21. Liam
21
LIAM
T yler's laptop screen is still glowing when I push away from the desk, my mind racing. The evidence we have on Vanessa isn't just damning—it's a smoking gun. With this much proof, I could ruin her in a matter of hours.
Emails linking her to fraudulent acquisitions. Shell company transactions siphoning money into offshore accounts. Photographic evidence of backroom deals with men who don't like their names appearing on legal documents. And now? Now we have "Project Bennett"—a meticulously compiled dossier of every move Ava and her brothers have made for the past six months.
It's invasive. It's obsessive. And it's personal.
My stomach roils as I glance at Ava, sitting cross-legged on the couch, her phone clutched in her hands. Her face is blank, but I can see the tension in her grip, the tight line of her jaw. She hasn't said much since we found the surveillance photos of her brothers. I know what she's thinking—she wants to call them, to warn them. And I can't blame her.
But if we go in blind, if we make one wrong move, we could be walking straight into Vanessa's trap.
I exhale slowly, forcing myself to stay calm. "We have more than enough to take her down."
Tyler, who has been half-buried in his laptop, lets out a low whistle. "Yeah, we do. But you know she won't go down without a fight."
"She won't," I agree. "Which is why we're going to make her think she's already losing."
Ava's gaze snaps to mine, sharp with interest. "What do you mean?"
I turn toward Tyler. "You still have access to Vanessa's network?"
Tyler grins, cracking his knuckles. "Of course. You think I didn't leave a few backdoors open?"
I smirk. "Good. Then let's leak something."
Ava straightens. "Leak what?"
"Enough to rattle her." I start pacing, already piecing the strategy together in my mind. "If Vanessa thinks we're planning to go public with what we have, she'll panic. She'll make a move. And when she does, we'll be ready."
Tyler nods, already typing. "I can plant a fake trail. Something subtle, but just loud enough to get back to her."
Ava still looks uncertain. "But what if she doesn't fall for it?"
"She will," I say. "Vanessa is too arrogant to sit back and watch. She needs control. And if she thinks she's losing it, she'll act. That's when we get her to reveal her accomplice."
Ava exhales, running a hand through her hair. "So we play her at her own game."
"Exactly."
Tyler's fingers fly over the keyboard, his expression sharp with focus. "I'll make it look like an internal leak from one of her ‘trusted' contacts. Something vague—maybe whispers of an upcoming exposé, an anonymous journalist asking the wrong people the right questions." He glances up. "That'll spook her."
"Do it."
He nods, already working.
Ava shifts beside me, her knee brushing mine. "And if she calls our bluff?"
I turn to her, taking in the worry flickering beneath her defiant expression. I get it. She's scared—for her brothers, for herself, maybe even for me.
"She won't," I say, steady, certain. "Not before she makes a mistake."
Ava doesn't look convinced, but she nods anyway. "Then let's make her sweat."
Tyler chuckles. "Oh, she's gonna sweat. Give me a few hours."
I glance at the clock. "Good. Because if she takes the bait, we'll know by tonight."
* * *
By the time the sun begins to set, the city outside my windows is painted in streaks of amber and violet, the skyline sharp against the dimming light. I should be taking in the view, enjoying the brief stillness before everything explodes. But my focus is entirely on the laptop screen in front of me.
Tyler is perched at the kitchen counter, one hand buried in a bag of chips, the other tapping furiously on his keyboard. Every so often, he mutters something under his breath, his eyes flicking between windows of encrypted files, code lines, and backdoor trails he's leaving for Vanessa to stumble upon.
Ava is on the couch, curled into the cushions, scrolling through her phone with a frown. She's been restless all day, torn between trusting the plan and wanting to storm out and handle things herself. Not to mention the dozen texts from her brothers that she hasn't answered yet.
Where have you been?
Why are you ignoring us?
Ava, what the hell is going on?
She sighs and tosses the phone onto the table. I watch her out of the corner of my eye, ready to step in if she needs grounding. But for now, I keep my attention on Tyler, who suddenly makes a noise low in his throat.
"Got something," he announces.
I straighten. "What?"
