Elenor paused at the doorway, her back still to him. It was a straight, unyielding line.
"This house is not yours to command," Giles's voice came from behind her, cold with the fury of a challenged king.
She turned slowly, a faint, mocking smile on her lips. "Oh? Then whose is it? Evelin Sargent's? You can have her move in tonight. I don't mind."
The words were a slap. He hated when she brought Evelin into their arguments, as if Elenor's messiness could somehow stain Evelin's purity.
He closed the distance between them in a few long strides, his shadow swallowing her. He stared into her eyes. "Don't force me to keep you here in a way you won't like," he said, each word a threat.
Elenor met his deep blue gaze. Once, a single look from him had been enough to weaken her resolve. Now, she felt nothing. "Such as?" she asked calmly, as if discussing the weather.
Her placidness enraged him. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out an envelope, throwing it at her feet. "See for yourself."
The envelope was unsealed. A few photographs slid out onto the polished floor. The first set showed her younger brother at his bakery, his arm around a pretty girl.
The second set was of her father's company. Several men in suits were in a heated argument with her father in what looked like a government office.
"Your brother's girlfriend is on an immigration watch list. Your father's company has some unresolved tax issues," Giles said, his voice dripping with condescending power.
"One word from me, and your brother is charged with harboring an illegal immigrant. Your father faces prison time and bankruptcy." He laid out the facts like a death sentence.
This was his trump card. He knew she would break for her family. She always had.
Elenor bent down and picked up the photos. Her fingertips were cold, but her hands were steady. She studied them, her face devoid of the panic he expected.
She even let out a small, soft laugh. It was a sound of pure contempt and pity.
"Giles Barron," she said, looking up at him, "do you really think I'm the same girl from three years ago? The one who would beg you to stop because of these pathetic little threats?"
"Your brother..." he started, trying to hammer the point home.
"My brother's girlfriend received her green card last week," Elenor cut him off. "It was expedited by Senator Kris Langley's office. Your information is out of date."
Kris Langley was one of Washington's most influential senior senators, the heir to a formidable political dynasty and a rising national figure with both the ambition and the support to make a credible run for president. He had also been Elenor's mentor at Georgetown University.
Giles's pupils contracted. Kris Langley? Why would a man of his stature involve himself in something so trivial?
"As for my father," Elenor continued, dropping the photos back at his feet, "his tax problems were fabricated three years ago by your good friend, Leo Vance. I've already submitted all the evidence to my lawyer."
"Go ahead. Touch them. Let's see if you can get them in prison before I get your best friend indicted."
Giles was frozen. His perfectly crafted threats, his safety net of power, had just been dismantled with a few quiet sentences. How did she know? How did she know the details about Leo's setup?
He looked at the woman before him, this complete stranger wearing his wife's face, and felt a tremor of genuine fear. It was as if she had grown impenetrable armor and sharp claws overnight, all while he wasn't looking.
"You..." His throat was dry. He couldn't form a word.
"And we're not done," Elenor said, taking a step toward him, her presence for the first time completely overwhelming his. "You wanted to know what other cards I have?"
"You think the Barron name is a shield? Did you forget about your little 'accident' in Dubai last year? Did you forget how you cleaned up that 'mess'?"
The color drained from Giles's face. That was his darkest secret, a scandal that could destroy him utterly. How could she possibly know?
"Elenor, are you threatening me?" His voice was a low growl, now laced with real menace.
"I'm not threatening you. I'm reminding you," she said, a cold smile playing on her lips as she took a step back, re-establishing a safe distance. "Sign the agreement, and we part ways cleanly. If you don't, I can't be sure these 'little secrets' of yours won't accidentally find their way to The Washington Post."
She didn't wait for his response. Without another glance at his shocked and furious face, she turned, dragged her suitcase out of the master bedroom, and closed the door behind her.
