Chapter: Chapter 147Ralph was waiting on the sidewalk when we pulled up, his coat thrown on over pyjama pants, phone pressed so hard to his ear I could see the white of his knuckles from the car."She's inside the diner on Forsythe," Ralph said as he jogged over to meet us, out of breath. "Not outside anything. Inside. Sitting across from the reporter like it's a coffee date.""That's new," I said as I climbed out, glancing at Liam. "Last time she at least pretended it wasn't planned.""She's not pretending this time," Ralph said, glancing between us like he wasn't sure which one of us needed the warning more. "I think she wants you to walk in on it."Liam went quiet for a second, studying the glowing sign of the diner across the street, and I watched something shift in his expression, not anger exactly, more like recalculation."Then we don't walk in," Liam said finally, surprising both of us."You're joking," I said as I turned to look at him fully. "She's in there right now.""Which means whatever she
Last Updated: 2026-07-10
Chapter: Chapter 146Patricia's motion went in by four that afternoon, and by six, the office had gone quiet in a way I hadn't felt in days, phones no longer ringing every ten minutes, Amy's frantic typing finally slowing to something closer to normal. I stood by the window in Liam's office, watching the city lights start to flicker on below us, and let myself exhale for what felt like the first time in seventy-two hours."You look like you're finally breathing," Liam said as he came up behind me, his hands settling on my shoulders, thumbs pressing slow circles into the tension there."I feel like I forgot how," I said as I leaned back into him, letting my head rest against his chest. "Is it really over. The worst of it, I mean.""Patricia thinks the motion will get granted within the week," Liam said as he pressed a kiss to the top of my head, his voice quieter now, less clipped than it had been all day. "Drew's lawyers already know they're losing. Camilla's gone quiet since the meeting. I think we made
Last Updated: 2026-07-07
Chapter: Chapter 145"Stop rereading it," Liam said as he glanced over from his own laptop, catching me hovering over the send button for the fifth time. "It's accurate. That's all it needs to be.""I just don't want to give them anything," I said as I finally hit send, my stomach tightening the second the email left my outbox."You didn't," Liam said as he closed his own laptop, leaning back in his chair. "Neither did I. Patricia will tell us if there's a problem."Ralph appeared in the doorway before I could respond, a thick folder tucked under one arm and an expression that made my pulse spike all over again."I found something," Ralph said as he stepped inside, closing the door behind him with his foot. "You're going to want to sit down for this.""Just say it," Liam said as he straightened in his chair, all traces of calm gone from his voice."The vendor agreements," Ralph said as he dropped the folder onto the desk, flipping it open to a tabbed page. "Drew's claiming they were never exclusive. Howev
Last Updated: 2026-07-07
Chapter: Chapter 144Morning came too fast, sunlight cutting through the blinds before I'd even had my first cup of coffee, and Liam's phone was already buzzing against the nightstand by the time I opened my eyes."That's the fourth one," Liam said as he reached over and silenced it without looking, his voice still rough with sleep."Fourth what?" I asked as I propped myself up on one elbow, watching him rub a hand down his face."Call," Liam said as he finally glanced at the screen, his jaw tightening the second he read the name. "From Drew's office.""At seven in the morning?" I said as I sat up fully now, the last traces of sleep burning off."Panic doesn't keep business hours," Liam said as he swung his legs out of bed, already reaching for his phone charger. "Get dressed. Something's moving."By the time we walked into the office forty minutes later, Ralph was waiting by the elevator bank, his expression tight in a way that made my stomach drop before he'd said a single word."You need to see this be
Last Updated: 2026-07-06
Chapter: Chapter 143The office felt different by the time we got back from the conference room, lighter somehow, like the walls themselves had exhaled. Ralph caught my eye from his desk and raised an eyebrow in silent question, and I gave him a small nod that had him grinning before he'd even fully turned back to his monitor."Well?" Amy asked as she abandoned all pretence of working the second Liam and I walked past her desk. "Don't leave us hanging.""She tried to negotiate a settlement," I said as I perched on the edge of Amy's desk, still riding the strange, giddy relief of the last twenty minutes. "In a room with her own lawyer and Patricia recording the entire thing.""She what?" Ralph said as he spun his chair around fully, abandoning any pretence too. "That's not just bad, that's catastrophically bad.""Patricia's words were something closer to useful," Liam said as he leaned against the doorframe of his office, arms crossed, though the corner of his mouth kept fighting a smile. "She basically co
