Page 110 of Make Them Cry

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“That’s the question.” I lean on the counter. “She works closely with Helena. She was weird at the office. Something wasoff.”

“She’s scared,” River says. “But I don’t think it’s of me.”

I study her. “You think she’s being controlled?”

“I think Helena has something on her.”

“Or sheissomething for Helena,” I say. “A puppet. Or a shield.”

River swallows hard. “Gage… what if this all traces back toher?”

“Helena?”

She nods. “What if sheisRegent?”

That makes me stop.

It’s wild. But suddenly... it’s not.

“She’s got motive. Power. And shehatesme,” River says. “Always has.”

My phone buzzes again.

RENDER: Alert. New video leak. Deep fake. River + Gage. Intimate.

“Shit.”

I pull it up.

And there we are.

Or what looks like us.

Naked. Tangled in a bed. Obscene. Fabricated.

I can see every tell. The lighting is wrong. My shoulder scar is missing. River’s freckles are smoothed out.

But damn if it isn’trealistic.

River covers her mouth with her hand.

“This is... This is frommy bedroom, Gage.”

“We’ve swept your place. There arenocams. It’s a reconstruction.”

“But how?—?”

I turn the phone toward her. “This is personal. This isn’t just an attack. It’s a message.”

She stares at the screen, then up at me.

“You think it’s Tasha?”

“She’s theonlyone who’s ever suggested there was something between us. And she had access to your employee file. Your image database.”

River breathes out. “Then she’s the leak.”

“Or she’s being used. Or manipulated. But someone is trying to destroy you.”

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