登入Three hours earlier—Gunfire shattered the rear windshield of Brian’s SUV.“Move!” his security driver shouted.Another vehicle slammed into them from the left. Brian grabbed the steering wheel as the driver lost control momentarily. Two more shots rang out. Everything was professional and controlled. Not random street violence.“Who the hell sent them?” the guard barked into his earpiece.Brian’s expression turned cold as he checked Daphne’s dead phone signal again. This was never about him. It was a distraction and somewhere across the city, someone was moving the child.—The emergency board meeting started at 8:00 a.m.By 8:07, Vincent Carter was publicly stripped of operational authority. The entire room exploded.“You can’t do this,” Vincent snapped, rising from his seat.Daphne remained calm at the head of the table.“Actually,” she said, sliding the signed proxy documents forward, “I already did.”Murmurs spread instantly. Board Member Chen adjusted his glasses shakily. “Miss
Brian's POVThe first call came from Rumbidzai. The second came from the board. The third came from the hospital.Brian ignored all three.He stood inside the underground parking garage of Morrison Global, watching security footage replay on his phone. A black SUV had followed Daphne for twelve minutes before disappearing near the east bridge. It couldn't have been random. It was too clean. Someone was escalating.“Sir.” His head of security approached carefully. “We traced the plates. They were registered under a shell company connected to Carter Holdings.”Brian’s jaw tightened. It was Vincent. Or someone framing Vincent. Neither option helped.His phone buzzed again. Rumbidzai. This time, he answered. “You’re avoiding me,” she said immediately.“You threatened me yesterday.”“I warned you.” Her tone sharpened. “There’s a difference.”Brian leaned against the hood of his car. “What do you want?”“A future.”“You should’ve thought about that before using a pregnancy as leverage.”Si
Daphne's POVI didn't warn people before I moved against them. Warnings gave people time and Vincent had had enough of that already.—“Finalize the numbers,” I told the legal team.The woman across from me hesitated. “You want the full acquisition pushed through today?”“Yes.”“There’ll be resistance.”“I’m counting on it.”She nodded once and slid the final documents across the table. I signed without rereading them. I had already made the decision days ago.Carter Holdings. Vincent’s real source of power. Not the position he held in my company. Not the title. The company behind it. The one he thought was untouchable.Not anymore.By noon, the market started reacting. Quietly at first. Then movements, shifts. Buying pressure. Then the calls began. Executives. Investors. People trying to figure out who was swallowing shares that fast. No one was going to get answers. Not yet.—I was in the middle of a finance briefing when my office door opened. Hard. Vincent walked in. No permissio
Rumbidzai didn't rush. She waited until everything was unstable. Until pressure built from all sides. Then she stepped in.—Brian didn't expect her. That was the point. She was already in his office when he walked in. She was calmly sitting in his chair. Like she belonged there. He stopped and closed the door behind him.“You shouldn’t be here.”She smiled slightly. “And yet.”A pause.Then she stood up slowly. “You’ve been busy,” she said. “Things are falling apart.”“Say what you came to say.”She tilted her head. Direct, good she thought. “I’m pregnant.”Silence.There was no reaction at first.Then—Brian studied her carefully. “How far?”“Two weeks.”That was enough. It was too close to deny. Too precise to ignore.His gaze sharpened. “This isn’t the place—”“No,” she cut in softly. “This is exactly the place.”She walked closer. Not too close. Just enough.“You don’t get to push this aside like everything else.”“I’m not pushing anything aside.”“You are,” she said. “You’re ju
Vincent didn't wait, he didn't call either. He walked straight into Brian’s office and shut the door hard enough to get attention.“What did you do?”Brian didn't look up immediately.That alone set Vincent off.“What. Did. You. Do?” Vincent repeated, stepping closer.Brian set the file in his hand aside. “You’ll need to be more specific.”Vincent laughed once. No humor in it.“Don’t do that. Not now.” He pointed toward the door. “She just sat in that room and turned everything upside down without saying a single name—and somehow I’m the only one taking the hit.”“You had exposure,” Brian said. “You created risk.”“I created?” Vincent stepped closer. “This was your plan.”Brian’s gaze lifted. Steady. “Lower your voice.”“No,” Vincent snapped. “You don’t get to control this part.”A beat.“You dragged me into this,” Vincent continued. “You said it was contained. You said she’d stay exactly where we put her.”Brian didn't answer. Vincent exhaled sharply, running a hand over his face.“S
Daphne's POV I didn't confront either of them again. I didn't want to, atleast not immediately. That would be a reaction, and I was done reacting. I moved...quietly. “Schedule a board meeting,” I told my assistant.“Today?”“Yes.”“Agenda?”“I’ll handle it.”—I didn't give out any details. I didn't need to because by the time the message reached them, they would both show up. They always did. I took my time getting ready. I didn't want to feel rushed or distracted. I wanted to do everything deliberately. Everything about this needed to be controlled.By the time I walked into the boardroom, they were already there. Vincent was at the far end, watching. Trying to read something that was not being shown.Brian was closer, he was just standing still. He didn't sit until I did. Good I thought to myself. I took my seat at the head of the table and set my tablet down. I didn't look at either of them first before I got started. “Let’s begin,” I said.The room settled. All the executive







