CHAPTER 18 : AN UNSCHEDULED AUDIT
The click of the deadbolt was a sound of absolute finality, but it offered no safety. Lily Zhu stood frozen in the center of her small living room, the scent of the ridiculously expensive food—*his* food—clogging the air. It felt like a violation. He had been here. Akira.
Lily's inner thought: He just… walked away. Three years ago, he was my everything, the center of my universe. Then, one day, he was just… gone. No call, no text, no explanation. An absolute ghost. And for six months, I was a wreck. I barely ate, I barely slept. Robert had to practically force-feed me. Emma had to drag me out of bed. Now, he just shows up at my door with a bag of food and a smile, like he just went out for milk three years ago and is finally back. And I just stood there. I let him in.
She was in a daze, a state of pure, hollow shock. Her mind was a frantic blur of his face, his voice, the sheer audacity of it all. She needed to call Emma. She needed to hear a sane voice. Her hand, trembling, was halfway to her phone when a sharp, authoritative knock made her entire body jolt as if struck by lightning.
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.
Her blood ran cold. He's back. He forgot something. Or this is another test. A new rule I didn't know about.
Terror, sharp and acidic, propelled her to the door. She peered through the peephole, her heart hammering against her ribs. The distorted, severe face of her elder brother stared back. Relief washed over her, so intense it made her dizzy, but it was immediately followed by a new, chilling wave of dread. She unlatched the door.
"R-Robert?" she stuttered, her voice a reedy whisper. "What are you—? How… how did you know I was here?"
Robert Zhu sighed, a sound of pure impatience. "The digital lease agreement. A confirmation was sent to my office. I'm still your emergency contact, Lily. Did you think I wouldn't do my due diligence?" He stepped inside, his presence and impeccably tailored suit seeming to suck all the air out of the room. He did a full sweep. "Mother and Father were worried. You look terrible. What happened?"
"Nothing! I'm fine, Rob," she lied, her voice an octave too high. "Just… the job hunt is stressful. It's a tough market for new grads."
His gaze landed on the expensive, anonymous-looking paper bag on the counter. "Job-hunting stress? You're celebrating a rejection with four-hundred-dollar takeout?" He picked up the bag. "This is from Elysian Fields. Their waiting list is longer than your list of potential employers. Who were you with?"
"No one! I just… decided to treat myself," she mumbled, knowing how weak it sounded. "A little pick-me-up."
"Right. A pick-me-up." A slow, disarming smile spread across his face. It was the smile he used in negotiations, right before he dismantled his opponent's entire argument. "Alright. Well, if you treated yourself, the least you can do is share with the brother who came all the way across town to check on you. Get some plates."
It wasn't a request. Defeated, she got the plates. They sat at her small table, the ridiculously gourmet food looking absurd in her tiny kitchen.
He gestured with his fork. "So, you're stressed. Stressed enough to eat truffle-infused everything?" He pushed a small container towards her. "Here. You love this stuff."
She froze. "I… I'm not that hungry."
"Lily. You hate truffles. You have since you were twelve. You'd rather eat dirt." His voice was quiet, but it cut through her lies like a scalpel. He put his fork down. "Let's make a bet. One question. I bet I can guess, in one try, the exact reason you're in this state. And it has nothing to do with job hunting."
Lily's fork clattered onto her plate. "That's a stupid bet."
"Is it?" he said softly, his teasing smile gone, replaced by a piercing stare. "My guess is… a ghost showed up. The same ghost who took my brilliant, fiery sister and turned her into a zombie for six months three years ago. The one who walked away without a single word and left you to pick up the pieces while I watched you waste away."
The blood drained from Lily's face. She felt dizzy, exposed. The specific, painful memory in his voice was undeniable.
"If I'm wrong," he continued, leaning forward, "I will walk out that door right now, tell Mother you're perfectly fine, and I will personally fund a one-year, all-expenses-paid sabbatical for you to go anywhere in the world to 'find yourself.' No questions asked. But if I'm right… you tell me everything. Every single word."
She stared at him, her vision blurring with tears she refused to let fall. She couldn't speak. She just gave a single, jerky nod.
The cold, analytical shell around Robert finally cracked, replaced by the grim severity of a protective older brother. His voice was a low growl. "Talk to me, Lily. Tell me what that bastard did."
And she did. The whole insane story poured out of her—Akira showing up at her door, acting like he'd never left, offering her a job at his company, talking about their future as if he hadn't completely shattered their past.
When she finished, Robert was silent, his jaw tight with a fury she had rarely seen. He stood up and began to pace the small apartment like a caged predator.
"So he just… reappears," Robert seethed, more to himself than to her. "After what he did to you. After he vanished and left you a shell of a person. Now he thinks he can just waltz back in with a job offer and everything is fine?" He stopped and looked at her, his eyes blazing. "This is not about a job, Lily. This is about power. He's trying to buy you, to own you. To prove that he can."
He pulled out his phone, his thumbs flying across the screen.
"What are you doing?" Lily asked, her voice trembling.
