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Chapter Twenty-Four: Jade

I didn’t like seeing Ellie like this.

I didn’t think I had ever seen her cry…and she wasn’t stopping. This was disturbing.

Ellie’s hand shook as she lifted the cup to her lips, a futile attempt to disguise the tears that betrayed her composure. We sat in the coffee shop, the early evening winter sky darkening outside, the bustle of the city a muted soundtrack to our private drama.

“Jade,” she started, voice cracking as another tear escaped, tracing a path down her cheek. “I swear, I never meant for any of this to happen.”

The sight was jarring—Ellie, the rock-solid scientist with a quip for every crisis, unraveling before me. Her usually precise and jovial banter was absent, replaced by the raw edge of vulnerability. The Ellie I knew, who navigated the complexities of BioHQ with unwavering logic, seemed like a distant memory.

I reached across the table, my hand hovering in hesitation, unsure of how to comfort her without knowing the cause of her distress. The warmth of the coffee shop did little to thaw the chill that had settled between us, the scent of roasted beans and the soft murmur of conversations only emphasizing the silence that loomed.

“Talk to me,” I urged, keeping my tone even, fighting the storm of emotions already brewing within.

The clatter of coffee cups and the low hum of conversations became a distant blur as I focused on Ellie. Her chest rose and fell with rapid breaths, the corners of her mouth twitching in a failed attempt at composure. My heart thudded in response to her obvious pain.

“Ellie, what’s going on?” The question came out sharper than I intended, my concern breaching the walls of patience.

She bit her lip, hesitating, before the dam broke. “Jade, it’s about the Morettis.” Her words stumbled out between shallow breaths. “It’s what I need to apologize to you about.”

“What do you mean?”

“Enzo Moretti? As in...” I trailed off, unable to mask my disbelief. My thoughts raced—connections forming, theories crafting, yet nothing made sense. Why would Ellie be involved with the likes of him?

“Listen,” she urged, her gaze imploring me to hear her out. “He asked me to do something, something I’m not proud of.”

“What did he ask you to do, Ellie?” My voice was low, demanding, every muscle in my body tensed for an answer I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear.

“Keep tabs on you, Jade.” Her voice quivered, a tremor of guilt flashing in her brown eyes. “For Dante. Because he...he has taken an interest in you.”

A cold laugh escaped my lips, incredulous. “You accepted a job to spy on me? For a crime lord?”

“He offered BioHQ funding, enough to secure our research for years.” Ellie’s plea hung heavy between us, her hands now clasped tightly in her lap. “It was a lot of money, Jade. I thought...I thought it would help us.”

I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “I promise you I wasn’t going to get up and walk away, so talk me through this.”

“It started the day of the gala,” she said, looking away from me. “I got home late and got a phone call to my landline, which was weird, because no one uses that. Anyway, I picked up, thinking it was some emergency. And it was this guy, and he said that he wanted to talk about funding BioHQ. Big seed money.”

I took a sip of my cooling coffee, waiting for her to finish.

“His voice had this...urgency, like every word was laced with silent commands,” Ellie said, eyes darting to meet mine before skittering away. “He didn’t introduce himself at first, just dove straight into what he wanted.”

I leaned forward, my heart pounding against the walls of my chest. “And when you asked who he was?”

Ellie’s lips parted, then pressed together as if sealing away the gravity of the name. “He said it didn’t matter.” Her voice cracked, but she pushed on. “Like his identity was just a trivial detail compared to what he was offering—commanding.”

“Did you question him further?” My words were tight, clipped with the strain of keeping my emotions in check.

“Of course, I did,” Ellie whispered, folding in on herself. “I asked why he hadn’t contacted Dr. White directly, why me?”

“And?” The single word hung between us, dense with demand.

“He said the donation depended on my involvement. That it was non-negotiable.” Ellie’s eyes met mine again, and this time they held a plea for understanding. “Jade, the amount he offered—it could fund our research for years. Keep us all secure.”

Silence enveloped us, save for the soft hum of conversation and the occasional clink of porcelain. It was a cruel symphony, one that underscored the depth of Ellie’s decision—the weight of her secret pact with Enzo Moretti.

“Specifically you,” I murmured, the truth hitting me hard.

“Well, that became clear later,” she said. “After I realized who it was.”

“Right.”

Ellie’s voice quivered like a leaf caught in the wind. “It was Enzo Moretti on the phone,” she continued, words tumbling out as if they burned her tongue. “I looked him up immediately—rumors are swirling about his family’s...ventures, but nothing concrete.”

“Right. The rumors you warned me about.”

“Nothing that convinced me they’re criminals,” Ellie said, pushing her coffee away. She leaned in closer, dropping her voice to barely above a whisper. “And he had a job for me.”

