Chapter 2 - THE MAN BEHIND THE BLACK SUVS
The drive into Manhattan was silent.
Chloe sat in the back of the armored vehicle, staring through tinted glass as the city passed outside.
Roman sat opposite her.
He hadn't spoken in nearly twenty minutes.
Finally Chloe broke the silence.
“Where are you taking me?”
“My house.”
“I don't want to stay in your house.”
“You don't have anywhere else.”
“I can find somewhere.”
Roman looked at her.
“With what money?”
She said nothing.
He continued.
“Your cards are frozen. Your accounts are compromised. Your passport is missing.”
Chloe's hand went immediately to her handbag.
She searched it.
Then froze.
“My passport…”
“Gone.”
“When?”
“Your husband removed it before leaving.”
Her eyes closed.
Every new detail made the betrayal deeper.
Roman watched her carefully.
“You loved him.”
It wasn't a question.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
She opened her eyes.
“Because before all this, he was good to me.”
“Before?”
“He changed.”
“When?”
Chloe looked down.
“I don't know.”
Roman leaned back.
“People don't usually change overnight.”
“No.”
She looked toward the window.
“They just stop hiding.”
Roman didn't respond.
The vehicle eventually entered a private underground garage beneath a massive Manhattan building.
Chloe expected a dark criminal hideout.
Instead, she found something else.
A private residence occupying the upper floors of one of Manhattan's most secure luxury towers.
Roman's security team surrounded the elevator.
The doors opened directly into a vast penthouse.
Floor-to-ceiling windows revealed the city below.
Warm lighting.
Dark wood.
Stone floors.
Quiet.
Almost unnaturally quiet.
Chloe stepped inside.
“This is your home?”
“Yes.”
“It doesn't look like a criminal headquarters.”
Roman removed his coat.
“I don't spend my evenings counting guns.”
She looked at him.
“That's reassuring.”
For the first time, the corner of his mouth moved.
Almost a smile.
“I'm glad.”
A woman in her sixties approached.
“Mr. Costa.”
Roman nodded.
“This is Mrs. Cole.”
The woman's eyes moved immediately to Chloe's stomach.
“She's pregnant.”
“Yes.”
The woman looked at Roman as though silently questioning every decision he had ever made.
Roman sighed.
“Maria, prepare the east guest suite.”
“Of course.”
“And call Dr. Levin.”
Chloe stiffened.
“I'm not sick.”
“I know.”
“Then why a doctor?”
“Because you've been standing outside in freezing weather while six months pregnant.”
He looked at her.
“Humor me.”
Chloe wanted to argue.
Instead, she nodded.
Later that evening, Dr. Levin examined her.
The baby was fine.
Healthy.
Strong heartbeat.
No signs of immediate complications.
When the doctor left, Chloe sat alone beside the bedroom window.
Her phone contained no messages from Harrison.
Nothing.
Not even an explanation.
At midnight, Roman appeared at the open doorway.
“You should sleep.”
“I can't.”
“I know.”
Chloe turned.
“Why are you helping me?”
Roman leaned against the doorframe.
“Because your husband tried to make you collateral.”
“That doesn't explain why you care.”
“I don't.”
She frowned.
“Then why?”
Roman was quiet for several seconds.
“Because I hate cowards.”
He turned to leave.
“Roman.”
He stopped.
“Did Harrison really owe you eighty-five million?”
“Yes.”
“Could you take his company?”
“Yes.”
“Would you?”
Roman looked back.
“I don't know.”
“Why?”
“Because I haven't decided whether his company is worth saving.”
Chloe stared at him.
“You're talking about my husband's company.”
“No.”
Roman's eyes hardened.
“I'm talking about the company you helped build.”
Chloe frowned.
“What?”
“You reviewed his early contracts.”
“Yes.”
“You negotiated several of his first major clients.”
“Yes.”
“You helped him restructure debt three years ago.”
“How do you know that?”
Roman's expression didn't change.
“I know everything Harrison tried to hide.”
Chloe's stomach tightened.
“What else did he hide?”
Roman hesitated.
Then he said:
“Your husband wasn't running from me.”
She stared.
“Then who?”
Roman's phone rang.
He answered.
His expression changed.
“Repeat that.”
A pause.
“Are you certain?”
Another pause.
Roman hung up.
Chloe stood.
“What happened?”
Roman looked at her.
“Your husband's plane changed its destination before takeoff.”
“Where?”
“Montreal.”
She frowned.
“That doesn't make sense.”
“No.”
Roman looked toward the window.
“Because the person who bought his ticket wasn't Harrison.”
Chloe's blood ran cold.
“Then who was it?”
Roman's phone rang again.
This time, he listened silently.
When he ended the call, his eyes met hers.
“Someone inside my organization.”
For the first time since she entered the penthouse, Chloe saw something she hadn't seen before.
May you like
Roman Costa was worried.
And if the most powerful man in the room was worried, Chloe realized, the danger was much bigger than her husband's betrayal.
