Chapter 7 - Shadows over the Empire“She overheard the phone call, and realized the real enemy was inside the family…”Three weeks later, the Carter Mansion was transformed.
Daisy had been discharged and was now recovering in a beautiful, sunny guest suite on the estate's ground floor. The triplets—who had once been ruthless terrorizers—had become Daisy’s fierce guardians. Mason spent hours reading comic books to her, Michael brought her his favorite toy cars, and Madison sat by her bed, teaching her how to draw.
The house was filled with laughter for the first time in three years.
Ethan, too, had changed. The icy glare had melted into quiet smiles when he walked into the room. We spent late nights sitting in the estate library, talking about everything and nothing—our pasts, our fears, our dreams. The unspoken connection between us grew stronger every day.
But peace in a billionaire's house is a illusion.
It was a rainy Tuesday night. I was walking down the dimly lit hallway past Ethan's private study, holding a cup of chamomile tea for Daisy, when I heard heated voices coming from behind the cracked double doors.
"You've lost your mind, Ethan!" Julian's voice shouted. "You're spending millions of company funds on medical research foundations, you're distraction by a nanny and her sick brat, and you missed the board vote for the Arctic drilling contract!"
"That contract was built on illegal environmental bypasses, Julian," Ethan’s voice replied calmly, though laced with steel. "I cancelled it."
"You cancelled a two-billion-dollar deal?!" Julian banged his fist on the desk. "The board is ready to remove you! They think you’re unhinged grief-stricken fool! If you don't step down as CEO by Friday, we will release the audit reports."
"What audit reports?" Ethan demanded.
"The ones proving that someone embezzled forty million dollars from the offshore accounts," Julian sneered. "And guess whose digital signature is on every single transfer? Yours, big brother."
I gasped softly, pulling back from the door.
Julian had framed Ethan. He was trying to stage a corporate coup and strip Ethan of his empire.
"You forged my signature," Ethan said, his voice dangerously low.
"Prove it," Julian laughed coldly. "The board meets on Friday evening at the annual Gala. You will announce your resignation, turn over full control of Carter Global to me, or you will spend the rest of your life in a federal penitentiary."
Footsteps approached the door. I quickly retreated into the shadows of the adjacent art gallery as Julian slammed the door open and stormed down the hall.
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My heart pounded in my chest. Ethan had saved my daughter’s life. He had given us a home when we had nothing.
Now, it was my turn to save him.
