The hospital room was quiet again.
Jay sat at the small table, surrounded by files.Old cases.Old victories.Old enemies.
Keifer watched her carefully from the bed.
"You've been staring at those for an hour," he said softly.
Jay didn't look up.
"I'm trying to figure out who hates me enough to do all this."
Keifer frowned slightly.
"That list is probably long."
Jay sighed."…not this long."
Jay flipped through another file.
Case after case.Win after win.
But then—
She stopped.
Her fingers froze.
Keifer noticed immediately.
"…Jay?"
She slowly picked up one file.
Her expression changed.
Serious.
Heavy.
"…this one."
She handed the file to Keifer.
He read quietly.
Illegal land grabbing.Money laundering.Corruption.
Keifer's eyes narrowed.
"This looks similar to your current case."
Jay nodded slowly.
"It is."
She swallowed.
"This case… destroyed a company."
Keifer looked up.
"And?"
Jay's voice softened.
"The owner went to prison."
Silence.
"And his family?" Keifer asked quietly.
Jay's eyes darkened.
"…his son disappeared after the trial."
Keifer's expression sharpened.
"Disappeared?"
Jay nodded.
"No one knew where he went. He sold everything… then vanished."
She clenched the file slightly.
"He was in court that day."
Keifer leaned forward slightly.
"Did you see him?"
Jay nodded slowly.
"…he stared at me the entire time."
A chill filled the room.
Jay flipped to the last page.
There it was.
A small note from court security.
"Subject verbally threatened Attorney Jay Mariano after trial."
Keifer's jaw tightened.
"What did he say?"
Jay's voice dropped.
"…he said I took everything from him."
She looked at Keifer.
"…and he'd take everything from me someday."
Silence filled the room.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
The Name
Keifer looked down at the file again.
"Who is he?"
Jay hesitated.
Then she said it quietly.
"…Adrian Vale."
The name lingered in the air.
Like something dangerous.
Keifer leaned back slightly, thinking.
"If he disappeared… he could've built something in secret."
Jay nodded slowly.
"And waited."
Keifer's eyes darkened.
"For revenge."
Jay's grip tightened on the file.
"…this wasn't random."
Keifer shook his head.
"No."
"This was planned for years."
Jay sat down slowly.
"…this is my fault."
Keifer's expression hardened instantly.
"No."
She looked at him.
"I destroyed his life—"
"You did your job," Keifer interrupted firmly.
Jay stayed quiet.
Keifer softened slightly.
"You didn't create a criminal… he chose to become one."
Jay looked at him…
Her expression slowly eased.
"…you always say the right things," she muttered.
Keifer smirked faintly.
"I'm a lawyer."
Jay rolled her eyes.
"…idiot."
But there was warmth in her voice again.
Jay looked at the file one more time.
Adrian Vale.
A man who lost everything.A man who disappeared.A man who might now be hunting her.
Jay exhaled slowly.
"This just got personal."
Keifer met her gaze.
"…then we finish it together."
Jay didn't argue this time.
She simply nodded.