Page 89 of Endgame

She bites the corner of her lip. Shit. What now?

‘Caleb, when I first moved in, Dominic came over – I made us some dinner and we watched a couple of films together.’

She looks down at her hands in her lap. Oh shit. I know any answer she gives will destroy me, because intimate TV and movie nights are our thing, but I have to ask.

‘Did anything happen?’ I shut my eyes and wait for it.

‘We kissed by the door at the end of the night, but when he tried to take it past that I stopped it and told him that I was still in love with you.’

‘Have you done anything more than kiss him?’

‘No.’

‘Are there any more kisses that I should know about?’

‘No. We kissed twice. That first time in front of the building, and then at the end of the movie night.’

‘I want you to know that I love you and I know we weren’t together at the time, but I need a second.’

I know it’s arrogant, selfish and childish, but I want to smash Dominic’s face in for trying and getting a second kiss. I walk out into Ariella’s garden, take deep breaths and exhale the anger I’m feeling. This guy isn’t going to stop poking for weak spots.

‘I’m sorry. I won’t cook for his guests.’ I feel Ariella’s hands slide across my chest as she hugs me from behind. I feel every negative feeling fall away. Her understanding how agonising this was going to be was all I needed.

‘No. You should. You’ll enjoy it and, like you said, it’s an opportunity to learn something new.’

‘Not if it hurts you, Caleb.’ She sighs, resting her head against my back.

‘I love you and trust you, Mason.’ I hold her arms in place and we stand close to each other under the night sky for a few minutes until I feel her yawn.

‘When this is over, I am going to take us very far away from here and we’re going to spend a month doing nothing but eating, sleeping, drinking and swimming. Just the two of us,’ I promise her.

‘That sounds heavenly.’

I don’t want to be away from Ariella during Melissa’s storytimes, so I go into the Ivory Bow office to watch the first one. An invitation has been extended to all the staff and they all show. We hit the link and a countdown pops up on the meeting room’s screen. While new members of the team look excited, there is trepidation on the faces of everyone who knows exactly what damage Melissa is capable of doing. My blood runs cold with fear as I watch the numbers count down to zero.

The stream starts, revealing a fresh-faced and relaxed Melissa wrapped in a different-coloured bathrobe, with a towel round her hair. This video looks more like a spa advert than a three-part blackmail plot.

‘Thank you, Gustaf,’ she says, bringing what looks like a cocktail into shot.

She takes a sip, holds up a newspaper with today’s date, and flips through the headlines.

‘I’m not in it.’ She frowns to someone we can’t see, before turning to us all and winking directly into the camera.

‘Bet I’ll be in tomorrow’s – and, just in case anyone is wondering if this is a deepfake or AI-generated, here’s proof, which you can confirm with any one of the women Kevin Wong has had an affair with.’

She leans in as we all wait with bated breath.

‘Kevin has a tiny wee-wee.’ She raises both eyebrows and nods enthusiastically at the camera before she crumples into laughter.

‘Fine. His password to everything is money, hustle and power. All you need to do is substitute all the ‘e’s for the number three, all the ‘o’s for zeros. Capitalise the first letter and stick an exclamation mark after each word. No spaces. He’s not asclever as he’d have you all believe; in fact he is a bastion of incompetence. Just ask his father.’

Melissa pauses to take a slow sip of her cocktail, then sighs.

‘My name is Melissa Chang, and, after my father died, Kevin Wong and his father – who previously worked with mine – took over my autonomy and my finances and thrust me into a life of crime. This is me, claiming my life back.’

Melissa takes her time detailing her heartbreak at the news of her father’s death, how her father’s business partner – who was clearly a gangster of some description – promised to look after her just before she signed papers for betrothal to Kevin, and how she refused to consummate the relationship. By the end of the hour, she looks exhausted. We all sit there riveted, unable to take our eyes off the screen.

‘Time for my massage now.’ She smiles into the camera. ‘Tomorrow, money-laundering. Expect frozen accounts and assets. See you at the same time.’

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