At that mont, upon hearing what Cora just said, lissa froze for a second. Her lips parted slightly, and her brows knit together. Her fingers tightened around the phone as she leaned back in her seat, clearly taken aback. She wasn't expecting that. Not now. Not when they were so close to tying everything together. Not when the pieces were finally starting to make sense.
"Wait… what?" Malisa blinked hard, hoping she had misheard. "Cora, are you saying you're cancelling the entire investigation on Mr. B? Just like that?"
There was a long pause on the other end. Malisa could almost hear the silence pulsing between them like a slow heartbeat.
She knew how invested Cora had been. How many sleepless nights she'd spent going through files, running theories, and placing surveillance. Malisa had been there for most of it. She rembered how determined Cora sounded when she first gave Lovi the go-ahead how angry she was that soone like Mr. B could play with people's lives and identities.
This sudden shift didn't feel right.
"Cora…" Malisa's voice softened, but there was a quiet urgency behind her tone now. "Is everything okay? What's really going on? This isn't like you. You don't just drop sothing this big without a reason."
There was another pause heavier this ti.
"Talk to ," Malisa urged. "Why the sudden change of plan? Why now? Did sothing happen that you're not telling ?"
At that mont, upon hearing what Malisa just said, Cora closed her eyes briefly. A gust of wind brushed past her face, but the chill it carried was nothing compared to the cold guilt curling in her chest. Her hand holding the phone trembled slightly not out of fear, but hesitation. Deep down, she knew she couldn't keep this secret forever. But right now? It just wasn't the ti. There were still too many emotions she hadn't sorted out, too many questions she hadn't dared to ask herself. She wasn't ready. And she didn't want Malisa to drag it out of her either.
But this was Malisa.
And Malisa wasn't the type to just let things go.
Cora bit her bottom lip, glanced at Oliver who was watching her quietly from a few steps away. The man who had been Mr. B all along the very person she had unknowingly investigated with Malisa and Lovi's help. She didn't want to reopen wounds, not now when everything was just beginning to settle. She didn't want Malisa or Lovi to keep digging, to stir up things that needed to be buried, or worse get hurt in the process.
Taking a deep breath, she lifted the phone back to her ear and forced a calmness into her voice, even though her heart was far from steady.
"There's nothing going on," she said softly, but clearly. "And I'm not hiding anything from you, Malisa. Really, I'm not."
There was a short silence on the other end of the call, but Cora pressed on before Malisa could interrupt.
"It's just that… I don't need to know who Mr. B is anymore," she added. "It's no longer important. The reason we started this investigation doesn't matter now. Things have changed. I've changed."
She paused, pressing her lips together tightly. "So whatever Lovi found, just tell him to stop. I don't need it anymore."
At that mont, Malisa furrowed her brow. The tone in Cora's voice didn't sit right with her it wasn't just a simple change of heart. No, sothing was off. She held the phone tighter and leaned against her desk, trying to process everything.
"Cora," Malisa said slowly, "I'm sorry, but that's exactly what worries ."
Cora stayed quiet.
"You don't just drop sothing this serious like that," Malisa continued, her voice filled with concern. "Not you. You've been chasing this trail for weeks, risking your sleep, dragging into it, telling how important it is to find out who Mr. B really is and now, just like that, you say you're not interested anymore? You know I'm not going to just let that slide."
Still, silence from Cora.
"Cora," Malisa pressed further, her tone shifting slightly, "be honest with . Is soone threatening you? Is that it? Because if that's the case, you need to tell right now. I swear, I will handle it. You're not alone in this."
On the other end of the line, Cora inhaled sharply. Her chest rose with a heavy breath as she looked at Oliver standing quietly behind hwr, his head lowered, arms crossed. It was hard to explain everything over the phone Malisa was right to be concerned, but Cora herself was still trying to make sense of what she had just learned, what she had just felt. Her emotions were all over the place, but she didn't want Malisa involved in this any deeper than she already was.
"I don't really know how to explain this to you," Cora finally said softly, almost in a whisper. "But just know this, Malisa I'm not lying to you, and I'm not being forced to say this. I'm telling you the truth."
Malisa didn't interrupt. She was listening, but Cora could feel her tension even through the silence.
"I already know the identity of Mr. B," Cora continued, her voice steadier now. "And that's why I'm not asking any more questions. I'm not backing out because I'm scared. I'm backing out because… I understand now."
There was a long pause.
"You understand what?" Malisa asked quietly.
Cora looked down at her fingers and whispered, "I understand that not every answer needs to be shouted from the rooftop. So truths… are better kept to the heart."
At that mont, upon hearing what Cora just said, Malisa paused in disbelief. Her brows furrowed as she held the phone tightly to her ear, her voice growing sharper.
"you seems to be extrely serious about this," she muttered slowly. "But then again, who is this Mr. B, Cora? Is he your uncle? Who else could it be? It was your uncle that literally showed up out of nowhere recently, and now, all of a sudden, you claim you know who Mr. B is?"
Her voice rose an octave, filled with frustration. "I know it's him. I just knew it. You've been avoiding the obvious, but I'm not blind, Cora."
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