Alina's fingers tightened around the strap of her handbag, the leather creaking softly under the pressure. She had rehearsed this answer a dozen times—phrased it carefully, stripped it of emotion, made it sound like a simple fact of business rather than the ruin of her life. But sitting here, under Elara's steady gaze, the words came out raw and unpolished.
"Because I was blacklisted," she said, her voice carrying a faint tremor she couldn't quite suppress. "Richard Edwards made sure of it. After everything went public, he called every contact he had in the industry. Made sure I couldn't get a job in the financial sector—or anywhere near it."
She paused, swallowing hard. The confession felt like peeling back a layer of skin, exposing something tender and bruised. She hadn't expected to say it so plainly, hadn't expected the name to taste so bitter on her tongue.
"I've sent out over two hundred applications in the past eight months," Alina continued, her gaze dropping to the table. "Most of them were ignored. The ones that got responses fell through at the last minute. References that suddenly went quiet. Positions that were mysteriously filled."
She looked up, meeting Elara's eyes for the first time since sitting down. There was no defiance in her expression, no old arrogance—just a weary honesty that seemed to cost her something to offer.
"Your company was the first one that didn't turn me away at the door."
Alina lowered her gaze again. Pride had been a luxury she could no longer afford. Months ago, she would have walked out rather than admit defeat. Today, she was simply grateful someone had been willing to read her résumé.
The words settled between them like stones dropped into still water. Elara's pen remained motionless, her fingers resting against the cool surface of the table. She had expected many things from this interview—a rehearsed story, a polished deflection, perhaps even the old Alina she remembered, all charm and sharp edges. What she hadn't expected was the truth, laid bare without armor.
She studied Alina's face for a long moment. The faint lines around her eyes, the careful way she held herself, the slight tremor in her hands that betrayed more than her words ever could. The woman sitting before her bore little resemblance to the confident girl who once ruled the school corridors. This was someone else entirely—someone who had been broken by the world she once ruled.
"The financial sector," Elara repeated slowly, testing the words. "You worked at Harrington & Cross, if I recall correctly. Under Richard Edwards."
It wasn't a question. She remembered the headlines, the scandal that had splashed across business journals and tabloids alike. The married executive and the young woman who had thrown away her career for an affair that was never going to last.
She set her pen down and folded her hands on the table, her posture shifting almost imperceptibly. "That's a significant fall from grace. Most people in your position would have changed their name, moved to another city, started fresh somewhere no one knew them.",
Alina gave a humorless smile. "I thought about it." Her fingers traced the edge of her handbag before she let out a slow breath. "More than once."
"So why didn't you?"
"Because changing my name wouldn't change what I did." Her voice was quiet, but steady. "I made mistakes, Ms. Blake. Running away wouldn't erase them. I can only keep moving forward and hope someone is willing to judge me for the person I'm trying to become, not just the person I used to be."