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Suddenly, someone gripped my arm and yanked me forward. I spilled out of the crowd, tumbling toward the back of the of the room.
"Are you okay?" Lucas gasped. He was holding Claire, her arms linked around his neck.
"Mommy," Claire sniffled. Although she wasn't crying, her face was pale, and she looked terrified.
"Oh, baby, are you okay?" I reached out to grab her, but she only nodded, her arms tightening around Lucas.
"I got her. It's okay." He grabbed my hand. "C'mon, follow me." I squeezed his hand but also wrapped myself around his arm for added security as he guided me away from the crowd toward a back door off the main gallery.
He opened a door into a conference room and went to set Claire down on a large round table. I slammed the door shut behind us and leaned against it to catch my breath. The screams and shouts in the gallery were still audible, even with the door closed, but they were a bit more muffled. I gripped my chest, feeling the racing of my heart.
Lucas's hands touched my shoulders. "Hey, are you okay?"
Anger roared inside me, and I spun around, slapping my hands against his chest. "What the fuck, Lucas?"
"Mommy." Sitting on the edge of the table, Claire started to cry.
I ran my hands through my hair, trying to keep my voice even. "It's okay, baby, you're okay."
Lucas shook his head, the color draining from his face. "I didn't know it was going to turn into a stampede out there. I'm sorry, I didn't think that through."
My hands were trembling. "Didn't think...you didn't think it through?"
A million thoughts were racing through my head at such a fast speed, I didn't know what to say first. "Can you just...explain to me...what the hell is going on?"
He knew. That was the only thought I could grab hold of. Lucas knew. But what exactly?
I stared at him. "What do you know?"
Lucas sighed, his body stiffening. He leveled his voice so that only I could hear him. "Everything, Olive. I know everything."
My blood froze. "Everything...what?"
"I know you stole that video from Jessie at the masquerade ball. I know you were working with Quinn. I know that...that you felt safe with me. And that's why you stayed."
I blinked, licking my lips as I tried to process his words. There was no reason to deny any of this. Lucas had clearly known for a while. If he was going to turn me in, he already would have. But that wasn't what happened. Instead, he'd taken the video I'd stolen and used it to expose Jessie instead of me.
I should be elated, in awe. But all I felt was confusion.
"How did you...I don't understand."
He shrugged. "Finding the hacker was part of my job, Olive. Obviously, I didn't expect it to be you. But when I figured it out, what was I supposed to do? I wasn't going to turn you in."
"But the video...Quinn faked it to cover me up."
Lucas's shoulders slumped. "No, Olive. I hired someone to do that so that you would be off the hook."
I shook my head. "But then...Quinn?"
"He's alive," Lucas whispered. "And starting a new life in an undisclosed location."
My jaw dropped. Lucas had done all of this...for me…for us. "Why didn't you tell me that you knew?"
He glanced down at the ground, avoiding eye contact with me. "Because I wanted it to be your choice whether or not you stayed."
I knew that was a lie. I could see it all over his face. My heartbeat echoed in my chest. "The money from Quinn...Lucas...was that...you?"
He licked his lips. "Quinn told me that was how much he owed you, so I just figured that once I took you out of the picture and made sure that you were safe, you could get your money and choose whatever you wanted to do with your life."