"I'm booking a flight to Tokyo," he said without looking up. "I'm going to have a conversation with his father. This ends now." He finished typing and looked at her, his expression grim. "You will not be taking that job. You will not see him again. You will block his number. I will handle this."
He left without another word, the slam of the door echoing the rage he was holding back. For a long moment, Lily just sat there, stunned by the sheer force of his protective fury. Then, her own resolve hardening, she picked up her phone. She needed to talk to Emma.
***
At the Walker Estate, the family dining room was alive with laughter and the clinking of crystal.
"To Emma!" Arthur Walker declared, his voice booming with pride as he raised his wine glass. "Our brilliant graduate. Finally done with school forever!"
"Finally!" shouted Samuel, the chartered accountant, a wide grin on his face. "Does this mean your 'student debt' column on my personal finance tracker for you finally zeroes out?"
"Sam, be nice," their mother, Wendy Itzuzara, said with a warm smile that didn't quite reach her perceptive eyes. "Emma, darling, we are so incredibly proud of you."
"So, what's next on the agenda, Em?" Michael, the stock analyst, asked. "Time to start building a portfolio? I can set up a starter account for you. Aggressive growth model, of course."
Emma laughed. "Honestly? I was thinking more along the lines of 'job hunt or a month-long nap.'"
"A tactical withdrawal to assess market conditions is a valid strategy," Ethan, her oldest brother, interjected smoothly from his seat at the head of the table. His appreciation was, as always, cold. "A stagnant asset depreciates. A break is logical, but it must be framed as a strategic pause." He looked at his parents. "A gift is in order. The new electric convertible she was looking at is a practical asset for city interviews. It signals success."
"Oh, a car is so… transactional, Ethan," Wendy countered. "This is a celebration! What about that trip you wanted to take, darling? To the Greek islands? We could have the jet ready for you and Lily by the weekend."
"A car and a trip," Arthur boomed. "It's settled!"
It was into this warm, loving bubble that Emma's phone buzzed. She glanced down. 'Lily Zhu.' The laughter died on her lips. She excused herself and stepped into the grand, quiet hallway.
"Lily? What is it? You sound terrible."
"Emma… he was here. Akira. He was in my apartment."
A wave of ice-cold shock washed over Emma. "What? Lily, what are you talking about? Akira is there? Right now?"
"No, he left," Lily's shaky voice came through. "But he was here, Em. He just showed up. And he… he offered me a job."
"He what?!" Emma's voice shot up. "The man who ghosted you for three years just shows up and offers you a job? What the hell is he playing at?"
"I don't know… God, Emma, I'm so scared."
"Okay. Okay, Lily, breathe," Emma commanded, her mind going into overdrive. "I'm coming over. Lock your door, put the chain on. Don't open it for anyone. Do you hear me? I'm leaving right now."
She hung up and strode back towards the dining room. "It's Lily," she announced, her voice flat. "She's in trouble. I need the car."
"What kind of trouble?" Ethan asked, his business-tycoon instincts kicking in.
"The kind I'm going to handle. I need the keys, Ethan. Now."
Forty-five minutes later, Emma burst through Lily's door, pulling her into a fierce hug. She listened to the whole story, including Robert's visit, her anger growing with every word.
"This is insane. This is… coercion. Undue influence," she said, pacing the small room. "But your brother is wrong about one thing."
Lily looked up, confused. "What?"
"Telling you to hide," Emma said, her eyes flashing. "That's not a plan, that's a retreat. Akira wants to play a game? Fine. We'll play, but on our terms." She pulled out her phone. "Robert's plan is all offense, no defense. We need both."
She dialed Robert. A moment later, his cold, clipped voice was on speakerphone. "Emma Walker. I assume my sister has filled you in."
"She has," Emma said. "And your plan is emotional and reckless. You can't just fly to Tokyo and declare war. That will put Lily in more danger. We need a smarter strategy."
There was a pause on the other end. "I'm listening," Robert said, his tone grudging.
"First, Lily needs protection. My family has a private security firm on retainer. The best. They can be outside her building in an hour, plain clothes, discreet. He won't get near her again without us knowing. That's defense."
"And the offense?" Robert asked, a hint of respect in his voice.
"Lily takes the job," Emma said firmly.
"What? No!" Lily gasped.
"Yes," Emma insisted, looking her in the eye. "You don't run, Lily. You get inside. You become a spy. You find out what he really wants, what his weaknesses are. You gather intel. You become his worst nightmare. Robert, you can still go to Tokyo, but not for a confrontation. You go for reconnaissance. Find out about his family, his business, his rivals. We need leverage."
There was a long silence on the phone.
"That's a better plan," Robert finally conceded. "Phase one: containment and infiltration. Lily, your job is the hardest. Can you do it?"
Lily looked at Emma's fierce, determined face. For the first time all night, a flicker of her old fire returned. "Yes," she said, her voice steady. "I can do that."
"Good girl," Robert's voice softened for a fraction of a second. "Emma, you're her handler. All communication goes through you. Keep her focused. Keep her safe."
"Understood," Emma said, her eyes locked on Lily's, conveying a world of support.
"Then the game is on," Robert said, and the line went dead.