The Contract I Signed With My Ex

The glass doors of the Blackwood Grand Ballroom opened. The air inside was different. It was filtered, expensive, and smelled of lilies. Aderinsola Adeyemi was dead. She died in a prison cell three years ago and Rina Vale walked into the light.

Her dress was an emerald silk. It was heavy, had high neck and long sleeves. The fabric felt cool against her skin and covered the jagged lines on her back and the thin white mark on her wrist. Nobody here saw the scars, only the money. 

Rina stopped at the top of the marble stairs. She did not hide. She stood still and scanned the room. The Summit was full tonight. These were the people who ran the city. They drank from crystal glasses, talked about stocks and power. None of them looked at the floor. They did not know what it was like to sleep on concrete.

"You look like you are hunting," a voice said behind her. Rina did not flinch. She turned her head. Madam Eleanor Graves stood there. The older woman wore black. Her eyes were sharp. She did not smile.

"I am not hunting, Eleanor," Rina said. Her voice was flat. She had practiced this tone for two years. "I am observing my investment."

"Blackwood Industries is a volatile investment," Eleanor said stepping closer. "Lucien is in the center of the room. He has not looked up once." 

Rina looked down. In the middle of the floor, a circle had formed. At the center stood Lucien Blackwood.

He looked the same. His hair was black. His suit was tailored. He held a drink but did not sip it. He looked bored. He looked like a king who hated his kingdom.

Rina felt a sharp pain in her lower stomach. It was a ghost pain. It was the place where the child used to be. She pushed the feeling down. She turned her focus to the woman standing next to Lucien.

Vanessa Cole.

Vanessa laughed. The sound was high and sharp. She leaned into Lucien. She touched his arm. Her fingers had long, red nails. Vanessa looked perfect. She looked like she had never told a lie in her life.

"She is wearing the Blackwood emeralds," Rina noted.

"She thinks she has won," Eleanor whispered. "The board wants them married by the end of the quarter. A scandal-free union to protect the stock price."

"There is no such thing as a scandal-free union," Rina said. "Not in this house."

Rina walked down the stairs. Her heels made a rhythmic sound on the marble.

Click. Click. Click.

It was the only sound she allowed herself to focus on. As she moved through the crowd, people turned to look. They did not recognize her. She had a new face. A surgeon in Geneva had made sure of that. Her nose was straighter. Her jaw was more defined. Her eyes were the same, but the softness was gone.

A man blocked her path. It was Arthur Sterling.