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The air inside the Montgomery estate felt colder than the winter breeze blowing off the Newport coast. Hazel’s small, trembling hand clutched the fabric of my dress, her teardrops soaking through the silk. Across the marble floor, Sterling didn't even look up from his phone as Victoria, his mistress of eleven months, wiped a microscopic smudge off her designer skirt with an expression of disgust. / Chapter 17 / 20

Chapter 17 - The Poison Pill

With Marcus behind bars, Victoria facing criminal charges, and Sterling serving his sentence, Blackwood Holdings faced immediate liquidation. The board of directors threw themselves at the mercy of Vance Global, begging for a buyout to prevent complete insolvency.

I presided over the emergency board meeting in the main auditorium of Vance Tower. Sitting at the head of the seventy-foot conference table, flanked by my father and Julian, I reviewed the surrender terms.

"We will acquire Blackwood Holdings for one dollar," I declared calmly to the trembling board members across the table. "Every executive who signed off on Marcus Thorne’s illegal campaign will resign immediately without severance. All corporate assets will be liquidated and transferred into the Vance Children's Medical Trust."

The former chairman of Blackwood lowered his head in utter defeat. "And if we refuse?"

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She sl@pped my 66-year-old mother across the face, called her ""the maid,"" and proudly told everyone the house belonged to her. She had no idea I was the real owner—and by the end of that dinner, her perfect little lie would explode in front of every guest.

She sl@pped my 66-year-old mother across the face, called her ""the maid...

I did not scream. I did not hurl insults, smash crystal, or offer Evelyn Bennett the spectacle she so desperately craved.

I did not scream. I did not hurl insults, smash crystal, or offer Evelyn...

The door to the guest room locked with a quiet, satisfying click. Outside, the muffled sounds of Derek shouting about the ruined risotto faded into the background, drowned out by the thunderous beat of my own heart.

The door to the guest room locked with a quiet, satisfying click. Outsid...

"Then we execute our short positions on your remaining stock at 9:00 AM tomorrow," Arthur Vance said, leaning forward. "And you will be personally liable for the bankruptcy."

The board signed the papers in under thirty seconds.

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