The back exit of the old auditing firm creaked as I pushed it open, the heavy ledger tucked firmly under my arm. The night air in this part of Onitsha was thick with the smell of damp earth and diesel, a far cry from the scent of expensive cologne and air-conditioned luxury at Alexander's mansion.
"Stay low," Alexander whispered, his hand resting briefly on my shoulder. It was a grounding touch, a reminder that even though our marriage started on a piece of legal paper, the danger we were in right now was very real.
We slipped into the narrow alleyway just as the headlights of a black SUV swept across the front of the building. My heart was thumping against my ribs. I looked at the ledger—my mother's life's work. She had died protecting these numbers, and I wasn't about to let Aunt Catherine's goons take them from me now.
"They're blocking the main road," I said, peering around a stack of rusted shipping crates. "If we try to reach your car, they'll pin us down. We have to go through the market."
Alexander nodded, his jaw set in a hard line. "Lead the way. This is your city, not mine."
I took a deep breath. As a guy who grew up navigating these streets before I ever stepped foot into a billionaire's world, I knew the shortcuts. We ducked behind a row of closed market stalls, the shadows swallowing us whole.
"Why did she do it, Alexander?" I asked quietly as we moved. "Why did my mother stay silent for so long? She had enough evidence in this book to bankrupt your entire family ten years ago."
Alexander stopped for a second, looking at me with an expression I couldn't quite read. "Maybe she wasn't trying to destroy the company. Maybe she was trying to save it from Catherine. My father always said your mother was the only person who truly cared about the integrity of the firm. He used to say she was the conscience he didn't have."
A loud crash behind us cut the conversation short. A trash can had been knocked over.
"There! Over by the stalls!" a voice shouted.
"Run," Alexander hissed.
We bolted through the maze of the market. I knew every turn, every loose floorboard. We scrambled over a low brick wall and slid into a small, darkened courtyard behind an old church. I could hear the heavy boots of the security team hitting the pavement just a few yards away.
I pulled Alexander into the recessed doorway of the church, our chests heaving as we tried to keep our breathing silent. We were so close I could feel the heat radiating off him. In the dim light, his eyes searched mine, no longer looking like a cold CEO, but like a man who was terrified of losing the person standing next to him.
"If they get this ledger," I whispered, my voice trembling slightly, "they get everything. My mother's name stays dragged through the mud, and Catherine wins."
"They aren't getting it," Alexander promised, his voice a low growl of defiance. He reached out and squeezed my hand. "I didn't sign that contract just to get a husband. I signed it because I knew you were the only one brave enough to help me burn the rot out of this family. We're finishing this. Together."
The footsteps faded into the distance, heading toward the main road. We were safe for the moment, but the war was just beginning. I looked down at the ledger and then at Alexander. The contract had been about secrets and money, but as we stood in the shadows of Onitsha, I realized it was becoming about something much more dangerous: loyalty.
"We need to get to the safe house in Awka," I said, adjusting the bag on my shoulder. "There's a digital scanner there. We need to upload these pages before Catherine realizes what we actually found."
"Then let's move," Alexander said. "Before the sun comes up."