Last Updated: 2026-07-03
Chapter: Chapter 142Camilla's meeting request sat in my inbox like a loaded gun, unanswered."You're not going alone," Liam said as he read the email over my shoulder, his hand braced against the back of my chair. "I don't care what she thinks that proves.""I wasn't planning on going alone," I said as I closed the laptop, my pulse still not fully settled from the article, from Ralph's phone buzzing, from the entire day collapsing sideways in the span of an hour. "I just don't understand why she'd request this. She's the one who should be avoiding us.""Because she's desperate," Liam said as he straightened, his jaw tight. "Desperate people make mistakes. She's hoping she can talk her way out of this before Patricia's statement goes live.""Or she wants to threaten us," I said as I looked up at him, the thought settling cold in my chest. "In person, where there's no paper trail.""Then we bring someone who takes notes," Liam said as he reached for his phone, already dialling. "Patricia should be in that
Last Updated: 2026-07-03
Chapter: Chapter 60I woke up feeling like my emotions had been scattered all over. Sound reached me before my eyes opened up fully. I heard voices drifting in and out, blurred at the edges, as if I were underwater and the world was speaking from the surface. I didn’t open my eyes right away. I wasn’t sure I could. I wasn’t sure I wanted to. My head pulsed with a dull, steady ache and my body felt like it had been pressed into the mattress, weighted down, pinned.“…blood pressure stabilised,” a man wearing an all-white coat said somewhere near my left. His voice was calm with each word that left his lips. “She fainted due to emotional shock. Likely dehydration and exhaustion played a role as well.”Another joined the conversation even though I couldn’t see his face. But it was familiar enough that my chest twinged before I knew why.“If you don’t mind me asking, doc. What was the cause of Mr Derek’s death?” I frowned faintly, my brow tightening without my permission.“The kidneys were the primary
Last Updated: 2026-02-05
Chapter: Chapter 59I turned sharply toward the voice at the reception desk, my body reacting before my mind could catch up.“Brian?” The name tore out of me, like an animal filled with disbelief.The waiting room noise dulled instantly, like someone had pressed a hand over the world. I stepped closer, my shoes striking the floor louder than they should have. “What are you doing here?” My voice rose despite myself. “Why are you asking questions about my father?”Brian stared at me like I was the last person he expected to see. His brows pulled together, surprise flickering quickly into something guarded. “Chloe?” He straightened. “How did you even know Derek was here?”The question immediately struck me as wrong.My shoulders squared. “Why wouldn’t I know?” I snapped. “He’s my father. Why are you here?”“I came to see my father-in-law,” Brian said, his tone calm but firm, like he was bracing for impact.I laughed after hearing those same untrue words again. “No. You didn’t.” I stepped closer,
Last Updated: 2026-02-05
Chapter: Chapter 58The hospital was larger than I thought it be.I parked crookedly, killed the engine without really registering it, and sat there for a beat with both hands locked around the steering wheel. The building’s lights glared back at me through the windshield, they were too bright, too white, too final. My phone buzzed in my pocket, probably Lois, but I ignored it. I opened the car door and stepped out, the night air sharp against my skin.Each step toward the entrance felt more difficult than the previous one. The automatic doors slid open with a quiet hiss, releasing the sterile scent of disinfectant layered with something sharper beneath it. The emergency lobby buzzed with contained motion. Voices stayed low. Footsteps moved fast. A child whimpered somewhere to my left. A man argued quietly into his phone near the wall.I stopped just inside the doors.I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth and breathed in slowly. Once. Twice. My shoulders dropped a fraction.Then I walked to
Last Updated: 2026-02-03
