Some memories don't fade with time. They wait. Hidden in the smoke. In the perfume of white roses. In the last words never spoken.
The silver key trembled in Ava's hand.
She didn't know why, but something in her bones told her it was more than symbolic it was a trigger. A piece of the puzzle. The very thing her subconscious had locked away.
She gripped it tighter, pressed it to her chest, and let the world slip away.
Flashback.
The air was heavy with jasmine and secrets.
Isabella poised, proud, dressed in midnight-blue velvet stood by the edge of the garden terrace, staring into the darkness that stretched beyond the estate's walls. The moonlight caught the tear on her cheek before she could wipe it away.
Behind her, voices echoed from the ballroom laughter, clinking glasses, hollow compliments. But none of it reached her heart.
She had just come from a confrontation.
Vincent had cornered her in the study.
"You're pulling out of the merger?" he asked, voice low and dangerous.
She kept her chin lifted. "It's unethical. You've hidden your debts. You manipulated our shareholders. I won't let it go through."
"You owe me," he hissed. "After everything I've done for you."
"You mean everything you did to control me." Her eyes flared. "You never loved me, Vincent. You loved the idea of owning me."
His face twisted. "And what about him? That bartender you keep sneaking off to see like some teenager in love?"
She flinched, but didn't deny it.
"You're throwing away your future for someone who can't even afford a taxi to your side."
"I'm choosing freedom," she whispered. "And love."
That's when he lost it. His voice rose. "You think love will protect you when the wolves come, Isabella? You think that boy will shield you from the fall you're orchestrating?"
She walked out before he finished. But the damage had already been done.
Back in the present, Ava gasped as the memory crashed into her chest like a wave.
She had stood up to Vincent. That night wasn't just about romance it was war.
Liam stirred beside her. "Another memory?"
She nodded slowly. "He knew about you. He threatened me."
"Did he…?"
"No," Ava interrupted. "I walked away. I thought I was free."
Liam's jaw clenched. "And then someone died."
She turned to him. "I think there's more. I don't think Vincent was working alone."
A shadow passed through her mind.
A woman's voice.
A scent roses, but burned.