Chapter 14 - The Price of Survival"It came from him!" Elena screamed back, her voice echoing off the high ceilings of the penthouse.
The twins, startled by the sudden violence of our shouting, began to cry in the hallway. Elena didn't look at them; she kept her burning gaze locked entirely on me.
"Julian didn't just 'save' me in Boston, Tobias!" she continued, tears spilling over her lashes as her voice cracked with long-buried anguish. "When the doctors told me I had a fifty-fifty chance of dying during childbirth, I had no insurance, no savings, and no safety net! Your corporate health plan had cut me off the moment the separation papers were drafted!"
My breath caught in my throat. The anger evaporated, replaced by a suffocating wave of horror.
"Julian was the only one who believed in the medical research I was doing on the side—research to cure the exact heart defect that killed my mother and threatened my life," Elena sobbed, stepping forward and jabbing a finger against my chest. "He invested in my patent. He backed my company. That twelve million dollars isn't a bribe, Tobias—it's my life's work! It's the reason I'm standing here today to raise our sons!"
I stood paralyzed, the concrete floor seeming to vanish beneath my shoes.
"When he came to our office that day," Elena continued, her voice dropping to a harsh, trembling whisper, "he wasn't trying to steal my family. He was trying to help me protect my company from you. Because he knew that if you found out I built a multi-million-dollar enterprise without your help, your fragile ego couldn't handle it."
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She turned sharply, walking away from me down the hallway to scoop the crying twins into her arms, leaving me utterly alone in the silent, gleaming kitchen.
I looked down at my hands. They had built towers, closed multi-billion-dollar mergers, and conquered corporate enemies. But right now, they felt entirely empty.
