Ava sat in Ethan’s office long after the revelation settled, her mind a battlefield of past and present colliding with brutal precision. The weight of the note, the echo of her father’s unfinished fight—it should have sent her reeling. But it didn’t. It sharpened her, steeled her spine. If Calloway had buried her father’s case, if he was responsible for Josh’s downfall, then she wasn’t just unraveling a mystery—she was stepping into war.

  Ethan watched her, the intensity in his gaze unreadable. “You don’t have to do this alone, Ava.”

  She exhaled, the smallest hint of a smirk tugging at her lips. “I never planned to.”

  His mouth twitched like he wanted to smile, but he didn’t. Instead, he pushed off the desk and moved toward her, slow and deliberate. “You know this isn’t just about justice anymore. Calloway doesn’t just ruin reputations—he erases people who get in his way.”

  “I’m not easy to erase,” she shot back, her voice unwavering.

  Ethan chuckled, the sound low and edged with something she couldn’t quite name. “No, you’re not.”

  For a moment, the room felt smaller, the space between them charged. Ava had spent years perfecting the art of control, of building walls so high that no one could see past them. But Ethan had a way of standing too close, of looking at her like he actually saw what was behind them.

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  She turned away first, gathering the documents into a neat pile. “I need to know everything you have on Calloway. If we’re going after him, we do it smart.”

  Ethan didn’t argue. He reached for another file, handing it to her. “It’s not much, but it’s a start. Calloway’s connected to half the city’s elite, but he keeps his real moves buried. If your father’s case was wiped clean, we need to find out who did it and why.”

  Ava nodded, her mind already cycling through possibilities. There were people she could reach out to, favors she could call in. She had spent years clawing her way to the top of the legal world, and now it was time to use that leverage.

  But she also knew something Ethan didn’t. Something she wasn’t ready to say out loud yet.

  This wasn’t just about Calloway.

  This was about proving, once and for all, that she was never meant to be soft.

  The drive home was quiet, but Ava’s mind wasn’t. Her father’s voice, though long silenced, echoed in her head.

  The law isn’t just about what’s right, Ava. It’s about who can prove it.

  She had spent her life proving she was better, stronger, more ruthless than anyone who doubted her. Emotions were weaknesses, distractions she had no use for. But Ethan… he had always been different.

  He had a way of getting under her skin, of making her feel like she wasn’t just a defense attorney sharpening her teeth on impossible cases. He looked at her like she was someone—not just a name in the legal world, not just her father’s daughter.

  And that was dangerous.

  She parked in front of her apartment, gripping the steering wheel for a moment before stepping out. She didn’t have time for distractions. Not now. Not when everything was finally coming together.

  Her phone buzzed. A message from an unknown number.

  You’re making a mistake. Walk away.

  Ava stared at the screen, her pulse steady.

  Then she typed back two words: Come stop me.