Chapter 19 - The Ex-Fiancée Who Finally Told the Truth
I never expected Maya to become part of the investigation.
After our last courtroom encounter, I'd assumed our lives would remain permanently separate.
I had moved forward.
She had disappeared from my world.
That was exactly how I wanted things to stay.
Then, on a rainy Thursday afternoon, Marcus called me.
"Liam, someone came to my office asking to speak with you."
"Who?"
He hesitated.
"Maya."
I closed my eyes.
"You've got to be kidding."
"She says she has information about Bayline Advisory Services."
That got my attention.
"What kind of information?"
"Enough that I think you should hear it."
I stared at the unfinished design drawing on my desk.
The last thing I wanted was another conversation with my former fiancée.
But this situation was bigger than my personal discomfort.
"Is Clara there?"
"Not yet."
"Then call her. I'm not having a private meeting with Maya."
Marcus paused.
Then he said, "That's probably the healthiest sentence I've heard you say in four years."
Maya was sitting in Marcus's conference room when Clara and I arrived.
She looked different.
Not glamorous.
Not desperate.
Just tired.
Her hair was pulled into a simple ponytail, and she wore a navy sweater with no jewelry except a small watch.
When she saw Clara's engagement ring, her expression flickered.
Then she looked away.
"Liam," she said quietly.
"Maya."
Clara sat beside me.
Marcus remained at the head of the table.
"You said you had information," I began.
Maya nodded.
"I took a contract job with a marketing agency about six months ago."
"What agency?"
"Bayline Advisory Services."
Clara straightened.
Maya continued.
"I was hired to coordinate digital campaigns. Mostly property launches, public relations, social media advertising."
"Who supervised you?" Marcus asked.
"Victoria Shaw."
He wrote down the name.
Maya took a breath.
"Three weeks ago, Victoria told our team to prepare a campaign about the harbor scandal."
"What kind of campaign?" I asked.
She opened her handbag and removed a folder.
"Negative stories about you. Articles questioning your professional integrity. Anonymous social media accounts claiming Clara had ignored safety complaints."
I stared at the documents.
There were campaign schedules, billing records, and sample posts.
Several headlines matched stories that had appeared online.
Maya looked embarrassed.
"At first, I thought it was ordinary corporate reputation warfare. Then Victoria sent around a draft that included details about our old relationship."
My jaw tightened.
"What details?"
"The engagement party. The ring. My accusations against you."
Clara turned toward me.
I kept my eyes on Maya.
"What did they want you to do?"
"They asked if I'd appear in an interview saying you were emotionally unstable and prone to controlling behavior."
The room went still.
Marcus spoke first.
"And what did you say?"
"I refused."
Maya swallowed.
"Victoria offered me fifteen thousand dollars."
I stared at her.
"A year ago, you probably would have taken it."
She accepted the blow.
"You're right."
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then she continued.
"I spent a long time blaming you for how my life turned out. Evan treated me terribly, and I wanted someone else to be responsible."
Her voice cracked.
"But the truth is, I lied. I cheated. I let my friends attack you online because I couldn't stand being exposed."
She looked directly at Clara.
"And you had nothing to do with any of it. They wanted me to help destroy your relationship because they thought I'd be jealous enough to cooperate."
Clara remained calm.
"Why bring this to us now?"
Maya looked down.
"Because I know what it feels like to become someone you don't recognize."
She slid another document across the table.
"This is the payment schedule for the campaign."
Marcus examined it.
"Where did you get this?"
"It was shared with the team responsible for vendor payments."
"Who approved the funding?"
Maya pointed to a line near the bottom.
Mercer Waterfront Holdings — Strategic Communications Allocation.
I leaned back.
Grant Mercer wasn't merely connected to the forged ownership transfer.
He appeared to be financing efforts to destroy our public credibility.
Marcus studied the documents carefully.
"These could be significant. We'll need to authenticate them, establish how they were obtained, and provide relevant information to the investigators."
Maya nodded.
"I understand."
Then she turned toward me.
"Liam, there's something I need to say."
I waited.
"I don't expect forgiveness. I don't expect friendship. And I'm not asking you to take me back."
Clara's hand remained intertwined with mine.
Maya's eyes filled with tears.
"But you deserved better than what I gave you."
I looked at the woman I'd once planned to marry.
For years, I had imagined that hearing her admit the truth would feel like victory.
Instead, it felt quiet.
Almost ordinary.
"Thank you for telling the truth," I said.
She nodded.
"I'm trying to become someone who does that more often."
We stood.
Maya remained seated.
At the door, I turned back.
"Maya?"
She looked up.
"Don't build your next life around proving something to me."
Her lips trembled.
"Then what should I build it around?"
"Becoming someone you can respect."
I left with Clara.
For the first time, my past didn't feel like a wound.
It felt like a chapter that had finally reached its natural end.
That evening, Marcus called with unexpected news.
Victoria Shaw's agency had submitted invoices for campaigns scheduled before the harbor blackout.
Some included draft accusations about structural negligence.
"They were preparing the scandal before the public knew anything was wrong," Marcus explained.
My stomach tightened.
"Meaning they expected it."
"Possibly. It warrants investigation."
"Can you connect the payments to Julian?"
"Not directly yet."
There was a pause.
"However, Bayline received funding from another company tied to the harbor construction contracts."
"Which company?"
"Tidewater Restoration."
I gripped the phone.
The subcontractor suspected of supplying inferior steel had apparently helped fund a campaign blaming me for the consequences.
Then Marcus said, "There's another development."
"What?"
"Ben Holloway has contacted the police through an attorney."
Relief rushed through me.
"Is he safe?"
"According to his lawyer, yes."
"Has he agreed to cooperate?"
Marcus hesitated.
"He has."
"Then what's the problem?"
"The investigators found something in his account records."
"What?"
"A payment made the morning after your engagement."
I waited.
Marcus lowered his voice.
"It was for one hundred thousand dollars."
My stomach dropped.
"From whom?"
"A company controlled by Grant Mercer."
I stared into the darkness outside our apartment.
Ben had told me he received twenty-five thousand dollars for an archive migration.
Now the records suggested someone had paid him four times that amount after the sabotage.
May you like
Either he had lied about his involvement...
Or somebody was trying to make sure he looked guilty too.
