Chapter 30 - Orchid
THIRTY
ORCHID
The fluorescent lights in the interrogation room buzz overhead like angry insects, casting a harsh, sterile glow that makes everything feel too sharp, too exposed.
My wrists are still raw from the zip-ties, and my shoulder throbs where one of the henchmen had manhandled me into the van.
I sit at the metal table, back straight, chin lifted, trying to hold onto the last scraps of the enforcer mask I’ve worn for so long. But inside, I’m unraveling.
Marlo took advantage of me.
The realization burns like acid in my chest. All those late-night calls, the careful guidance, the promises that we were doing the right thing by taking Serafina down from the inside.
I trusted her. I risked everything for her.
And now I’m sitting here in Maddox custody while she sits across from Dean Maddox in another room, spinning whatever story keeps her looking clean.
I want to expose her. I want to scream the truth until someone listens.
But right now, I’m the one in cuffs, and she’s the one playing the perfect federal agent.
Where’s Poe?
The question loops in my head on repeat.
They separated us the moment we arrived at Maddox HQ.
I caught one last glimpse of him being led down a different hallway, his eyes finding mine with that fierce, protective look that makes my heart ache.
He’s safe. He has to be safe. But the not-knowing is torture.
The door opens with a soft click. Dean Maddox steps in, tall and imposing in a dark suit, his presence filling the small room.
He looks exactly like the man I’ve studied in files for months: calm, controlled, dangerous in that quiet, calculated way.
He pulls out the chair across from me and sits down, placing a thick folder on the table between us. His eyes are sharp, assessing.
“Orchid Lin,” he says, voice even. “Or should I say, the woman who blackmailed Poe for Goldenbell, right?”
I meet his gaze without flinching, even though my stomach twists. “I was never truly working for Goldenbell. I was undercover for the FBI. Marlo was my handler. I was tasked with infiltrating Serafina’s operation from the inside. I’ve been feeding information back for over a year.”
Maddox leans back slightly, studying me. “Convenient story. Especially since your handler is currently in the next room telling us a very different version of events.”
Of course she is. Marlo’s always been good at saying the right things.
My hands clench under the table, the metal cuffs biting into my wrists.
“She’s lying. I didn’t know she was dirty.
I thought we were both trying to take Serafina down.
She used me. She played me the same way she’s playing you right now. ”
He doesn’t react visibly, but I can see the wheels turning behind his eyes. “Tell me about the hack. What did Serafina want Poe to do?”
I take a slow breath, forcing myself to stay calm and clear.
“She wanted him to crack your core systems. Full access. Client data, security feeds, financials, everything. She was planning to sell it or use it to dismantle Maddox Security from the inside. I tried to stall. I tried to keep him from going too deep, but I couldn’t risk blowing my cover without putting Enley in immediate danger.
That’s why I stayed close to him. That’s why I…
” My voice falters for a second. “That’s why things got complicated between us. ”
Maddox’s expression doesn’t change, but I see the slight shift in his posture. “Complicated how?”
I look down at the table for a moment, then back up at him.
There’s no point in hiding it now. “I care about him. More than I should. Things happened. Real things. I wasn’t using him.
Not the way you think. I was trying to protect him while still doing my job.
I didn’t know Marlo would turn on me like this. ”
The door opens again. One of Maddox’s men leans in and murmurs something to him. Dean nods once and stands.
“We’ll continue this later,” he says. “For now, you stay here. We’re verifying your story.”
He leaves without another word, the door clicking shut behind him with finality.
I’m alone again in the small, sterile room.
The silence presses in on me. My mind races back to Poe.
Is he okay? Is he hurt? Does he hate me now that he knows the truth?
The thought of him believing I was just using him makes my chest tighten painfully.
I drop my head into my hands, the cuffs clinking against the table.
Everything feels like it’s crumbling. Marlo’s betrayal.
Serafina’s operation. The way I let myself fall for Poe in the middle of all this chaos.
I was supposed to be the one in control.
The undercover agent playing the long game.
Instead I’m sitting here in cuffs, wondering if the man I care about is safe and whether he’ll ever look at me the same way again.
The minutes stretch into what feels like hours. I replay every conversation with Marlo, every instruction, every moment I trusted her. How did I miss the signs? How did I not see that she was playing her own game?
The door opens again. This time it’s not Dean Maddox. It’s one of his men, carrying a bottle of water. He sets it in front of me without a word and leaves. I don’t touch it. I just sit there, staring at the gray wall, waiting.
Waiting for answers.
Waiting for Poe.
Waiting to see if anything I built over the last year was real, or if it was all just another layer of the same lie.
And in the quiet of the interrogation room, with my wrists cuffed and my heart aching, I make a silent promise to myself.
If I get out of this, I’m going to expose Marlo.
I’m going to finish what I started.
And I’m going to find a way to make things right with Poe.
No matter what it costs me.