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Then Nathaniel said: “She doesn’t have to be mine for me to care about her, Victoria.” The warmth in his voice when he mentioned Lily was something Victoria Hale had never been able to summon for herself. She stood in the doorway of the library, her perfectly manicured nails pressing into the palm of her hand until her skin turned ghostly white. / Chapter 5 / 8

Chapter 5 - THE UNRAVELING

Nathaniel turned back to Victoria Hale. The soft warmth in his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by a dark, deadly authority.

He slowly reached into his inner jacket pocket and pulled out a velvet box containing the six-carat diamond engagement ring he was supposed to present to Victoria that night.

Victoria’s eyes widened with a desperate, pathetic hope. “Nathaniel... yes. Let’s put this ugly scene behind us. Let’s announce the engagement—”

Nathaniel opened the box, took the multi-million-dollar diamond ring, and tossed it casually into a nearby ice bucket meant for champagne.

CLINK.

The crowd gasped in unison.

“There will be no engagement, Victoria,” Nathaniel said calmly. “There will be no marriage. And there will be no business deal between Whitfield Enterprises and the Hale Group.”

Victoria’s mother, Evelyn, screamed in horror, clutching her pearls. “Nathaniel! You can’t do this! You signed the preliminary agreement!”

“Read the contract, Evelyn,” Nathaniel snapped coldly, turning his gaze to the older woman. “Clause 14 states that any unethical behavior or public scandal brought upon my family name nullifies the partnership instantly. Cruelty to a child in my own home qualifies.”

“She’s just a maid’s kid!” Victoria shrieked, losing all composure, her face contorted in rage and desperation. “You’re ruining my family for a servant and her bastard child?!”

“Victoria, shut up!” her father, Arthur Hale, yelled from the crowd, his face gray with horror. But it was too late.

Nathaniel stepped closer to Victoria, leaning in so only she, Elena, and the nearby guests could hear his next words.

“You thought I didn’t know about the offshore accounts, Victoria?” Nathaniel whispered, his voice smooth and deadly. “You thought I didn’t know your father has been embezzling money from his own firm, or that you tried to bribe Mrs. Donnelly two weeks ago to find dirt on Elena so you could get her fired?”

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I stepped past the door frame, my leather shoes clicking softly against the linoleum floor.

I stepped past the door frame, my leather shoes clicking softly against...

The screech of the chopper’s rotor blades vibrated directly through the freezing slate beneath my spine. The blinding white vortex of snow kicked up by the downdraft burned my eyes, but I forced my lids open, locking my gaze onto the amber visor of the rescue specialist dropping out of the sky.

The screech of the chopper’s rotor blades vibrated directly through the...

Daniel stepped toward the bed, his polished leather shoes squeaking against the pristine hospital linoleum. He reached for the tray table, his fingers brushing the edge of the papers. His voice was low, coated in a practiced, corporate calm that made my stomach churn worse than the spiked blood pressure.

Daniel stepped toward the bed, his polished leather shoes squeaking agai...

Victoria stared at him, her lips parting in terror. “How... how did you...”

“I own the banks you owe money to,” Nathaniel said quietly. “As of eight o’clock tonight, I bought out your father’s primary debt. The Hale family doesn’t just owe the bank, Victoria. You owe me.”

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