Vivian did not sleep well.
She lay in bed with the lights off, staring at the ceiling, replaying every moment of the party. Derek's face when he saw her with Lucian. Chloe's jealous stare. The way her father's hand had trembled when he shook Lucian's hand.
At three in the morning, her phone buzzed.
Unknown number. A single line of text.
You think you're clever. You're not.
Vivian's blood went cold. She stared at the words for a long time, waiting for a second message that did not come.
Derek. It had to be Derek. No one else would bother threatening her at three in the morning.
She did not reply. She turned off the phone and closed her eyes.
Sleep did not return.
---
Sunday morning was gray and quiet.
Vivian came downstairs to find her father already at the kitchen table. He was not eating. He was just sitting there, staring at a cold cup of coffee, his hands folded in front of him.
"Dad."
"Don't 'Dad' me." His voice was flat. Tired. "Sit down. We need to talk."
Vivian sat. She had known this conversation was coming. She had hoped to delay it, but her father was not the kind of man who let things go.
"How long have you known Lucian Frost?" he asked.
"Not long."
"Then why was he at Derek's engagement party with you? Why did he call you his partner? Why did every person in that room think you two were together?"
Vivian took a breath. She had rehearsed this. A version of the truth, trimmed of the sharpest edges.
"Lucian and I have a business arrangement," she said. "He wants access to the shipping routes. I want to learn the business. It makes sense for both of us."
"A business arrangement," her father repeated. "At your engagement party."
"The party was an opportunity. I needed to be seen with him. Derek's family controls half the contracts in this city. If they think I'm connected to Lucian, they'll take me seriously."
Her father's jaw tightened. "You're engaged to Derek. You shouldn't need another man to make you look serious."
"Maybe not. But Derek doesn't take me seriously. You know that. I know that. Everyone in that room knows that." Vivian leaned forward. "I'm not trying to hurt Derek, Dad. I'm trying to protect myself. And protect this family."
Robert was quiet for a long moment. He picked up his coffee cup, looked inside, set it down again.
"Your mother would have known what to say to you," he said finally. "I never did."
"Mom trusted me. That's all she ever did."
"And you want me to trust you now."
"Yes."
He studied her face. Searching for something. Vivian let him look.
"Alright," he said. "I'll trust you. But Vivian, if you're playing games with Derek Lin, you need to be careful. His family has a long memory. And they don't forgive."
"I know."
Her father stood up. He walked to the window and looked out at the gray sky.
"There's something else," he said. "Chloe called this morning. She wants to have lunch with you today. Said she missed you."
Vivian's hands curled into fists under the table.
"Did she say anything else?"
"Just that she was worried about you. That you've been distant lately." He turned. "I know you two have had your differences. But she's still your sister."
No, Vivian thought. She's not. Not anymore.
But she smiled and said, "I'll call her. We'll have lunch."
---
Chloe chose a small café near the river. A place Vivian had never been. Probably because Chloe did not want to be seen with her.
Vivian arrived ten minutes late. Let Chloe wait. Let her wonder.
Her sister was already seated at a corner table, scrolling through her phone. She looked up when Vivian approached, and for a moment, her smile was almost convincing.
"Vivian. You look... different."
"Different how?"
Chloe's eyes traveled over Vivian's outfit. Simple jeans. A black sweater. Nothing special. But Chloe looked at her like she was seeing a stranger.
"More confident," Chloe said. "It suits you."
Vivian sat down. She did not order anything. She was not planning to stay long.
"You wanted to talk," she said.
Chloe set her phone down. Her expression shifted from fake warmth to something more serious. Almost sincere.
"I saw you at the party. With Lucian Frost."
"Yes."
"Everyone saw you. Including Derek." Chloe leaned forward. "He's upset, Vivian. He thinks you're embarrassing him."
"Derek can speak for himself."
"He's my future brother in law. I'm looking out for him."
Vivian almost laughed. Future brother in law. As if Chloe hadn't already slept with him. As if she wasn't planning to take her place the moment Vivian was out of the picture.
"Is that what you're doing? Looking out for Derek?"
Chloe's eyes narrowed. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing." Vivian stood up. "If Derek has something to say to me, he can say it himself. I don't need you as a messenger."
She turned to leave.
"Vivian." Chloe's voice was sharp now. The mask had dropped. "I'm trying to help you. Don't make me your enemy."
Vivian looked back over her shoulder.
"You were never my friend, Chloe. Let's not pretend otherwise."
She walked out of the café without looking back.
---
The rest of Sunday was quiet.
Vivian stayed in her room, going over the documents she had taken from her father's office. The shipping manifests. The joint venture agreements. The loan documents with hidden clauses that Derek thought no one would ever read.
