“Evelyn.”
I recognized Julian’s voice immediately.
He hurried toward me until a federal security guard signaled for him to keep his distance.
“I need to speak with you,” Julian rasped.
I stopped and turned around. Eight months ago, I would have given anything for him to look at me the way he was looking at me right now: desperate, wide-eyed, fully aware of my presence.
Now, it registered as complete white noise.
“Anything regarding Vance Biomedical must go through my legal counsel,” I said evenly.
“I’m not talking about the company, Evie.”
“Well, I am.”
“Evie, please… I didn’t know about the missing patent assignments,” he pleaded, taking a tentative step forward. “Your father swore to my board that all tech was owned by the firm. Chloe assured me she could manage the clinical side.”
“And you believed them.”
“I made a mistake.”
“It wasn’t a mistake, Julian,” I said, my voice completely steady. “A mistake is taking the wrong exit on the highway. You staged a romantic proposal to my adopted sister in my parents’ house while you were still engaged to me. You assumed I was too soft to stand up for myself.”
He lowered his head. “I know I have no right to ask you for anything.”
“On that, we completely agree.”
“But this investigation is going to destroy dozens of innocent people,” he whispered.
I thought of the three hospital patients suffering from tissue inflammation because of Chloe’s negligence. “Your arrogance already destroyed them.”
I turned and walked away.