Mag-log inThe three of them lay on the bed, Ethan tucked between his parents."Mummy." Ethan turned his face up to Elena, his eyes shining bright. "I want you to read me a bedtime story.""Alright, baby." Elena sat up and smoothed his hair back from his forehead. "Let me get one from your room."She slid off the bed, walked to the door and pulled it closed behind her.The moment it clicked shut.She pressed one hand flat against her chest and stood in the corridor, breathing. A long exhale that she had been holding for longer than she realised. Being that close to him, in that room, it took her a lot of effort to appear as unbothered as she had been.She stood there for a while, then walked to Ethan's room.She selected a book from the small shelf above his bed, tucking it under her arm. Then she returned to the room. She opened the door, and climbed back onto the bed, settling against the headboard with Ethan laying to her side.She opened the book.In a town, there lived a fleet of race cars.
Damien stood and watched them.He watched Ethan's laugh and Elena's smile and the way she shifted him to a more comfortable position on her hip without interrupting either the kisses or the tickling. He watched with a smile.He reached over and took her free hand.Elena looked at him, she did not pull away. She let him lead her.He walked them inside, and she followed without a word.The butler appeared in the hallway the moment the front door opened.Damien looked at him.The butler reconsidered. He stepped back and turned back.Damien led them up the stairs, Ethan still on Elena's hip, her hand still in his. When they turned down the corridor, Elena realised where the direction they were headed.Damien stopped in front of his bedroom. Elena tried breaking free from his hold.Damien's expression did something unexpected, his eyes softened, his mouth shifted into a pout. He looked at her with wide puppy eyes.Elena chuckled at the sight of Damien making a baby face to get what he want
Damien stood in front of him and looked at him for a moment. The guard brought a chair and set it down. Damien sat on it, leaning forward slightly.He reached for the sack cloth.Jules stepped forward immediately. "Sir. I strongly advise against that."Damien's hand did not stop. He pulled it off, ignoring Jules.The man's eyes took several seconds to adjust, blinking severally. His face, fully visible now, was worse than the rest of him. Both eyes were swollen, one nearly shut entirely. His nose had been broken. His lips were cracked and pale.He squinted, trying to make out the figure in front of him.Damien reached forward and took a handful of the man's hair. He tilted the man's face upward until their eyes met."George Sterling."George blinked."The next time you think about laying your hands on my wife," Damien said, his voice low, "it will be the last time you ever make use of those hands." He held his gaze. "I hope this past week has taught you enough."He released him. Georg
Damien noticed the other figure in the room. Ryan, Emilia's eldest son, standing near the window with his arms folded, trying to look like his presence was coincidental."Hey, cous." Ryan offered it with a half smile."Let's skip the greetings." Damien did not look at him for long. "I'm sure your mother has already briefed you on what she did."Ryan's smile disappeared from his face almost immediately. "Do you have proof that my mum was responsible? Because walking in here and making accusations …..""I didn't mention any names," Damien said.Ryan paused."Your presence here is proof enough.""I came to see my mother at her place of work. That is not proof of anything."Damien turned slightly and looked at Jules.Jules stepped forward, opened the briefcase on the edge of the desk, and brought out a thick folder and a small voice recorder. He set both in front of Ryan without a word and stepped back.Ryan picked up the folder. He opened it. He turned pages slowly, his eyes moving acros
The man at the hotel room sat deeply focused. He had been watching the press conference on his laptop, sipping on a glass of red wine.Just as the news showed Damien walking off the podium after making his statement, he crushed the wine glass he held in his hand, the wine glass cut him badly, blood trickled down his hand from the injury.The woman with him in the room rushed to him quickly, her face filled with panic."What have you done?" She reached for his hand, already seeing the blood pouring out, running in thin lines between his fingers. "You have hurt yourself." She grabbed a cloth from the table and pressed it to his hand. "Let me see it, let me ….."He pulled his hand away."I'm fine.""You are not fine, you are bleeding …..""I said I am fine." His voice was not loud, but it closed the conversation completely.She stepped back.He stood and reached for his phone. The screen lit up before he could unlock it.It was boldly written ‘Mum’.He stared at the name for one second,
The side door opened for the second time.The room changed immediately, the one person everyone had been waiting for finally arrived. Conversations died mid-sentence, cameras shifted to him.Damien Carrington walked in.He had changed into a new set of clothes from what he wore at the airport. His hair was neat, brushed back with a clean precision. He wore a charcoal grey suit, it was tailored to his size. His tie was a deep navy, pinned with a small silver clip. His shoes were dark and polished. He looked in every measurable way, like a man who had not been affected one bit by the video.That was the point.He walked to the podium without rushing. When he reached the microphone, he adjusted it slightly, lowering it to suit his height, tapped it twice, and looked up.For a moment, the room became rowdy, the reporters scrambled to take a good shot. It was not every time the Carrington had scandals, for some of them present in the room it would be a life changing experience for themDam
The news Patricia heard stunned her.Patricia froze. "What? When?""She took them," George continued nervously. "All of them."Patricia clenched her fists, gripping the edge of George's desk. "What is that bitch up to? She's looking for something.""Did she say what?" George's voice was shaking sli
As Damien's car approached the Blackwood family, passing through the familiar tree-lined drive of his childhood.The mansion loomed ahead, and Damien steeled himself for the confrontation to come. His mother would want answers. His father would demand explanations. Amira would probably make inappro
Back at E Atelier, the conference room buzzed with low conversations. The space was designed to intimidate—floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city, a massive glass table surrounded by leather chairs, walls adorned with her mother's original fashion sketches. Everything in this room was meant
Elena gently extracted herself from Ethan’s embrace, careful not to wake him again. She pressed a soft kiss to his forehead before slipping out of the race car bed.As she walked down the hallway toward her own room, she spotted Bernard's familiar figure at the end of the corridor, supervising a ma