Chapter: Chapter 57The quiet hit me the moment I shut the door behind me. I locked it the same way I did every day, whenever I returned. They proceeded to do my usual ritual of resting my forehead against the wood. My bag slipped from my shoulder and dropped to the floor with a dull thud I didn’t bother reacting to. My heels followed immediately, kicked off without care, one of them skidding toward the wall.I stayed there longer than necessary.When I finally pushed away from the door, my body protested immediately. My lower back was tight, my neck stiff, my jaw aching from hours of clenching. I rolled my shoulders once and winced, then exhaled slowly through my nose like I was trying to teach myself how to breathe again.“Okay,” I murmured to the empty apartment. “Okay, let’s do this.”Those words didn’t convince anyone.I fished my phone out of my coat pocket and scrolled without really looking, muscle memory taking over. When I saw Lois’s name, I didn’t hesitate. I hit call before I could sec
Last Updated: 2026-02-03
Chapter: Chapter 56Martin’s lawyer was the first to move.He cleared his throat once, sharply, then placed a firm hand on Martin’s arm. “We need a moment,” he said, not asking. “Privately if you don’t mind.”Martin jerked his arm slightly but didn’t pull away. His eyes landed on Alex, filled with visible anguish and hatred.Alex didn’t object. He didn’t even say a word or give a damn. He gestured toward the door with two fingers, relaxed, already done with the argument.I stayed seated by his side.My back was already hurting, my hands flat on the table now, fingertips pressing into the polished wood. I stared down at the grain, at a faint scratch near the edge, anywhere but at Martin as he shoved his chair back. The scrape was loud and violent.Martin stood abruptly, jaw tight, face flushed. He didn’t look at me as he stormed toward the door. His lawyer followed quickly, murmuring something low and urgent as he steered him into the hallway.The door shut behind them and no one around me flinched
Last Updated: 2026-02-02
Chapter: Chapter 55I knew there was something wrong with the conference room the moment I stepped inside it.For some strange reason I had been summoned yet again and ask to me in the conference which was too quiet that I could hear my own breathing in my ears. The long table in the room looked like it had just been polished a few minutes ago. It looked like the scene of a crime with how things were wiped down.Alex walked in beside me a few minutes later, his presence steady but restrained. He said nothing to me, not even a good morning and that was enough to let me know that he was still annoyed with how things had turned out. Our lawyer, Mr. Hart, moved ahead of us, before gesturing for all of us to sit “Good morning everyone,” Martin’s lawyer said after about an hour of waiting for him and Martin to arrive. “Forgive our tardiness.” “We’re here in the interest of resolving this matter privately, without unnecessary escalation.”“Privately,” Martin echoed, his eyes never leaving me. “Which is m
Last Updated: 2026-02-02
Chapter: BENDED KNEESThe eggs on Jessica’s plate had gone cold. She kept pushing them around with her fork, unable to bring herself to take a bite. Her eyes were puffy from barely sleeping. Every time she closed them, she heard Avery’s voice again in her head. “Grandpa said I’ll be spending more time here.”Janet reached across the small dining table and lightly touched her daughter’s hand.“Sweetheart… are you alright?”Jessica forced a smile that fooled no one. “I’m fine, Mom. Just tired.”Joseph looked up from his newspaper. “Did Ethan say something yesterday?” His voice was calm. He always knew when something was wrong.Jessica dropped her gaze. “It was… nothing.”Joseph frowned. “That didn’t sound like nothing.”Before she could answer, the doorbell rang.Jessica’s fork froze mid-air. Janet’s head snapped toward the hallway. Joseph stood, walked to the window, and peeked through the side curtain. He inhaled slowly.“It’s Ethan.”Jessica’s heart dropped. She wasn’t ready to socialise with th
Last Updated: 2025-11-26
Chapter: FEAR FILESThe families moved slowly toward the front doors of the Mitchell estate, the night air cool against their skin. The courtyard lights glowed warm and golden, softening the edges of everyone’s strained smiles.Avery clung to Jessica’s hand, swinging it as though the night had been nothing but fun. “Mommy, can we come back again?” she asked, half-asleep, half-excited.“We’ll see, sweetheart,” Jessica murmured, brushing a curl off her daughter’s forehead.Charles stepped forward. “Thank you again for coming, Jessica. It meant a lot to the family.”Jessica forced a polite smile. “Of course. It was… nice.”Eleanor hugged Avery tightly. “Goodbye, darling.”Avery giggled. “Bye Grandma! Bye, Grandpa!”William patted her back gently, leaning on his cane. “Sleep well, little one.”Ethan stood behind them, trying to look relaxed, but his fingers wouldn’t stop tapping against his thigh. Jessica noticed. She didn’t comment.She knelt, fixing Avery’s slightly crooked hair bow. “Say goodbye
