ログインJeffery’s POVThe night air bit into my skin, sharp and cold, but that was nothing to the ache inside my chest. And so I waited, hiding in the darkened angles of the old garden – the one place where we came when we needed a reprieve from the corporate wars and the weight of family responsibilities.I hadn't seen her in days.Not since the scandal exploded across headlines like a grenade. RICHARDS' HEIR ACCUSED IN CORPORATE COVER-UP. JONES IMPLICATED IN OFFSHORE PAYOUTS.Bullshit. All of it.But the truth no longer mattered in a world hooked on spectacle.When she finally emerged from the trees, I held my breath. Her coat was wrapped closely around her curvy frame, her head down, and her hair hidden beneath a scarf. She was nothing but a shadow as she moved through the darkness, but she was the only thing I saw.Cassie"I stepped out. "You came."Her eyes met mine. Glassy, guarded. "You said it was safe.""I made sure."She hesitated before closing the final distance between us, stoppi
Cassie’s POVTo be honest, I had no idea what to expect when I knocked on my mother's door – maybe another polite brushing-off, a warm smile concealing whatever she truly felt. Certainly not this: the sudden paleness of her face when she heard me say the name Edward Richards.She did not invite me in right away. Merely stood there in her bathrobe, blinking as though the name had opened a vault she had boarded up long ago."I need answers," I said softly. "I think you've been hiding something. Something about Edward. About why Celine mentioned you."That did it. Her hand shook slightly as she opened the door.Inside, the house smelled of cinnamon and old secrets. The kettle sat steaming on the stove, untouched, and the sunlight poured through half-drawn curtains to throw long shadows across the hardwood floor. I sat down at the kitchen table to watch her."You always said you worked for a law firm in Paris when you were younger," I said. "Was it... for Edward?"She didn't answer right
Cassie’s POVThe news highlights broke just after 6:00 a.m.BREAKING: Richards Empire Implodes in Scandal – Internal Corruption, Offshore Coverups, and Executive Fraud Allegations Rock R.R. Conglomerate.I blinked at the glowing screen on my phone, the coffee in my hand trembling. The words were blurry, unreal. But they were everywhere -CNN, BBC, even tabloids that usually cared more about celebrity breakups than billion-dollar scandals.Jeffery hadn't called. He hadn't even texted.I slid out of bed in a daze, the early sunlight casting sharp lines through the curtains of the penthouse we now shared. My heart pounded like a war drum in my chest. This wasn't just a story anymore; this was our lives being pulled apart by invisible hands and broadcast for the world to devour.When I entered the kitchen, Jeffery was already there. He looked like hell - his shirt half-buttoned, dark circles beneath his eyes, hair mussed from hours of pulling at it.He didn't look up."You saw it," I said
Jeffery’s POVI never thought breaking into my father's estate would happen to me, certainly not like this. Not with my heart hammering away in my ears and Cassie accompanying me, her flashlight held tightly in her fist like a weapon.A thick dust and history hung in the air, and something cold - betrayal.There had been no sound from the Richards' estate for months now. Nobody has come to this place since Edward was moved to a private care facility outside the city. This former majestic house now resembled a tomb. Dust trailed down its high windows like mourning robes. The floor creaked like bones."Are you sure it's here?" Cassie asked, her voice low.I nodded. "My dad was paranoid, too. He had a vault room hidden behind his library. Only I and his lawyer knew about it. The media never caught on to it."Cassie's gaze darted to me. "Let's make sure it stays that way," she said.We moved quickly, past the grand staircase. Through the study. Until we reached the mahogany door hidden be
Cassie’s POVThe tension between us was the most audible thing in the room.Jeffery's eyes had never left the printout in his hands, his jaw clenched like granite. The soft hiss of paper advancing was deafening. I stood on the opposite side of the room, my arms crossed, my heart pounding loud enough to ricochet off the walls of glass surrounding us.He looked up at last, and the flicker in his gaze told me everything: he'd seen something he didn't expect to see."What is it?" I asked, moving closer.He paused and then slid the paper across the desk."My father… he paid them off,"My stomach churned.The document was a list of wire transfers: large sums of money transferred to various overseas accounts. Each name was assigned a tag: "Settlement– Paris operation." There were at least six of these. And one of them…. Had Nathan Kent's name beside it.I swallowed hard. "So Celine was right?""She was… but not completely." Jeffery rubbed his temples. "Nathan's death was an accident, but my
Cassie’s POVThe wind off the docks was sharp, cutting through my coat like it held a grudge. I waited at Dock 9, just as she said to do at midnight. Complete darkness, with no other person to be found around. Just the lapping waves from below, along with distant horns from different parts of the city. I wasn't sure what frightened me more - what I was about to hear, or Jeff's response to finding out I'd come alone.A shadow appeared from behind a shipping container."Cassie?" came the raspy woman's voiceI turned to face her. A lean figure slipped into the light of the moon. She was sixtyish, her skin like pleated paper, wrapped in a coat too big for her shoulders. Her eyes were sunken, yet full of life, with something fierce about them... something broken."I wasn't sure you'd come," she said."Who are you?"'They called me Marta. Once.' She held out a shaking hand. 'But I'm not the one you need to hear from.'Before I could ask, she motioned to the dark corners. Another man appeare