Tyler leans back, spinning his laptop around so I can see. He's pulled up a detailed profile—employment history, financial transactions, recent travel logs. The name at the top of the file is unfamiliar to me, but something about it makes me uneasy.
Andrew Wallace.
I glance at Ava, but she doesn't react. Her brow furrows, her lips parting slightly like she's trying to place the name.
"Wallace," she murmurs, tilting her head. "Why does that sound?—"
Tyler doesn't wait for her to finish. He clicks on another file, pulling up a grainy security image from what looks like a restaurant's back entrance. The moment the photo loads, Ava goes completely still.
"Oh, my God."
Her voice is barely above a whisper, but I don't miss the way her entire body tenses.
"You know him," I say, already knowing the answer.
Ava swallows hard, her gaze locked on the screen. "That's Andrew."
Tyler frowns. "Yeah. That's what I just said."
"No." Ava shakes her head, her throat working as she swallows again. "That's Andrew—the guy my brothers tried to set me up with at Dean's wedding."
I stiffen and look at the photo once again, and she's right. I remember that insufferable face too.
"You're kidding," Tyler mutters, eyes widening.
Ava doesn't answer. She's still staring at the screen, the pieces clicking into place in real time.
"He was… God, he was so boring," she breathes. "Like, insufferably dull. My brothers were obsessed with him. Kept going on about how responsible he was, how stable." Her hands tighten into fists. "I didn't think anything of it. I just assumed he was another overzealous businessman trying to impress my family. But he was working for her?"
Tyler pulls up another file. "More than that. He's been feeding Vanessa information for weeks. Financial reports, internal company updates, details about your brothers' schedules—hell, even random conversations he overheard at the wedding reception."
Ava pales. "He was listening to us?"
My jaw clenches. "And reporting back to her."
Silence stretches between us, heavy and suffocating. I can practically hear the gears turning in Ava's head. The realization, the betrayal, the anger simmering just beneath the surface.
"This whole time…" She exhales, shaking her head. "I thought it was someone in your circle, Liam."
"So did I." My voice is tight. "But it turns out, it was someone in yours."
Her arms wrap around herself like she's trying to hold in the fury bubbling up inside her. "I have to tell my brothers. They need to know."
Tyler and I exchange a glance. I already know what he's thinking before he even opens his mouth.
"Not yet," I say, firm but careful.
Ava's head snaps up. "What?"
I take a slow breath, leveling my gaze with hers. "If we tell them now, they'll react. And if they react, Andrew will know we're onto him."
Her expression hardens. "So what? He deserves to know we're coming for him."
"He will," I say. "But not yet."
Tyler nods. "We can use him, Ava. Vanessa doesn't know we've identified him yet. If we move too fast, we lose that advantage."
Ava exhales sharply, pressing her fingers against her temple. I can see the war in her expression—the push and pull of emotion versus strategy.
Finally, she mutters, "I hate this."
"I know," I say. "But we need to be smart."
She doesn't look happy about it, but she nods. That's enough for now.
Tyler's phone rings. He takes it and leaves for a minute and then comes back. He then clicks his tongue and leans back in his chair. "Well, on the bright side, our little leak worked."
I turn to him sharply. "What do you mean?"
His lips curl into a slow, satisfied smirk. "Vanessa just called."
I freeze. "She called?"
"Oh, yeah." Tyler waggles his phone. "Left a lovely, furious voicemail about how you should ‘know better than to make threats you can't back up.'"
I arch a brow. "She thinks I made the leak?"
"She knows you did," Tyler corrects. "And she's demanding a meeting. Alone."
Ava stiffens beside me. "Absolutely not."
I reach for my phone. "She doesn't get to make the rules."
Ava glares. "Liam?—"
I meet her gaze, steady and unyielding. "I'm not actually going alone, Ava."
She hesitates. "Then what's the plan?"
Tyler grins, drumming his fingers on the counter. "We let her think she's won. Let her believe she's still in control." He tilts his head. "And then we trap her."
Ava's expression is still wary, but she doesn't argue. She just exhales, crossing her arms. "This had better work."
I smile, slow and sharp. "Oh, it will."
Because Vanessa Chase just made her first mistake.
And I'm going to make damn sure it's her last.
I text Vanessa back.
Name the time and place.