The Broken Tale

A change in the winds of fate

Even with Brian's arm wrapped tightly around her and the heating turned in max, Layla's coat and mittens were failing to keep her warm. She had seen Miller Corprations companies on social media and always marveled at the luxury but she never knew they belonged to a young woman. Though the most luxurious and marvaleous were the Miller Corpration headquarters in Sydney, the ones in California were magnificent as well.
Layla chuckled a little on the drive. To think just two days ago she believed she was driving away from California forever but now she was back.
The beautiful scenery of snow covered trees, water fountains and benches around the towering glass sky scrapers did little to calm Layla's nerves. She was grateful that at least they were meeting her at her companies and not any FBI headquarters.
It felt safer.
Brian was shivering as well. He had been trying his hardest to pretend to be bribe but his confidence was running dry by the moment.
Alexander seemed to know his way around the company well. He knew the way around the endless corridors of people walking back and forth with files in hand and phones against their ears. He lead them to the elevators and pressed the button for the highest floor. The elevator shot through the air like a bullet. But even so, the few seconds they spent in the elevator in silence and tension, all three drowning in fear was one of the longest few moments she had spent in her life.
Very little was said. Alexander spoke to the young secretary at the desk but Layla barely heard anything they said. She kept her head down and stood in a corner.
Ashamed and broken.
The secretary lead them to the office. She opened the door for them and gestured for them to enter with a smile. Alexander stepped inside first, Brian and Layla followed him.
Layla had only been to Ali's office a handful of times. Ali was a well known multi millionaire and known for his excess indulgence in luxury but yet everything he had could not compare to hers. Layla's head began spinning with the first glance she took. All around her were holographic figures, computers and shelves and shelves of books. The fancy black sofas and chairs color coordinated perfectly with the black and white shelves and black and white paintings.
Layla instantaneously recognized her broad cheek bones and chocolate hair. Though she sat at the white desk across the room from them, her head buried in laptop, files and a hologram, she immediately noticed them enter. She looked up with a bright grin that flashed her perfect teeth. Though it was a smile, it felt like cold stabs in the pit of her stomach to Layla.
But Mrs.Valdez's bright, welcoming smile turned into a confused and intrigued frown as her eyes landed on Layla. She stared blankly for less than a moment, taking in what she must have assumed or tried to figure out. But she quickly cleared her throat.
"Alex?" She said, "What a surprise."
"I can only imagine." Alexander replied, nudging his head towards Layla.
"Yes, well." She hesitated, thinking of what to say without being offensive must have been difficult, "Sit, sit, please."
Hesitantly, Brian and Layla sat next to each other, hands intertwined between them.
"It's been a while, Chanel Valdez." Alexander said, shaking hands with her.
"Quite a while." She replied.
She sat back down after Alexander did.
        The nerve wrecking silence was very short lived. Chanel Valdez eyed all three of them attentively, her eyes  scanned them all quietly, not missing out a single detail with her chin resting on her fists. Finally, she sighed and switched off all the holograms with one swipe on a phone like device sitting on the desk.
"Layla Elmar, right?" She asked.
Layla nodded nervously.
       Nothing seemed to pass Chanel Valdez's attention. She was an FBI and CIA agent afterall. Though Layla tried to hide her trembling hands in her lap, Chanel noticed it.
"Do you want something to drink?" Chanel Valdez asked warmly, "Maybe some coffee?"
Layla shook her head with a small smile.
"What about you two?"
"Coffee would be fine." Alexander replied.
"Levinos?"
Brian shrugged, "A soda would do."
"Alright."
She swiped through and clicked around on another small hologram that appeared by her. A small shaft in the white coffee table, that Layla had not noticed, dropped and a cup of black coffee with some sugar and a soda appeared, the shaft pulled back into the table immediately.
"So I'm sure you're well aware of the news, Elmar?" Chanel said calmly, "Not a lot of accused just walk up to an FBI agent like this."
"That's the thing, Chanel. There's...quite a few things you don't know." Alexander replied.
She raised an eyebrow.
"Well then. If that's the case." She turned her gaze on Layla, "I'm listening. Tell me. What do I need to know about your case?"
Layla could not bring herself to look up into the woman's eyes. She fidgeted around with her hands nervously.
"Sh-"
"I want to hear Layla's side of the story, Mister Levinos." Chanel interrupted.
This was it.
         This was the biggest choice of her life.
         But as she looked more carefully at herself, she realized that she no longer had a choice. She had stepped into the daylight and eyes of the FBI deputy director, there was no longer anywhere to hide or anything to do. Telling her story and hoping Chanel Valdez would believe her was her one last shot.
        So Layla did.
        She told everything right from the beginning. Where and how she grew up, how she and Talya tried to run away, how her family caught her and how she ended up married to Ali. She told her of the hellish four years of their marriage. About the beatings, about the repeated rape, about the baby he had beaten out of her and how she ended up meeting and falling in love with Brian. Brian too went on to explain further of how Lloyd actually died and of their orignal plans of running away.
       For over ninety minutes, Chanel Valdez listened. Her head resting on her fists, she only listened patiently. Only nodding occasionally to gesture for them to continue. Slowly, the anticipation and anxiety in Layla's stomach started to disappear. There was something about the way Chanel pursed her lips and nodded that made Layla feel like she genuinely understood what she was saying on a more emotional than logical level. It made her feel...like she was in safe hands, that there was some small chance that things may work out this time.
       Finally it was over.
       Her story was told.
      And the truth was out in the open, in the hands of a woman she did not know for the first time.
      Now what was left was what really mattered.
The verdict.
      Chanel's verdict.
      Now was when Layla would know whether her life would be over or not.
      Chanel just stared at the desk blankly. Through her eyes, Layla could tell that her mind was probably racing. Layla could hear the seconds ticking on the clock. She could hear the distance between each tick growing with each passing moment.