Chapter 7 – The Heiress in the Spotlight

The morning sunlight spilled across silk curtains, too bright, too golden. Liana stirred awake in a bed so vast it could have swallowed her entire apartment back in Victor’s penthouse. For a moment, she lay still, listening to the silence. No clattering from Miranda in the kitchen, no sharp voice demanding her obedience.

Just quiet.

And yet, the weight in her chest wouldn’t lift.

A knock sounded at the door. Before she could answer, it swung open. Dante bounded in, casual in a white T-shirt and joggers, holding two cups of coffee. “Rise and shine, princess.”

Liana blinked at him. “Princess?”

“You’d prefer ‘rockstar’s baby sister’?” he teased, plopping onto the edge of her bed like he belonged there. He handed her a steaming cup. “Hazelnut latte. I remembered you mentioned once you liked nutty flavors.”

Her lips parted. She hadn’t realized he’d been listening. “Thanks,” she murmured, wrapping her hands around the cup.

The warmth seeped into her palms, but it didn’t soothe her nerves. Her eyes flicked toward the window where, past the gardens, movement stirred beyond the gates.

Dante followed her gaze, his easy smile fading. “You saw them, didn’t you?”

“Reporters?”

“Like vultures.” His voice darkened, a rare seriousness threading through. “News broke overnight. They know the Carver heiress is back, and they want blood.”

Her stomach knotted. “But… I don’t even know if I’m really her yet.”

“You are.” His voice was firm, leaving no room for doubt.

The door opened again, and Leo stepped inside, his suit immaculate even at this hour. He held a tablet in one hand, eyes sharp as blades. “The media’s already outside. We’ll handle it.”

Liana tightened her grip on the cup. “Handle it how?”

“By controlling the narrative,” Leo said coolly. “The press can either crown you or crucify you. We’ll make sure it’s the former.”

Her chest constricted. Crown her? As if she were some royal on display?

Cassian appeared next, adjusting his cufflinks with quiet precision. “Leo is right. The media frenzy is inevitable. Hiding will only feed suspicion. We need to establish your identity, legally and publicly. Transparency will dismantle Victor’s leverage before he can exploit it.”

Liana’s heart skipped at the mention of her ex. “Victor…”

“He won’t dare touch you now,” Leo cut in, his voice like steel.

But she wasn’t so sure. Victor had never accepted defeat gracefully.

>>>>>

Outside the Carver gates, chaos reigned.

Dozens of reporters jostled against the barriers, cameras flashing, microphones thrust forward. Headlines screamed across every screen:

“Mystery Woman Claims Carver Bloodline!”

“Who Is Liana Carver?”

“Scandal or Salvation? Heiress Emerges After Decades Missing.”

The frenzy only worsened when the mansion doors opened.

Liana stood frozen at the top of the marble steps, Dante at her right, Cassian at her left, and Leo one step ahead like a general leading his army.

Her pulse hammered as a wave of shouts crashed against her.

“Miss Carver! Where have you been all these years?”

“Were you aware of your true identity?”

“Is it true you were married to Victor Hale?”

“Did he know who you really were?”

The questions stabbed like knives. Her throat went dry.

Then Leo’s voice thundered across the crowd, cold and commanding. “One question at a time.”

The reporters fell into uneasy silence under his glare. No one dared defy Leo Carver.

Cassian stepped forward, his calm voice carrying over the crowd. “Yes, Liana Carver is our sister. DNA testing confirms her identity beyond dispute. She was stolen from us as an infant and hidden under another name. We will not tolerate slander or exploitation of her past.”

The reporters erupted again, their pens flying.

Dante’s hand brushed hers, grounding her. When she dared glance at him, his smile was warm but fierce. “Don’t look at them,” he whispered. “Look at me.”

Her eyes clung to his as the cameras clicked wildly, capturing their closeness, their undeniable resemblance.

The flashes blurred her vision. Her body trembled, but she forced herself to straighten her spine. She wouldn’t let Victor—or anyone—see weakness.

Leo raised a hand, silencing the crowd again. “My sister has endured years of neglect and cruelty at the hands of people who had no right to her. That ends today. She is a Carver. Anyone who thinks otherwise will deal with us.”

The reporters gasped at the declaration.

Liana’s breath caught. Years of neglect. He wasn’t wrong. And yet hearing it spoken aloud, framed as injustice instead of her failure—it made her chest ache in a way she couldn’t name.

She swallowed hard, whispering only loud enough for her brothers to hear: “I don’t think I can do this.”

“You already are,” Cassian murmured, his steady presence at her side.

And Dante squeezed her hand under the glare of cameras.

>>>>>

Across town, Victor Hale watched the press conference from his penthouse, a vein pulsing in his temple. His fist slammed against the glass table, rattling the whiskey decanter.

“She parades around like she’s untouchable now?” he snarled.

Miranda smirked, sprawled across the couch in crimson silk. “She’s not untouchable. She’s just got big brothers with money.”

Victor’s lip curled. “Big brothers who’ll soon realize money can’t shield her from everything.”

He yanked open his laptop, pulling up confidential files. Contracts. Ledgers. Deals made in shadows.

Miranda leaned over his shoulder, her perfume sickly sweet. “What are you planning?”

A cruel smile twisted his mouth. “If she wants to play heiress, let’s see how she handles a scandal. One wrong whisper in the press, one doctored document—her shiny Carver name will be dragged through the mud.”

Miranda’s eyes glittered. “And when she falls, we’ll be there to finish her.”

Victor’s laugh was low and venomous. “Liana won’t survive without me. She’ll come crawling back.”

Back at the Carver estate, the brothers guided Liana inside, away from the flashing cameras.

Her knees buckled as the door shut behind them. She pressed a hand to her chest, struggling for air.

Dante caught her before she could stumble. “Easy. Breathe. You did amazing out there.”

Her laugh was brittle. “Amazing? I looked like I was about to faint.”

Cassian’s voice was steady, soothing in its logic. “You stood your ground. That’s more than enough for now.”

Leo’s gaze was sharp, measuring. “They’ll come harder next time. Be prepared.”

Liana’s eyes flicked to him, fear lacing her voice. “Next time?”

“Always,” Leo said simply. “You’re a Carver now. The spotlight won’t leave you. You either wield it… or let it destroy you.”

Her stomach sank. Could she really wield it?

Dante touched her wrist gently, grounding her again. “Don’t worry. We’ll teach you.”

She looked at each of them—Leo’s ruthless certainty, Cassian’s calm strategy, Dante’s warm protectiveness. For the first time, she realized they weren’t just shields. They were weapons. And now, so was she.

But even as the thought flickered, her phone buzzed in her pocket.

A message from an unknown number.

Her blood froze as she read the words:

“Did you think being a Carver will save you? I know your secrets, Liana. And soon, so will everyone else.”

Her fingers went numb. The phone slipped from her hand.

The brothers caught the look on her face instantly.

“What is it?” Leo demanded.

She lifted her trembling gaze. “He knows…”