005

Lily’s POV.

The last chord of the waltz faded, my skin still warm where Diego’s hand had rested.

The ballroom’s silence rushed back in, hundreds of eyes tracking us, but I kept my chin up. I wasn’t anyone's prey. Not anymore.

Diego guided me toward the VIP table by the stage.

Frank sat there already, looking like he’d swallowed glass, his knuckles white around his drink.

“Ah, our table,” Diego said mildly.

He pulled out my chair, sat beside me, entirely unconcerned that this table had been reserved for one of the company’s largest investors.

“How are they sitting there?” a woman whispered behind us. “Wasn’t that the logistics chairman’s seat?”

I glanced at Diego. A faint smirk from him answered the question. The logistics chairman owed him a debt that could sink his entire family, and Diego liked nothing better than a vulnerability he could exploit, which was exactly what he did.

I knew the feeling. I’d bore the brunt of the two years ago 

“How are you holding up, sweetheart?” Diego asked, his hand settling over mine on the table warmly. This was entirely for show.

If I hadn’t known better, I might have believed it.

“I’m fine,” I murmured, leaning into him. “Better than fine.”

Across the table, a sharp crack rang out. Frank’s glass, slammed down hard enough to chip the base. His face had gone rigid with jealousy, watching the woman he’d tried to destroy sit as an equal, protected by the brother he hated most.

“You don’t belong here, Lily,” Frank hissed. “This is a place for the elite. Not ghosts.”

“You’d better find yourself an exorcist, then,” I said, sipping my water. “Because I’m not going anywhere.”

Movement caught my eye. Richard, slipping through the double doors toward the private balconies, as he threw one last look back at the room.

My stomach turned over.

The man who’d helped bury my mother’s memory was running.

“Excuse me,” I said to Diego.

He didn’t stop me. He gave my hand a firm, grounding squeeze instead. “Don’t stay in the cold too long.”

I followed Richard out. The night hit hard after the ballroom’s warmth, wind pulling at my skirt.

He stood at the railing, a cigarette burning between his fingers.

“Figured you’d come find your stepfather eventually,” he said without turning.

“You are nothing but a leech, Richard,” I said. “Don’t use that title with me again.”

He turned slowly, exhaling smoke into the dark, sizing up the damage.

“You’re emotional, Lily. You always have been — just like your mother.” He raised his hands, playing at peace. “What happened two years ago, it had to happen. If you’d just listen to reason, we could find a way to settle this. Protect what your mother built. Live together, happily.”

“Settle this?” A short, disbelieving laugh tore out of me. “You ruined me. You called me a thief. You let Frank choke me half to death. And you think we can settle this?”

“Be smart,” Richard said, his warmth dropping away. “What exactly are you going to do? Expose us? Look around. We control the narrative.”

“I’m going to take back everything that belongs to my mother,” I said, stepping closer despite the cold. “I’m going to strip you of your wealth, your status, your freedom. I’m going to make you suffer, Richard.”

His face contorted.

“You stupid girl,” he growled, lunging. “I should’ve let Frank finish you at that hotel!”

I stumbled back, heels catching on stone, the iron railing hard against my spine. Below me, nothing but a very long drop.

A shadow stepped between us before he closed the distance.

Relief hit me so hard my knees nearly went. Diego is here.

He stood like a wall, blocking Richard from view entirely.

“That’s close enough,” he said. Not loud — but the temperature of the night seemed to drop another few degrees anyway.

Richard froze, eyes darting to Diego’s fists, and stepped back, finally recognizing what he was standing in front of.

“We’re leaving,” Diego said, not looking away from Richard.

I slipped my hand into his arm and let him walk me away without a backward glance at the man still standing there in the cold.

We crossed the ballroom the same way we’d entered — the crowd parting, the tension thick enough to cut.

At the lobby, waiting for the valet, I leaned against a marble pillar and breathed for what felt like the first time all night.

“We kept them on their toes tonight.”

“We did,” Diego said, satisfaction glinting in his eyes. He liked trouble the way most people liked good weather. “Frank won’t sleep a wink. He’ll be waiting for the blade to drop.”

My clutch buzzed.

I assumed a notification. It wasn’t.

A text from a restricted number. My thumb shook as I opened it, memory of two years ago crawling up my spine.

So you’re back on the chessboard after all. 👑

Every drop of warmth left my body.

It wasn’t Frank.

It wasn’t Richard.

Someone else had been watching this whole time.