Page 98 of Dial L for Lawyer
I stare at Kiernan, at his hunched shoulders, chewed fingernails, the way he flinches every time Logan speaks. Is this what it looks like when the trapdoor opens under someone else for a change? I should feel vindicated. Instead, I just feel tired. Not because he's innocent—he's not. He's the kind of guilty that's more pathetic than evil, the kind that goes along even when the villain's already halfway out the door.
Caleb doesn't mince words. "You'll testify to all this?"
Kiernan glances at him, anxiety written across every feature. "Against Maya? Or... against Radiance?"
"Both," Caleb says.
"I... I can. But it'll destroy my career. Even just helping you makes me toxic in the industry."
"And if you don't," Logan presses, "I'll make sure you go down for every single breach alongside Maya. I guarantee every tech company in the country will know your name as either the rat who flipped, or the idiot who let a girl half his intelligence play him. You'll never work again. Your choice."
Kiernan swallows, then nods, shoulders slumping as he hugs himself. "OK. I'll do it."
Caleb's voice softens just enough not to be terrifying. "If you're honest now, we can probably keep you out of the headlines. Might even save your job. But you're going to help us reconstruct the whole evidence chain, and if you leave anything out..." He looks to Logan, who grins like a wolf spotting prey. I'm spiraling over this tough-guy version of the normally awkward Logan. But Kiernan looks ready to pass out, and he nods desperately.
"I'll tell you everything. Whatever you need."
Caleb takes my elbow, guiding me into the hall. The change in his face—the flush of victory, the thrill of having an enemy cornered—it's a little scary how alive he gets when there's someone to destroy.
He drags his thumb along my jaw, his palm landing warm on my neck once we're alone. "That's it," he murmurs, like he just closed a billion-dollar deal. "That's the smoking gun, sweetheart. You're about to be completely vindicated."
My heart pounds, but this time it's not fear. It's something raw, a little mean, and nowhere near satisfied with just surviving. "It's not enough," I say.
"No?” His brow lifts and his eyes drift to my mouth. “Tell me more."
"I want her to burn." My throat is tight, my words low. "I want everyone to know what she did, that she never cared about anyone but herself, and I want Radiance to regret ever touching her."
Caleb's grin could cut diamonds. He brushes his lips against my temple and says softly, "That's my Morgan."
We walk back into the conference room, where Logan is already uncapping a marker and sketching out a timeline with manic energy. Kiernan hunches lower every time Logan barks an order or asks about digital fingerprints and audit trails. I feel a tiny flicker of pity for him, but it dies fast—he set my career on fire just to watch Maya shine.
It's almost fun, in the twisted way that revenge fantasies are fun. Simple premise: you hurt me, now I hurt you back, but with facts instead of rumors.
The next hour is a blur of digital forensics, whiteboard strategizing, and the occasional savage thrill of piecing together the full story. Maya wasn't just after my job, she'd been planning my destruction for months. Every rumor she started, every lie she planted in Slack or over drinks at happy hour, every time she let me cover for her while she engineered my downfall. Logan's forensic skills are terrifying. He pulls up every badge swipe, every VPN login, every text message, until the evidence is so damning that even Bennett, who's just catching up, lets out an impressed whistle.
"Jesus Christ. You could drop this in the Washington Post and win a Pulitzer."
"She needs to go down for this," I say. “Thoroughly.”
Caleb's hand finds the small of my back, a silent anchor. "Agreed. We don't just want vindication. We want spectacle."
Bennett looks between us, barely hiding a grin. "You're both insane."
"We're right," Caleb corrects. "And she started it."
An hour later, Kiernan's gone with threats of legal action and career destruction hanging over his head if he even thinks about backing out. Logan's already uploaded everything to multiple secure servers, because apparently paranoia is his love language.
"That was..." I start, then stop, not sure how to finish.
"Satisfying?" Caleb suggests.
"Exhausting." I slump against the conference room wall. "But yeah, satisfying too."
"Looks like this is about to be over," Bennett says, packing up his things. "The board will have no choice but to clear you and go after Maya."
"And Radiance," Logan adds, still typing furiously. "They orchestrated this whole thing."
Caleb pulls out his phone. "I'll call David, set up the meeting."
