Chapter 2

Numbness warred with a searing, white-hot anger.

Elara stumbled back, out of their line of sight, her mind reeling.

The laughter, the casual cruelty, Chloe' s mocking suggestion.

One hundred thousand more.

He was going to put her further into "debt."

She needed air, needed to think, needed to scream.

Her fingers fumbled for her cheap phone.

One number. One lifeline.

Mr. Arthur Harrison. Director of The Vanguard Conservators. Her old mentor.

She hadn' t spoken to him in five years, not since she' d emailed him, full of shame and regret, turning down their offer.

The phone rang twice.

"Elara? Elara Vance, is that you?" His voice, warm, familiar, a balm to her shattered nerves.

"Mr. Harrison," she choked out, tears blurring her vision. "I... I made a mistake. A terrible mistake."

"My dear girl," he said, his tone instantly concerned. "What' s wrong? Are you alright?"

"No. But I... I need to come back. If there' s any way. I' ll do anything. I need my work. I need..."

"Elara," he interrupted gently. "We' ve missed you. Your talent... it' s rare. There' s always a place for you here. Always. We have a major restoration project starting, a Renaissance altarpiece. It needs your touch. Can you come to London?"

London.

A world away. A life away.

"Yes," she whispered, a sob escaping. "Yes, I can."

"Good. We' ll arrange everything. Just come home, Elara."

Home. The word echoed in the opulent, suffocating lounge.

She ended the call, a tiny spark of hope igniting in the desolation.

She took a deep breath, then another.

She had to face them. She wouldn' t just slink away.

Elara walked back towards Liam and Chloe. They were still laughing.

Liam saw her first. His smile faltered, replaced by a flicker of annoyance.

"Elara? What are you doing here? I told you to wait for instructions."

Chloe turned, her eyes, cold and assessing, raking over Elara' s worn clothes. "Well, well. Look what dragged itself in."

"I came to deliver this," Elara said, her voice surprisingly steady. She held up the envelope.

Liam' s eyes lit up with a greedy spark. "Ah, excellent. Right on time."

He reached for it, but Elara pulled it back slightly.

"Before I give it to you, Liam," she said, meeting his gaze. "There' s something I need to tell you."

Chloe scoffed. "Is this going to be a speech? Spare us."

"Actually," Liam said, his charming mask back in place, though his eyes were hard. "There' s something I need to tell you, Elara. There' s been a... complication with the loan. A miscalculation of the interest. It seems you still owe a bit more."

He paused for effect, savoring it.

"One hundred thousand dollars, to be exact."

Chloe smirked, watching Elara for her reaction.

Elara just stared at him, the spark of hope from Mr. Harrison' s call a small, steady flame against their darkness.