Chapter 75
The tap-tap-tap of my fingers against the keyboard filled the quiet of the gallery office.
It was late, far past when I should’ve closed up and gone home, but the questions swirling in my mind refused to let me rest.
Caleb. His words, his actions.. they didn’t add up.
And Bella’s warnings… they’d stayed with me, no matter how much I tried to brush them off.
The screen’s glow illuminated my face as I leaned closer, scrolling through articles, business reports, and obscure mentions of his name.
At first, nothing seemed too alarming.. just a few generic write-ups about his company’s success and charity donations.
But then, buried between the lines, I found the cracks.
A lawsuit in London. Terms like breach of contract, embezzlement, and fraud jumped out at me. A scandal involving former employees claiming they’d been silenced. The articles were vague, details sparse, as if someone had worked hard to scrub the truth.
The Caleb I knew.. or thought I knew.. didn’t fit this picture. The man I’d met was charming, composed, and polished. His easy smile and calm demeanor had made me feel safe, like I could trust him.
But now? Now I wasn’t so sure.
I rubbed my temples, my mind spinning. None of this made sense. Was it possible Bella had been right all along?
Determined, I clicked on another link, an older one from years ago, and froze when I saw it.
It was an obscure blog post, something barely credible, but it mentioned a different name.. Jack. Jack Waves.
“What the hell?” I muttered, leaning in closer.
The post suggested that Caleb.. if that was even his real name.. had used the alias during his time in London. Jack Waves. It sounded ridiculous, like something out of a bad spy novel.
But the name appeared in multiple mentions, always connected to the same scandals.
I sat back in my chair, staring at the screen. My stomach twisted with unease.
Could it be true? Could Caleb have been hiding something this big all along?
A memory flickered in my mind.. Caleb’s face the last time we’d spoken, his words lingering like smoke. “You’ll see, Sam. I’m the only one you can trust.”
Trust? How could I trust him when he’d been hiding something this massive?
I glanced at my phone, the urge to confront him growing stronger with each passing second.
No. This wasn’t something I could let simmer. I needed answers, and I needed them now.
With shaking hands, I grabbed my phone and found Caleb’s number. The ringing seemed to stretch on forever, my heartbeat quickening with each passing second.
Finally, he picked up. “Sam?” His voice was smooth, almost too calm, like he’d been expecting my call.
I didn’t wait for pleasantries. “We need to talk,” I said sharply.
There was a pause on the other end, then a quiet sigh. “Alright. When and where?”
I rattled off the address of a café not too far from the gallery, my voice firm. “I’ll see you in an hour at the cafe close to my gallery.”
Before he could respond, I ended the call, tossing my phone onto the desk.
My hands trembled slightly as I exhaled a shaky breath.
What was I doing? This felt dangerous, reckless even. But I couldn’t stop now. Not when I was this close to uncovering the truth.
I glanced back at the computer screen, the name Jack Waves glaring back at me like an accusation. Whoever Caleb.. or Jack.. was, I was going to find out.
And I was going to make sure he couldn’t lie to me anymore.