Page 65 of The Billionaire's Betrayal
No one seemed to know where she was...or if they did, they weren’t telling me.
It was as if she had vanished.
I was losing hope, trying to convince myself to just wait for her return, when a courier delivered a registered envelope to my door.
I tore it open and found a photograph inside—a woman sitting across from Lazarus Rousseau.
My heart stopped.Eva.
I couldn’t see her face, but I’d recognize her anywhere.She was wearing the scarf and wool hat I had bought her in Oslo.What the hell was she doing with Lazarus?It didn’t make any sense.She hated him as much as I did.She would never betray Community Pilot, no matter what this picture was trying to make me believe.What a pathetic attempt at a setup.The fact that they didn’t even show her face said everything.
Studying the photo closer, I recognized the London café where I had been with Steve several times.
Eva was in London.With Steve.
I froze, caught between shock, relief, and anger.My hands clenched into fists as I grabbed my phone and dialed Steve’s number.
“I know she’s in London with you!”I snapped the second he answered.
“Yes,” he replied calmly, devoid of any emotion.
“And you call yourself my friend?”
“Eva is my friend too, Tristan,” he shot back coldly.“And right now, you’re the one who screwed up.You’re yelling at me for not telling you where she is, but when she called you, you ignored her.When she left you a message, you didn’t even bother calling her back.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”I demanded, thrown off balance.“Eva never called me!”
“She called you Friday afternoon and left a message, but you didn’t think it was worth returning her call.”
“That’s impossible!I never got any call from her!”I said, outraged.
“I was right there.I heard her leave you a message.So check your damn phone.”
Then he hung up, leaving me stunned.
I checked my phone immediately.Nothing.No missed calls from Eva.No voicemail.
Steve wouldn’t lie about something like this.What the hell had happened?
I needed answers.Fast.I called Satoshi and explained everything.
“There are a few possibilities,” he said carefully after hearing me out.“A technical issue with your carrier, a system error...or someone deliberately deleting the message.”
A shiver ran down my spine.Then I suddenly remembered—I had left my phone in my office Friday afternoon.I had asked Audrey to grab it for me because my meeting was starting.
Would she have dared?
I contacted my provider.They confirmed Eva’s call had indeed gone through.
A sick feeling churned in my stomach.Had Audrey deleted Eva’s message?
At this point, I was almost certain.
But until I had undeniable proof, all I could do was call Eva back.
Her phone went straight to voicemail.
“Eva, I don’t know if you’ll hear this, but I never got your call or your message on Friday.I’ve been waiting for days to hear from you.You know damn well I wouldn’t have ignored you if I had known.I love you, Eva.We need to talk.I’m going to make this right.You are the love of my life.You always have been.”
