The Last Look;

Three weeks earlier;

Lilya, have you seen my navy suitcase?

She called it out from the vanity, adjusting her hair in the mirror, smiling at nothing in particular. Just the easy, unthinking smile of a woman who still believed in the life she was living.

It's in the dressing room, bottom shelf. Julian's voice came from inside the closet, muffled and distracted. Though it might be too big. There's a black cabin-size one downstairs.

He came out a moment later, already in his black suit, already adjusting his tie. His movements were quick and slightly off, the way a person moves when their mind is already somewhere else entirely. He grabbed the suitcase and started packing without looking up.

Lilya went to fetch her shoes. She came up behind him and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. Then she glanced at the suitcase and laughed.

Sweetheart. You're going for three days. It looks like you packed the whole wardrobe.

The flicker crossed his face so fast she almost didn't catch it. His fingers, working the knot of his tie, went slightly still.

It's an important meeting. What if I spill something on myself. I couldn't decide.

She shook her head, still smiling. You're such a worrier.

Julian turned back to the mirror. Lilya slipped on her burgundy heels and was nearly out of the room when he spotted the papers on the vanity. His whole face changed.

You still haven't signed those documents. I told you I needed them urgently.

She noticed the edge in his voice but didn't reach for it. I haven't had a chance to read them yet.

His lips pressed together. Come on, Lilya. I'm your husband. You think I'm trying to scam you.

She laughed at that. Occupational hazard. You know how lawyers are. It's just habit.

He crossed the room and picked up the documents himself, pen already extended toward her hand. Please. I've checked them a dozen times. I'm running late.

She looked at his foot, tapping against the floor. At the way he was holding his breath without realizing it. She took the pen and signed.

While her hand moved across the page Julian watched her fingers like he was watching something he would never see again. His breathing was shallow and quick. When she set the pen down and looked at him he glanced away fast.

What's going on with you, she asked. Are you okay.

Just nervous about the meeting. I have to go.

He grabbed the signed papers and moved to the door. Lilya stood watching him. He paused at the threshold and looked back at her one last time.

That look.

She would spend a long time afterward trying to find the right word for it. Cold wasn't quite right. Tense wasn't either. It was the look of someone closing a door they never intend to open again.

Whatever it is, she thought, we'll talk about it when he gets back.

Julian never came back.

Two weeks later.

Theo, you don't understand. Lilya's voice cracked on the words, her breath coming in ragged pulls. He never boarded the plane. He never checked into the hotel. He walked out that door and vanished. His car is still in the garage. He took a taxi. How can they refuse to classify him as missing. We need to file something, we need to push them.

Theo kept his hand on her arm, kept his voice level. Lilya. Please. I spoke to the officer. Let him explain when we get inside.

But she wasn't finished. I'm scared. It's been two weeks. I can't even look at Kai's face anymore. What do I tell him when he asks where Daddy is. He's already getting upset, he's already starting to notice, and I don't know what to say to him anymore.

Her voice broke on the last words. Tears came without warning, fast and uncontrolled. Each sentence seemed to cost her something she wouldn't get back.

Theo's jaw tightened. His eyes held both fury and fear at once.

We're almost there, he said. Come on. Let's finally get some answers.

The wait at the police station stretched to an hour. Cold walls. A clock somewhere ticking in that particular way that makes every second feel like an accusation. Lilya finally couldn't hold still any longer. She stood up sharply.

This is not normal, she said, loud enough that heads turned. I'm an attorney. Someone needs to give us answers right now or I will make this into something much larger than a missing persons report.

An officer looked over at her, measured and unhurried. He lifted one hand, gesturing toward the back.

Come with me, please.

They followed him through the station. The desk he led them to was covered in old documents, rings left by cold tea glasses, the residue of too many difficult conversations. The air was thick in a way that had nothing to do with ventilation.

He gestured to the chairs. They sat.

We've completed the investigation regarding your husband. His voice was even and careful, the tone of someone who has learned to deliver bad news without flinching. But we cannot classify him as missing.

Lilya stared at him. What do you mean.

He took a breath and opened the file. Because your husband is not missing, he said. Your husband is a fugitive.

The word landed and just sat there.

I don't understand, she said. Her voice was barely there. Listen to me. My husband is a respected businessman. These are baseless accusations. You are stalling on purpose.

The officer placed the documents on the desk between them without comment.

Julian Voss has defrauded 58 shareholders. Including you. The total amount is just under 120 million dollars.

Lilya's heart stopped. She felt it, the actual stopping of it, the moment before the next beat that seemed to last forever.

He purchased two tickets, the officer continued. He fled the country. First stop was Thailand. Beyond that the trail goes cold. That region is well known for networks that manufacture new identities. People disappear into them and don't come back. In short, your husband ran.

The room went completely quiet.

Lilya's vision blurred at the edges. The words reached her ears but not quite her mind, circling somewhere just outside comprehension, echoing without landing.

Your husband ran.

Theo's voice came through clenched teeth, low and tight as a wire pulled past its limit.

He ran off with that woman.

Everything in Lilya's body went electric.

She turned to Theo slowly. When she spoke her voice was shaking but not from grief.

What woman...