Chapter 2 - The Flight He Never Expected)
Elena did not die.
She changed her flight.
And she bought the seat directly across from her husband.
She spent the afternoon following the trail Margaret had uncovered.
Every discovery made the previous one worse.
There were shell companies.
Offshore accounts.
Property transfers.
And a mysterious woman named Chloe Bennett.
Elena knew the name.
Chloe had worked with Julian's company for almost two years.
She had attended several corporate events.
Julian had always described her as an ambitious executive.
Nothing more.
But the photographs Margaret sent told a different story.
Julian and Chloe leaving restaurants together.
Julian meeting her at hotels.
Julian buying jewelry.
Julian visiting a private residence Elena had never seen before.
Then came the photograph that changed everything.
Julian and Chloe standing outside a courthouse.
Together.
Elena stared at the image.
"Why were they at a courthouse?"
Margaret did not answer immediately.
"I found something else."
"What?"
"There was a marriage license application."
Elena stopped breathing.
"Whose?"
Margaret's voice was careful.
"Julian Carter and Chloe Bennett."
Elena closed her eyes.
The betrayal was no longer a suspicion.
It had become a fact.
But Margaret still sounded worried.
"There is something stranger."
"What?"
"The application was never finalized."
"Why?"
"Because Julian was already married."
Elena laughed bitterly.
"At least the law noticed."
"No."
Margaret's voice became serious.
"The law noticed something else."
"What?"
"Your name."
Elena frowned.
"What about it?"
"Your marriage certificate."
"What about it?"
"It was altered."
Elena sat down.
"Altered how?"
"The original filing is missing."
Her stomach tightened.
"That can't be possible."
"I have a certified copy."
Margaret paused.
"But the county record has been changed."
"By whom?"
"I don't know."
Elena looked toward the window.
Outside, the sky was turning dark.
Margaret continued.
"That's why you cannot confront Julian yet."
"Why?"
"Because if the altered record is what I think it is..."
Another pause.
"...Julian may be trying to prove that your marriage never existed."
Elena stared at the suitcase on the bed.
Suddenly, California was no longer a trip.
It was a trap.
And Julian had expected her to walk into it willingly.
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So Elena decided to do something he would never anticipate.
She boarded his flight.
