How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Sylvie understood exactly what Selma meant.

She simply handed over the apple and said coolly, "Jarrod treats me well. I have no reason to play any games with him."

Selma frowned. "We're at a critical stage now. Even the smallest mistake could ruin everything, and we need to handle the lawsuit as smoothly as possible."

Letting things escalate would do her more harm than good.

Besides, she had no idea how many charges Elodie was looking to pin on her.

The uncertainty gnawed at her.

Sylvie finally let her frustration show, furrowing her brow. "I know. Jarrod's already hired a lawyer. I'll try to sound Elodie out and see where she stands."

The next day, Elodie received a call from Sylvie's attorney.

He said Sylvie wanted to meet and discuss a few "terms."

Elodie turned him down flat.

She had only one message: "We'll talk in court."

The lawyer didn't press her.

He was probably off brainstorming other strategies.

Still, Elodie found it odd. Ever since the incident at the gallery, Jarrod hadn't reached out—not to negotiate, not to discuss Sylvie or Selma's situation.

She'd expected him to come knocking first.

But since he hadn't, it was one less headache for her. Jarrod was never easy to deal with, so not having to split her attention was a relief.

That afternoon, Elodie headed to Nexus Analytics with Alexander.

The two companies had been merging operations for a while now and were working together more closely than ever. So far, things were running smoothly.

Still, Elodie needed to check in regularly on Nexus Analytics' affairs.

Day-to-day management was handled by Jason and a team she'd assigned to oversee things jointly.

Alexander went off to review the progress on the 3D modeling project.

Elodie took the elevator upstairs to review Nexus Analytics' recent business activity.

Jason came over, arms full of folders and reports. "Ms. Thorne these are the quarterly statements and the summary of everything big and small from the past six months. I'd like you to have a look."

Elodie glanced at the mountain of paperwork, and couldn't help but wince.

Managing a company this size was

no small feat. Every little detail

needed her approval, and since she'd only recently taken over, she still had to catch up on a backlog of issues-getting a handle on everything from the ground up.

"All right, I'll go through them in a bit."

She'd been so tied up with matters over at

ApaLink Technologies t

she hadn't had time to give

sher full attention t

IM

Analytics her full attention.

Still, she'd sent people to help Jason manage things, so she wasn't too worried.

When Alexander came upstairs, he found Elodie still buried in reports, brow furrowed.

He strolled over and said, “That's Nexus Analytics for you. The projects and

reports are enough to give anyone a headache."

Taking over halfway through was always a challenge.

Elodie let out a sigh. "Looks like I'll be stuck here until closing time."

Alexander pulled up a chair, ready to pitch in. "Just say the word-I'll stay late and help."

That made Elodie smile, eyes crinkling. "I'll treat you to dinner."

Alexander handled this sort of thing with ease.noveldrama

Elodie sorted the files for a while, then suddenly paused.

She picked up one particular document and read through it again, line by line.

By the time she put it down, her expression was one of unmistakable shock.