Veronica

Veronika Kensington’s hands tremble in black mourning clothes after her mother Olga’s funeral—not from grief, but from shock at the letter left behind. Entering the living room, she finds her husband Jackson, a tough, handsome businessman, drinking whiskey. "My mother used my brother's email to leak your financial data to the IRS three years ago to force a divorce. My brother is innocent," Veronika confesses bitterly. Jackson freezes. "Your brother was innocent? Then you beat him for no reason?" Veronika answers with a cold, hollow "Yes... I have to find him." Memories rush back. Three years ago, a leaked email triggered an IRS investigation, pushing Jackson to the brink of prison over millions in alleged tax evasion, ending in a crushing financial settlement. Jackson traced the leak to Veronika’s younger brother, an accountant at his firm. Blinded by explosive rage, Veronika trapped her brother in a garage with four of Jackson’s men. As he cried his innocence, she brutally beat him herself with her fists and heavy boots. She pressed her Glock 17 to his head, ready to kill him, but at the last second, mercy stayed her hand: "I'm sparing your life. Get out of Boston." Crushed by guilt, Veronika drives to their freezing hometown of Orono, Maine. She spots her brother outside their old family home. Seeing her, he freezes, absolute terror in his eyes. Veronika hands him the letter. "You're innocent. I'm sorry... I didn't know." Her brother reads it and whispers quietly, "I knew mother used my email from the start. I just couldn't tell you... I wanted to protect her." Veronika stands in absolute shock.