“Job? What kind of job does a man like that offer you?” I prodded, my hands clenched under the table.

“To keep an eye on you,” Ellie said, and it felt like the floor fell away beneath me. “Jade Bentley. Because, apparently, his son Dante had taken an interest...well, you know the rest. You two were never supposed to get together, you were never supposed to hook up. You were definitely not supposed to get pregnant.”

I blinked, struggling to process her words. The aroma of coffee and the gentle murmur of conversation around us suddenly seemed distant. Ellie was watching me closely, her eyes searching mine for a reaction.

“And Enzo already knew Dante had taken an interest in me?” My voice rose despite my efforts to control it. I saw a couple at the next table glance our way before returning to their own world of lattes and laptops.

“Exactly.” Ellie’s fingers fiddled with the hem of her lab coat, a telltale sign of her anxiety. “He was adamant about it, Jade. It’s unnerving, I know.”

“You think?”

“So I agreed,” she said. “I thought it would be easy. I thought I could warn you off Dante, but you weren’t listening, so…and Enzo, well, he offered a sum significant enough to ensure our research could continue without fear of budget cuts. You know how desperate we were for funding at the time. The acquisition came through so quickly, like, you can’t think it was fully above board.”

“Don’t do that. I’m pissed off at Dante, but you’re not off the hook. You agreed to spy with me for money?”

“Well, after the unsettling phone call, it felt like hitting two birds with one stone. I’d get the funding and I’d look after you all at once.”

“Right. You did this because you’re a good friend.”

“Jade, please understand...” Her hand reached out towards mine, but I pulled away, leaving her fingers grasping at empty air.

“Understand what? That you sold me out?” The harshness of my own words was a slap in the face to the camaraderie we had shared.

“Sold you out? No, Jade, it’s not like that.” Ellie’s voice was strained, frayed at the edges like a rope close to snapping. It was clear she was grappling with the magnitude of her choice. “I did this to protect us. To protect our work.”

I sat rigid, my fingers curled into fists beneath the table. Each muscle in my body was coiled tight, a spring wound up to its breaking point as I processed Ellie’s words. The betrayal stung sharper than any physical pain could.

“Jade, I’m so sorry,” Ellie whispered across the small expanse that now felt like miles. Her brown eyes were brimming with regret, her hands trembled slightly as she clutched her coffee cup like a lifeline. “It wasn’t an easy choice, but—“

“Easy?” My voice came out more venomous than I intended, my anger boiling over. “What part of this is easy, Ellie? You’re monitoring me for a crime lord!”

“You’re having a baby with his son! You can’t be that angry at me for that.”

“At least when I slept with Dante, I knew what I was getting into,” I scoffed.

Ellie’s expression fell, a flash of hurt momentarily washing away the sheen of guilt in her eyes. And for a moment, I regretted my harsh words, the biting tone that had managed to slice through the tension between us. But the sting of betrayal was still fresh, a raw wound that refused to be ignored.

“You don’t understand, Jade. It wasn’t about spying on you,” Ellie suddenly spoke up, her eyes filled with a fiery determination that I hadn’t seen since our university debate competitions. “I thought I could protect you. Protect you from becoming collateral in whatever dangerous game the Morettis are playing.”

“Wait. Did Enzo buy you all that shit that you had at your apartment? He was paying you too, right? Not just funding the lab, but paying you personally.”

“Yes, but…well, he’s Enzo Moretti. How could I refuse?”

“I see,” my dry response ricocheted off the walls, echoing back at us. A bitter laugh escaped me and Ellie winced as though I’d struck her. “Unbelievable.”

“But Jade, it...” Ellie began, but I waved her off.

“No, save it.” I said firmly, standing abruptly and shoving the chair back. It scrapped harshly against the floor and several heads turned our way. Ignoring the curious glances, I grabbed my coat from the back of the chair.

“Where are you going?” Ellie asked, but I hardly heard her.

“I can share my location with you and you can send it to Dante’s dad. How does that sound?”

Before Ellie could muster a reply, I was already at the door, the cold wind hitting my face like a splash of icy water. As I stepped onto the sidewalk, my mind swirled with thoughts and emotions. The city buzzed around me, oblivious to my turmoil.

“Jade!” Ellie called out behind me, but I quickened my pace, thrusting my hands into the pockets of my coat and blending with the teeming crowd. The trust we had once shared felt like shards of shattered glass underfoot — sharp, piercing, impossible to piece back together.

As I disappeared into the pulsating rhythm of New York City, a single thought echoed through my mind: Enzo Moretti had bought a spy in our midst, and that spy was my closest friend.

What else didn’t I know?