Chapter 2

Annie Farley POV:

The dread was a cold, constant companion now, a shadow that clung to me even under the bright fluorescent lights of the coffee shop. I knew Julian. He didn't just talk about waiting. He acted. He always got what he wanted.

It started subtly. A new customer, a woman in an expensive suit, ordered a latte every day, always watching me. Then a black SUV parked across the street, idling for hours. My carefully constructed peace began to fray.

One rainy Tuesday morning, the SUV was gone. Instead, a sleek, silver Bentley pulled up to the curb, its tinted windows gleaming. Julian' s car. I recognized it with a jolt that sent the hot coffee sloshing over my hand.

He moved fast. He always did. He was a tech billionaire. Resources were endless for him. If he wanted to find a ghost, he would. And I was just a barista with a new name.

Before Julian even stepped out, the street was alive. Reporters, photographers, fans-a swarm of them, emerging from nowhere. They surrounded the Bentley, a ravenous crowd. They' d been tipped off. Julian always had a talent for orchestrating an audience.

I stood frozen behind the counter, the steam from the espresso machine blurring my vision. My life in this quiet town, my refuge, was crumbling. The contrast between my past and present struck me like a physical blow. Once, I was the one they clamored to see. Now, I was the one they hunted.

Mrs. Gable, my landlord and the owner of the coffee shop, peered through the window, her frail hands trembling. She was old, with a kind heart and a severe cough that always worried me. "Anna," she whispered, her voice cracking. "What's going on out there?"

Her confusion was a sharp stab of guilt. I had brought this to her doorstep. This chaos. This public spectacle.

Julian stepped out of the Bentley. He was even more imposing in person, his tailored suit a stark contrast to the damp Oregon air. His eyes, though, were what held me. They scanned the crowd, then the coffee shop, with an unnerving precision. He knew I was here. He always knew.

"I'm looking for Annie Farley," Julian's voice, amplified by the microphones thrust into his face, cut through the clamor. It sounded exactly like it used to – smooth, authoritative, utterly captivating.

Mrs. Gable turned to me, her eyes wide with fear. "Annie Farley? Anna, who is he talking about?"

I shook my head, my throat tight. "I don't know, Mrs. Gable. It's a mistake."

But the crowd outside wasn't buying it. A woman in the front, holding a sign that read "Justice for Kaylene," screamed, "She's hiding! She changed her name to escape justice!"

Another voice joined in, louder, angrier. "She thinks she can just disappear after ruining lives? After killing her own grandfather, practically?"

The words hit me like stones. My grandfather. They dragged him into this, too. My breath hitched.

Julian, meanwhile, remained perfectly still, his gaze fixed directly on the coffee shop' s front door. He wasn't yelling. He didn't need to. He simply used his presence. His power.

His eyes narrowed, locking onto something within the shop. Onto me. His lips barely moved, but the words were clear, even through the glass, through the roar of the crowd. "Annie. I know you're in there."

The accusation hung in the air. My heart hammered against my ribs, a trapped bird desperate to escape. He wasn't asking. He was demanding. And I knew, with a certainty that chilled me to the bone, that he wouldn't leave until I showed my face.