Chapter 98: Is Isabella still in the city?

POV: EVE

Eve was reviewing client contracts in her office at Phoenix Talent when Maya burst through the door, breathless and wide-eyed.

"Eve. You need to see this."

"See what?" Eve looked up, immediately alert at the tone in Maya’s voice.

Maya crossed to the desk, pulled out her phone, and showed Eve a photo.

Instagram. Posted twenty minutes ago by a mutual acquaintance, someone who ran in the same social circles, someone who posted about every event, every sighting, every piece of gossip.

The photo showed a sleek restaurant downtown. High-end and exclusive.

And sitting at a corner table, elegant in a cream-colored dress, was Isabella Russo.

Eve’s blood went cold.

"That’s her, right?" Maya asked quietly. "The ex-fiancée who approached us at lunch?"

"Yes." Eve stared at the photo, her mind racing. "When was this posted?"

"Forty minutes ago. The caption says ’Ladies who lunch at Lumière.’ Eve..." Maya’s voice was careful. "I thought Dimitri told her to leave the city?"

"He did." Eve’s jaw clenched. "He said she was leaving. That it was handled."

"Well, clearly it’s not handled if she’s having brunch downtown."

Eve zoomed in on the photo. Isabella looked relaxed. Confident. Not like someone who’d been banished and threatened with death.

Like someone who’d won.

"Maybe it’s an old photo," Eve said, even though the timestamp clearly showed it was from today.

"Maybe." But Maya didn’t sound convinced. "Or maybe she didn’t actually leave."

Eve set down her phone, her chest tight.

Dimitri had told her it was handled. That Isabella was gone. That the threat was neutralized.

So why was she still in the city?

"I need to call Dimitri," Eve said.

"Are you sure? Maybe there’s an explanation..."

"There better be." Eve grabbed her phone, dialed.

He answered on the second ring. "Cara mia. Everything okay?"

"Is Isabella still in the city?"

A pause. Just a fraction of a second. But Eve heard it.

"Why do you ask?"

"Because Maya just showed me an Instagram post from forty minutes ago of Isabella having lunch at Lumière. So either someone’s posting old photos, or you lied to me about her leaving."

Another pause. Longer this time.

"Eve..."

"Did you lie to me, Dimitri?" Her voice was steel. "Yes or no."

"It’s complicated..."

"It’s a simple question. Is Isabella Russo still in this city? Yes or no."

She heard him exhale. "Yes. She’s still here."

The confirmation hit like a physical blow.

"You told me she was leaving. You told me it was handled."

"It is handled..."

"How is it handled if she’s still here?!" Eve stood, paced to the window. "You went to her hotel at 4 AM. You threatened to kill her. You told her to leave and never come back. Those were your words, Dimitri. So why the fuck is she having brunch downtown like she owns the place?"

"Eve, listen to me..."

"No. You listen to ME." Her voice shook with fury. "I asked you to treat me as a partner. To tell me the truth. To include me in decisions that affect my safety. And you looked me in the eye and told me Isabella was leaving. Was that a lie?"

"I was going to tell you....."

"When? After she showed up at another one of my lunches? After she orchestrated another ’chance encounter’? After she..." Eve stopped, a horrible thought occurring to her. "Oh my God. What else haven’t you told me?"

"Eve..."

"I’m coming to you. Right now. And you’re going to tell me everything. Every single thing you’ve been keeping from me. Or we’re done."

She hung up before he could respond.

Maya stared at her. "Eve..."

"I need to go. Can you handle the rest of today’s meetings?"

"Of course, but...are you okay?"

"No." Eve grabbed her bag, headed for the door. "But I will be. After I get some fucking answers."

***

POV: DIMITRI

Dimitri stood in his office, phone in hand, cursing under his breath.

She’d found out.

Of course she’d found out.

Isabella had been in the city for less than twelve hours under the new arrangement and she’d already been photographed at a public restaurant.

Either she was monumentally stupid, or she was deliberately testing the boundaries.

Probably both.

His office door opened. Marco.

"Eve’s on her way here. She’s pissed."

"I know." Dimitri set down his phone. "Isabella was photographed at lunch. Eve saw it."

"Want me to have Isabella picked up? Reminded of the terms?"

"Not yet. First I need to deal with Eve." Dimitri moved to the window. "She asked me directly if Isabella was still in the city. I couldn’t lie."

"So you told her the truth?"

"I told her Isabella was still here. Not why. Not about the deal with Antonio and Lorenzo. Not about the threats." Dimitri’s jaw clenched. "And now she’s coming here demanding answers."

"Are you going to tell her?"

"I don’t know." Dimitri turned from the window. "If I tell her about Lorenzo’s threats, about the ’removal’ plans, she’ll want to be involved. Want to fight back. And I can’t risk that."

"With respect, boss....she has a right to know she’s being threatened."

"I know." Dimitri’s voice was tight. "But I also have a responsibility to keep her alive. And right now, that means controlling the information. Controlling her exposure."

"She’s not going to see it that way."

"I know that too."

Twenty minutes later, Eve walked into his office.

No knock. No warning. Just strode through the door like she owned the place, her eyes blazing with fury.

"Explain," she said. "Now."

Dimitri dismissed Marco with a look. The door closed, leaving them alone.

"Eve..."

"I want to know why Isabella Russo is still in this city after you threatened to kill her if she didn’t leave. I want to know why you lied to me. And I want to know what else you’re keeping from me." She crossed her arms. "Start talking."

Dimitri took a breath, chose his words carefully.

"After I confronted Isabella, after I told her to leave, my father called me."

"Your father."

"Yes. He... negotiated a compromise."

Eve’s eyes narrowed. "What kind of compromise?"

"Isabella can stay in the city. But under strict conditions. She stays away from you completely. She focuses on her organization with Enzo in the neutral territories. She doesn’t approach you, doesn’t surveil you, doesn’t interfere with us in any way."

"And you agreed to this? After what she did?"

"I agreed because the alternative was worse." Dimitri moved closer. "If I banished Isabella, if I humiliated the Russo family that badly, there would be consequences. Retaliation. And that retaliation would be aimed at you, not me."

"So you made a deal to protect me."

"Yes."

"Without telling me."

"I was going to tell you...."

"I don’t need you to decide when I’m safe enough to handle the truth!" Eve stepped closer, her eyes fierce. "I’m not some delicate flower you need to protect from reality, Dimitri. I’m your partner. Or at least, I thought I was."

"You are..."

"Then act like it!" Her voice cracked. "Stop keeping things from me. Stop making decisions about my safety without including me. Stop treating me like I’m too fragile to handle your world when I’ve already proven I can."

Dimitri reached for her. "Eve..."

She stepped back. "No. I need to know right now, is there anything else you’re keeping from me? Any other threats? Any other deals? Any other lies?"

This was it.

The moment where he could tell her everything. Lorenzo’s threats. The ’removal’ plans. Antonio’s involvement. The whole truth.

Or he could give her a partial truth. Enough to satisfy her anger but not enough to put her in more danger.

"No," he said quietly. "That’s everything. Isabella stays, but she stays away from you. That’s the deal."