. Her blood goes cold.
"What are you trying to say?" Her voice is slightly a whisper.
"I'm saying Felix manipulated Laurent's obsession. Used it to secure funding. Played victim while actively exploiting a disturbed man's fixation." Robert pauses. "And the threats against you? Felix suggested them. He told Laurent that threatening you would give him an excuse to leave. To make his choice look noble instead of calculated."
The room tilts.
Felix orchestrated ev
erything. The threats. The abandonment. The theft.
All of it planned. All of it lies.
But if Felix manipulated Laurent that completely, what else has he been lying about?