She found three new discrepancies. Small things. A signature that did not match. A date that had been changed. A reference to a shell company that did not exist in any public record.
She photographed everything and sent the images to Elise.
More evidence. Let me know what your legal team thinks.
The reply came an hour later.
Mr. Frost wants to meet tomorrow. Same time. Same place.
Vivian typed back: I'll be there.
---
Monday morning.
Vivian arrived at the Frost building at ten o'clock. Elise was waiting in the lobby, her expression as neutral as ever.
"He's in a mood," Elise said as they walked to the elevator. "Be careful."
"What kind of mood?"
"The kind that comes from not sleeping."
The elevator doors closed. Vivian watched the numbers climb and tried to prepare herself for whatever was waiting upstairs.
Lucian was at his desk when she walked in. He looked tired. Dark circles under his eyes. His shirt was wrinkled, like he had been wearing it since yesterday.
"You look terrible," Vivian said.
"Thank you. You look like you haven't slept either."
"I haven't."
He gestured to the chair across from his desk. Vivian sat.
"I had my team look at the documents you sent," he said. "The shell company you found. It's registered in the Cayman Islands. No public records. But we traced the signatory to a man named Marcus Webb. He's a lawyer. Works for Derek's family."
"A lawyer."
"A dirty one. He's been involved in three fraud cases. Never convicted. Always walked away with a settlement." Lucian rubbed his eyes. "Derek is careful. He doesn't leave obvious traces. But he's not careful enough."
"What do we do?"
"We keep gathering evidence. Slowly. Quietly. If we move too fast, he'll destroy the paper trail." Lucian leaned back in his chair. "There's something else. Derek called me yesterday."
Vivian's heart skipped. "What did he say?"
"He wanted to know what my intentions were with you. His words." Lucian's mouth curved into a cold smile. "I told him I was considering a merger."
"Merger?"
"With Chen Corporation. Through you." He shrugged. "It's not a lie. If this works, your father and I will be partners. Derek can interpret that however he wants."
"Did he believe you?"
"I don't know. He's suspicious. But he's also scared. He knows I wouldn't waste my time on a woman unless she had something I wanted." Lucian paused. "He also mentioned Chloe."
Vivian stiffened. "What about her?"
"He said she was worried about you. That you seemed unstable. That maybe you needed a break from the stress of the engagement."
The words hung in the air. Vivian felt a cold rage settle into her chest.
"He's trying to make me look crazy," she said. "So that when I accuse him of something, no one believes me."
"Yes."
"That's his move. Discredit the witness before she can testify."
Lucian nodded. "It's a common tactic. Effective, too. That's why we need to move carefully. If we show our hand too early, he'll paint you as a jilted fiancée with a grudge."
Vivian stood up. She walked to the window and looked out at the city. The sky was clear today. Blue and cold.
"I'm not going to let him win," she said quietly.
"No. You're not." Lucian's voice was close. She had not heard him stand up. But now he was behind her, close enough that she could feel the warmth of him. "That's why I'm here."
Vivian turned. He was closer than she expected. His dark eyes searched her face.
"Why are you really doing this?" she asked. "Not the business reasons. The real reasons."
Lucian was quiet for a moment. Then he said, "Because I know what it's like to be underestimated. To be treated like you don't matter. And I know what it feels like to fight back."
"Is that why you don't sleep?"
A ghost of a smile crossed his face. "Maybe."
Vivian held his gaze. For a moment, the world outside the window disappeared. There was only him. Only the space between them, shrinking second by second.
Then his phone rang.
The spell broke. Lucian stepped back and answered the call. His expression hardened as he listened.
"I understand," he said. "Keep me updated."
He hung up and looked at Vivian.
"Derek just announced a new partnership. With a logistics company in Singapore. The same one he blocked your father from working with six months ago."
Vivian's stomach dropped. "He's cutting my father out."
"He's trying to. But he's also making a mistake. He's moving too fast. Leaving too many tracks." Lucian picked up his jacket from the back of his chair. "I need to go. Elise will drive you home."
"I can take the subway."
"You can take my car." His tone left no room for argument. "I'll call you tonight."
He was gone before she could reply.
---
The car ride home was quiet.
Vivian sat in the back seat, staring at her phone. The unknown number had not texted again. But she knew Derek was watching. Waiting.
She opened her messages and typed a short text to Derek.
We need to talk. Tonight. My place. Seven o'clock.
She hit send before she could change her mind.
The reply came immediately.
I'll be there.
Vivian closed her eyes and leaned her head against the window.
She was about to walk into the lion's den. Alone. No Lucian. No witnesses. Just her and the man who had killed her in another life.
But she was not the same woman anymore.
And it was time Derek found out.