When the attorney finished, the judge turned his attention back to her.

“Ms. Carter… do you have anything to say?”

There was a pause.

A long one.

The kind that stretched just enough to make people shift in their seats.

She lowered her gaze briefly, then reached into her bag and pulled out an envelope, worn at the edges, sealed carefully, as though it had been waiting for this exact moment.

She placed it on the table.

“I signed that agreement,” she said slowly, “because I trusted him.”

Julian exhaled sharply, rolling his eyes.

“Here we go…”

But she continued, her voice steady.

“But there’s something he forgot.”

The attorney frowned slightly.

“There is nothing missing. Everything has been clearly documented.”

She lifted her head, and for the first time, a faint smile appeared, though it wasn’t warm or soft, but something sharper, something that made people uneasy without knowing why.

“Not everything.”

The Name That Changed Everything

The judge opened the envelope.

At first, he read casually, his expression neutral, the way someone reads something they expect to confirm what they already believe.

Then his eyes moved faster.

Then slower.

Then… he stopped.

The silence in the room shifted, becoming something almost tangible.

Julian leaned forward slightly.

“What is it? It’s just paperwork.”

The judge looked up, and there was a flicker of something unexpected in his expression.

“Mr. Reeves… are you aware of whose name the original registration documents of your company are under?”

Julian let out a short laugh.

“Mine, obviously.”

The woman shook her head gently.