Chapter 18 - Ghosts of the Past
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My phone chimed late that night with an encrypted text message from an unknown number.
Emily, it’s Nora. Don't reply to this text. Just read it. Victor didn't invent this system with you. You weren't his first victim. Look up Clara Montgomery.
I sat up in bed, my heart hammering against my ribs. I immediately opened my laptop and typed the name into a private search engine.
Clara Montgomery. Five years ago, she had been a rising star in corporate architecture. She had been engaged to Victor Vance for ten months before suddenly dropping out of public life, relinquishing her firm’s shares, and vanishing into complete anonymity.
I called Samuel immediately, waking him at one in the morning.
“Samuel, I need you to find an address for Clara Montgomery,” I said breathlessly into the receiver.
“Clara Montgomery?” Samuel’s voice sounded drowsy, but his legal instincts kicked in within seconds. “Wait... I recognize that name. She was involved in a sealed civil settlement with Vance Capital back in 2021.”
“Nora just tipped me off,” I explained, pacing across my bedroom floor. “Victor used the exact same gaslighting playbook on her before he met me. If Clara signed a non-disclosure agreement under duress, her testimony could prove a pattern of systemic predatory behavior.”
“An NDA signed under criminal duress isn't worth the paper it’s printed on,” Samuel replied, his tone sharpening. “If Clara is willing to talk, Victor’s defense team won't just lose this trial—they’ll be facing federal racketeering charges.”
“Find her, Samuel,” I pleaded softly. “I need to know what he did to her.”
May you like
“I’m on it,” Samuel promised. “Stay inside tonight, Emily. Victor’s bail was posted an hour ago by an anonymous corporate guarantor.”
I stood by my window, staring out into the dark, rain-slicked driveway. Somewhere out there in the city, Victor was free—and now he knew his past was coming back to haunt him.
