Chapter 11 011

Chapter 11 011

IRIS POV

Rowan's apartment smelled like coffee and old books, the kind of place that felt safe. I shouldn't have come, but I had nowhere else to go. Not after what happened in the forest, not after Vale cuffed me to a tree like I was evidence he needed to preserve.

"You look like hell," Rowan said, handing me a mug. His eyes were worried, the way they always got when he knew I was lying.

"Thanks." I took the coffee but didn't drink it. My hands were shaking too much.

He sat across from me, leaning forward. "Iris, what's going on? You've been dodging my calls for days."

I stared into the mug, watching steam curl up. "Vale knows."

The silence that followed was heavy, suffocating.

"Knows what?" His voice was careful, but I could hear the fear underneath.

"Everything. The DNA report, my dad, the falsified evidence." I finally looked at him. "He knows I buried his sister's case."

Rowan's face went pale. He set his cup down, hands gripping his knees. "How?"

"He's been investigating for months. He has proof, documents, everything." I felt my throat tighten. "And now I'm working for him. He's making me—"

"Stop." Rowan stood up fast, pacing. "You need to stop working with him. Right now."

"I can't."

"Yes, you can. Walk away, Iris. Whatever he's threatening you with, we'll figure it out."

"He'll ruin me." My voice cracked. "He'll make sure everyone knows what I did."

"Then let him!" Rowan's voice rose, desperate. "Let it happen. We'll deal with the fallout together, but you can't keep doing this. He's dangerous."

I wanted to believe him. God, I wanted to believe that walking away was possible, but Vale had me trapped. The contract, the surveillance, the way he looked at me like I was both the problem and the answer.

Rowan knelt in front of me, taking my hands. His touch was warm, steady. "Iris, listen to me. Two years ago, when you changed that report, I knew."

My heart stopped. "What?"

"I knew what you did." His eyes were wet. "I saw the original results before you deleted them. I found the backup file."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Because I saw your face that night. You were destroyed, and your dad was dying." He squeezed my hands. "So I erased the backup. I covered your tracks."

The room spun. "Rowan, you shouldn't have—"

"I did it because I love you." The words hung between us, raw and painful. "I've loved you for years, and I watched you tear yourself apart over that choice. I couldn't let you go down for it."

Tears burned my eyes. "You should've let me face it."

"Maybe." He let go of my hands, reaching for something on the table. A folder, thin and worn. "But I kept something. Just in case."

He handed it to me. I opened it with shaking fingers.

Photos. Crime scene photos from two years ago, the ones that should've been logged but never made it into evidence. They showed the burial site, the disturbed earth, and something else.

A second set of footprints leading away from the grave.

"There was someone else there," Rowan said quietly. "The night your dad supposedly moved the body. But you destroyed the DNA match before anyone could investigate further."

I stared at the photos, my mind racing. If there was someone else, then my dad might not have been alone. Or worse, he might not have been involved at all.

"Why are you showing me this now?"

"Because Vale's digging, and if he finds these, he'll know your dad wasn't the only one involved." Rowan's voice was urgent. "You need to get ahead of this before he does."

The apartment door opened without warning.

Vale stepped inside like he owned the place, his eyes scanning the room before landing on me. Then Rowan. Then our hands, still close.

"Interesting," Vale said, his voice cold. "Didn't realize we were having a meeting without me."

"Get out," Rowan stood, stepping between us. "She doesn't need you here."

Vale's smile was sharp. "That's not your call to make."

"She's not your property."

"No." Vale moved closer, and the temperature in the room dropped. "But I own everything she's afraid of."

Rowan's jaw clenched. "You don't own her."

"Don't I?" Vale's eyes flicked to me. "She signed a contract. She works for me. And right now, she's violating the terms by being here."

"The contract doesn't make her a prisoner."

"It makes her accountable." Vale's voice was ice. "Something you seem to have forgotten about."

I stood up, putting myself between them. "Stop. Both of you."

But they weren't listening. They were locked in some silent battle, measuring each other, and I was just the prize they were fighting over.

"You're going to hurt her," Rowan said, his voice low. "That's all this is. Revenge dressed up as justice."

Vale tilted his head. "And what are you doing? Proteting her? Enabling her?" He laughed, bitter. "You're just as guilty as she is."

"At least I'm not using her guilt as a weapon."

"No, you're just using your feelings." Vale stepped closer to Rowan. "That's worse, because she'll never love you back. Not the way you want."

The words hit like a punch. Rowan flinched, and I saw the pain flash across his face.

"You need to leave," I said to Vale, my voice shaking. "Now."

He looked at me, something unreadable in his eyes. Then he turned and walked to the door.

But before leaving, he stopped. "You have twenty-four hours to return to work. After that, the contract terms change."

The door closed behind him.

Rowan stood there, breathing hard. Then he turned to me, and his expression was broken.

"He will destroy you," he whispered. "And I don't think I can stop him."