Last Updated: 2025-11-25
Chapter: EXTENDED ROOTSThe Mitchell estate still had its tall windows glowing against the evening sky. Jessica stepped out of the car, smoothing the front of her dress while Avery clutched her hand tightly. The air smelled faintly of pine and wood polish which gave the environment an elegant, distant, and far too familiar scent. Ethan stood by the grand doorway, his hands tucked in his pockets, trying to look casual but looking every bit as nervous. Behind him stood his parents, Charles and Eleanor, and the man with a walking stick, William Mitchell.Ethan’s smile faltered, then steadied. “Hey, Jess. Thanks for coming.”Jessica felt Avery’s grip tighten. Joseph and Janet flanked her, both standing a little taller than usual.Charles stepped forward first, extending a hand to his friend Joseph. “Joseph, my old friend. It’s been a long time.”Joseph clasped it firmly, his voice low. “A very long time. The last time we met, our kids were tearing each other apart.”Charles’s jaw flexed, but his tone stayed
Last Updated: 2025-10-23
Chapter: LAKE COMOIt was late in the evening, and the house was quiet except for the annoying ticking of the clock in the living room. Avery was already asleep upstairs, after a long day of being a menace. Jessica sat curled on the couch with a mug of tea that had long gone cold, her laptop open but forgotten. The glow from the table lamp cast gentle shadows across the room, brushing over family photos on the shelf.She scrolled absently through old pictures of her and Avery in Italy, bundled in coats, laughing by the canals. Her chest tightened at the memory. The house felt too still, too heavy with what-ifs.Then came a knock at the door.Jessica frowned, glancing at the clock. 9:47 p.m.Her stomach sank knowing that hardly anyone visited at this hour. She reached for her phone, opened the security camera app, and froze.Ethan.He stood on the porch in his work clothes, tie loosened, sleeves rolled to his elbows. His hair was slightly tousled, his expression unreadable. For a brief moment, she
Last Updated: 2025-10-22
Chapter: STORM'S COMINGThe evening light slanted through the half-drawn curtains, drawing gold lines across Jessica’s bedroom wall. She sat on the edge of her bed, the cream envelope resting heavy on her lap like a decision she didn’t want to make. Her thumb kept tracing the raised letters of the Mitchell name, over and over, until the motion felt like punishment.The door creaked softly. Janet, her mother, stepped in, her voice low. “Still thinking about it?”Jessica didn’t look up. “Thinking, regretting, overthinking. It’s one of them or maybe all?”Janet smiled faintly and sat beside her, the mattress dipping slightly. “You’ve been staring at that thing for almost an hour.”Jessica sighed, setting the envelope aside. “I’m scared, Mom.”“Of what?” Janet asked gently.“Not the trip,” Jessica said in a quiet voice. “Of what it means if I say yes.” She picked at the corner of the envelope. “Every time I start trusting him again, he proves and gives me reasons why I shouldn’t.”Janet watched her daugh
Last Updated: 2025-10-09
Chapter: JINGLE BELLSThe hum of orchestral music filled the air in Jessica’s studio, was alive with colour, bolts of silk spilling over tables, the scent of fabric glue and coffee blending in the air. She leaned over her sketchpad, pencil gliding quickly as she murmured to her assistant, “Tell Maya to adjust the hemline by half an inch on this dress.”A knock followed almost instantly.“Ma’am,” her assistant said from the doorway, slightly breathless. “There’s a man here. He says his name is Mr Ethan Mitchell, and he is here to see you.”Jessica froze. Her pencil paused mid-stroke. “Did you say...?”“Yes, ma’am. Mr Mitchell.”A dozen emotions formed in her chest. “Goddamn it. Send him in,” she muttered, her tone cool, clipped.Ethan stepped inside, looking oddly out of place among all the pastels and chiffon hanging around. His suit was dark, his presence heavier than the air itself. “This is a nice setup, Griselda.” he mocked, scanning the mannequins and the photos pinned to the mood board. “You’ve
Last Updated: 2025-10-08
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