CHAPTER 5: FOUR YEARS LATER

OPRAH’S POV

FOUR YEARS LATER

“Oprah, the new collection contracts are ready for your signature,” Vivian, my personal assistant, said as she placed the documents on my desk.

“Leave them,” I replied, my eyes still fixed on the screen.

“The Voss line is already gaining attention.”

“It should,” I said calmly. “I don’t release anything that doesn’t dominate the market.”

Call it pride or arrogance, I didn’t care. I believed in myself. It was that belief that made me who I was today, the CEO of Voss Jewellery, the largest jewellery company in London.

“And the private client from Europe?” she asked.

I finally looked up.

“Double the price.”

Vivian scoffed before quickly composing herself.

I ignored her reaction and returned to my work. It wasn’t the first time she had looked at me like that, and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

“Is there another issue, Vivian?” I asked, pausing mid-sentence as I turned to her.

“I… it’s about the launch of the new rare ring, Oprah.”

I sighed, my heart sinking slightly.

“Must we do the launch in America?”

I was already on my feet, my hand pressed against my chest.

If there was one place I had sworn never to return to, it was America.

Four years. Four years away from the place I once called home. The same place that betrayed me and my son before he was even born.

Zarek.

I paused at the thought of him.

In just four years, he had grown into a smart, intelligent, and dangerously charming little boy.

“We don’t have another choice,” Vivian said, clutching her clipboard tightly. “America is where our main branch is.”

“I know.” I exhaled slowly.

It was true.

I had built Voss Jewellery in London, but in the same year, I established a branch in America. Quietly. Carefully. No one knew who the real owner was.

To them, the owner was just a mysterious, incredibly wealthy woman no one had ever seen.

Except for the executive director who reported directly to me.

And the vice president.

Zarek.

My son.

The reason I worked harder than I ever thought possible. The reason I refused to fail, even when the world tried to bury me alive.

I swallowed hard.

And somehow, that branch had become the most successful among all seven worldwide.

Fate had a twisted sense of humor.

“And ma’am,” Vivian called softly, pulling me back.

“Your loyal clients specifically requested something unique.”

I closed my eyes briefly.

This was the third time she had reminded me.

“Why not send Tonny?” I asked, my voice lower now, betraying my discomfort.

“What better way to show the one person who thought he broke you… that you came back stronger?”

The voice came from the doorway.

Deep. Calm. Commanding.

I turned.

And there he was.

Alexander.

The air in the room shifted the moment he stepped in. Not loudly, not dramatically, but enough to remind anyone present that power did not need to announce itself.

It simply existed.

Alexander Voss. My brother. My savior.

“Oh,” I smiled, waving Vivian away.

She left reluctantly, her gaze lingering on him a second too long. I caught it and smirked, throwing him a teasing wink.

“Look who finally left his office,” I said as he approached and kissed my cheek, as he always did.

“I see my workaholic sister is still glued to her desk,” he replied.

I leaned back against the desk, already knowing I wouldn’t get any work done now.

Four years ago, when I was broken, bleeding, and left to die, Alexander was the one who found me and thought me worth of loving and saving.

“Says the man who barely sleeps,” I shot back.

He rolled his eyes.

“I told you that’s a woman’s habit.”

I rolled mine right back, but the moment I looked at him again, the teasing faded.

He was watching me. Not casually. Not playfully.

Seriously.

“I’m proud of you, sis,” he said quietly.

The words hit harder than I expected.

“I’m proud of the woman you’ve become.”

He stepped closer, gently brushing a strand of hair behind my ear.

I didn’t tie my hair anymore. I let it fall freely now.

I wasn’t that girl anymore.

“Thank you,” I whispered, my voice softer than I intended.

“No one has ever said that to me before.”

Emotion rose in my chest, but I forced it down. I wasn’t going to cry.

“Then we’ve all failed you,” he said.

He turned toward my desk, but I moved toward the window instead.

“I didn’t have a choice,” I said quietly. “I had to survive. For Zarek.”

I was about to lose myself in the past when my phone rang.

“Miss Voss, you need to come immediately.”

I froze.

The number.

Zarek’s principal.

“What did he do this time?” I muttered under my breath before answering. “Is my son okay?”

My heart pounded.

“No, nothing is wrong,” the principal said slowly. “But… are you certain he is four years old?”

I closed my eyes.

Not again.

In one year alone, I had moved Zarek through ten different schools.

Every single one said the same thing.

They weren’t equipped for him.

A four-year-old who questioned teachers. A child who once exposed a teacher involved in a serious crime.

And somehow, he had even contributed to the design of my rarest ring.

“Just come, please,” the principal said before hanging up.

I lowered the phone.

“Not again,” Alexander said, though I could see the amusement in his eyes.

“I told you to stop encouraging him,” I said, grabbing my bag and heading for the door.

“We’re going together,” he said, stopping me.

“At least now we can discuss launching the Eclipse Ring while the genius is occupied.”

I sighed.

Arguing with Alexander was pointless.

*******

“We’re sorry, ma’am, but we don’t have the facilities or teachers to handle your son.”

I looked from the teacher to Zarek.

He smiled at me, that innocent smile with the single dimple on his left cheek.

The same smile he used when he wanted to get away with something.

“Which school is left now?” I muttered.

“Maybe Uncle Alex knows,” Zarek said, turning to him with raised brows.

Alexander went still for a moment, then looked at me.

“What about the Great Shifter Academy?”

I stopped walking.

Not again.

The Great Shifter Academy was not just any school. It was designed for young wolves, training them in both normal education and advanced intellectual and supernatural disciplines.

It was the only place Zarek would truly fit.

And it was in America.

It seemed I had exhausted all my options.