Chapter 20: Chapter 20

The night sky stretched dark and endless above the city, shining with the same stars that had watched them from the balcony hours ago. Inside the sleek black Bentley, the hum of the engine filled the quiet between Jake and Lyra as the car moved through Manhattan’s midnight streets.

The mask was gone now. Her hair was loose, a few strands falling across her face as she leaned against the cool leather seat, silent, her mind a thousand miles away.

Jake glanced at her, one hand steady on the wheel. “You were quiet all evening,” he said softly.

“I had a lot to think about,” she murmured.

He gave a small nod. “About them?”

Her eyes moved toward the window, where reflections of city lights slid over her face like ghosts. “Yes. And about someone else.”

He raised a brow slightly. “Someone else?”

She turned to him, her voice distant, thoughtful. “Lydia. My best friend back home.”

Jake said nothing, letting her continue. He’d learned that with Lyra, silence often did more than questions.

“She was my only friend growing up,” Lyra said after a long pause. “She used to sneak into our house when we were kids. We’d play under the big oak tree behind the Morel estate. She was… pure, you know? The kind of person who still believed the world could be fair.”

Jake smiled faintly. “You sound like you miss her.”

Lyra exhaled, a small, sad sound. “I did. For a long time. She was there the day they sold me.” Her tone hardened, like glass under pressure. “She begged Ethan not to go through with it. Begged my parents to stop. But no one listened. Not even her voice could save me.”

The memory pulled at her chest. She could still hear Lydia crying as the men dragged her away. It was the sound that had haunted her through every dark night in Seraphine’s house.

Jake’s hand brushed hers gently. “You still believe she tried?”

Lyra looked up at him. “Yes. She was many things, but never cruel. She was scared. We both were.”

The car rolled past Central Park, the moonlight flashing through the trees.

Jake’s voice was quiet. “You mentioned before that there was something, evidence, that got you in trouble with your family.”

Lyra nodded slowly. “I still have it.”

He glanced at her, surprised. “You kept it?”

“I never had the chance to destroy it,” she said. “Before they sold me, I hid the USB drive in one of my books. A few months, after I got to Greece, I had Lydia send me my old things. I told them it was sentimental. They didn’t know what they were sending me.”

Jake’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. “And what’s on it?”

Lyra hesitated for a moment, as if saying it out loud would make it too real. Then she looked at him, her expression calm but fierce.

“A video,” she said finally. “Ethan. And the gardener’s daughter Clair, she was my friend too.”

Jake’s jaw clenched. “You mean—”

“Yes.” Her voice didn’t waver, though her hands trembled slightly in her lap. “The one they said was lying. The one they paid off witnesses to discredit. I saw what happened that night. I took the recording from one of the security cameras and tried to tell my father. He said it would destroy the family name. He said Ethan was the future of the Morels, and I was being foolish.”

Jake’s silence was heavy, dangerous.

Lyra continued, her tone sharper now. “I threatened to go to the police. My mother said I was being dramatic. My brother told me I didn’t understand how the world worked. And then—” She laughed bitterly. “They sold me. Said it was for the family’s good.”

The car slowed at a red light. The city seemed to pulse around them, neon signs flashing across her face.

Jake turned to look at her fully. “You still have that recording?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

He studied her for a long moment, his eyes dark with thought. “And what do you plan to do with it?”

Lyra looked back at him, her expression resolute. “I want to take it to the police.”

The light turned green, and the car moved forward. Jake didn’t answer immediately.

“You’re sure?” he said at last. “Once this is out, there’s no turning back. The Morels will know you’re back.”

“I want them to know,” she said simply. “I want them to know that everything they built, every lie, every stolen life, is going to burn.”

Jake’s lips pressed into a line. He admired her strength, her courage, but he also knew the kind of men the Morels were. “This could get dangerous, Lyra. People like them… they don’t lose quietly.”

She met his gaze without flinching. “Neither do I.”

A silence stretched between them, thick, charged. Then Jake’s expression softened. “You’ve changed,” he murmured.

She gave a faint, ironic smile. “No. I’ve just grown stronger, I have the best teacher.”

They drove in silence for a while after that, the city slowly thinning out into the quiet of Jake’s private estate on the outskirts of town. The gates opened automatically, the car gliding down the long drive bordered by tall trees.

When they finally pulled up to the mansion, Jake parked and turned off the engine, but neither of them moved to get out.

He looked at her, thoughtful. “If you go to the police, they’ll ask questions. They’ll need verification, chain of custody, timestamps. You can’t just drop a video on their desk and expect justice.”

Lyra looked down at her hands. “Then help me make them listen.”

Jake leaned back, exhaling. “You don’t even have to ask.”

She turned to him, surprised. “You’d really help me?”

“Of course I would,” he said simply. “You’ve already lost too much because of them. I’m not letting them take anything else.” “ but we are not going to the police, not yet. People as powerful as the morels, have men in the police force on their payroll”.

“So we will start by sending the evidence to the FBI for them to investigate .”

Lyra felt something loosen in her throat. Gratitude, relief and love, love for this man who will risk all to give her what she wants. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Jake smiled faintly, starting the engine again to roll the car into the garage. “Don’t thank me yet. We still have to play this smart.

Inside, the house was quiet. The soft lighting made the vast rooms feel almost intimate. Lyra slipped off her heels, sinking into the couch while Jake loosened his tie and reached for his phone.

“I know someone,” he said, scrolling through his contacts. “An agent in the FBI. A very good friend of mine, he owes me a favor.”

Lyra sat up slightly. “Do you trust him?”

“With my life.”

She nodded once. “Then call him.”

Jake dialed, pacing slowly across the living room as the line rang. The faint hum of the city outside filled the silence. Lyra watched him, her heart thudding. It felt surreal, after years of silence, fear, and running, she was finally taking the first step toward justice.

Jake’s contact picked up. “Agent Monroe,” came the voice on the other end, low and steady.

“Monroe, it’s Damon,” Jake said. “I need a favor.”

A pause, then a slight chuckle. “The last time you said that, I ended up in Milan chasing corporate fraud. What is it this time?”

Jake’s tone shifted, measured, serious. “It’s bigger than that. And it involves a very powerful family.”

A beat of silence. “You have my attention.”

“I’ll send you the details in the morning. I need complete discretion,” Jake said. “No leaks, no paperwork yet.”

“You got it. Talk soon.”

Jake ended the call and turned to Lyra, who was standing now, her expression unreadable.

“It’s done,” he said quietly. “He’ll meet us tomorrow night. Privately.”

Lyra nodded, her eyes glinting with quiet resolve. “Then tomorrow, it begins.”

Jake studied her face, the fire in her gaze, the calm in her voice, and he knew she meant it.

Outside, thunder rolled faintly in the distance, a storm building over the city.

Inside, for the first time, Lyra wasn’t running from her past. She was walking straight into it.

And this time, she wasn’t alone.