Chapter 17: Lines Drawn

The world seemed to tilt, the study shrinking around them as the weight of Grayson’s words settled like a storm cloud. The press had the documents. All of Harrison’s forged clauses, the manipulated contracts, the timing discrepancies, the fraudulent signatures. Everything.

And now the world , or at least every ruthless financial journalist in St. Louis , would feast on it.

Savannah felt her breath falter. “How fast?” she whispered.

Grayson exhaled shakily. “They’re publishing now.”

The air snapped.

Jackson moved first. Not with panic, but with the cold precision of a man whose entire world was built on staying ahead of disaster. He strode across the room and locked the office door.

“No one comes in,” he said. “No calls. No interruptions unless it’s life or death.”

Grayson nodded tightly. “Already instructed the staff.”

Savannah remained near the desk, her fingers gripping the wooden edge. She felt like she was standing on an invisible fault line, bracing for a quake. Her heart thumped with a rhythm that was almost painful.

“Show me,” Jackson demanded.

Grayson handed over the tablet. The screen lit up with a breaking-news headline that stole the air from Savannah’s lungs:

STERLING EMPIRE UNDER FIRE: SECRET TRUST CLAUSES EXPOSED

A photo of Jackson accompanied it , sharp jaw, cold eyes, the very picture of a fallen king.

Savannah’s name appeared in the second paragraph.

> Sources suggest the sudden marriage of Jackson Sterling to Savannah Montgomery may be tied to the fraudulent trust clause…

Her stomach twisted.

“They’re dragging me into it,” she whispered.

Jackson’s posture went rigid. “Of course they are. You’re part of the contract.”

Savannah pressed a trembling hand to her chest. “But they’re saying I was involved, that I’m part of the fraud, ”

“You aren’t,” Jackson snapped. And then softer, “You’re not.”

She lifted her eyes to him, and what she saw wasn’t reassurance. It was fury , not at her, but at the world that dared to use her name.

“Jackson,” Grayson said cautiously, “Harrison planted the files. The leak is deliberate. He knew the clause would collapse under scrutiny, so he made Savannah the scapegoat.”

Savannah froze.

“The scapegoat?” she repeated, voice barely a sound.

Grayson swallowed. “If the narrative shifts to blame you , the ‘desperate woman from nowhere’, he can protect his reputation while making Jackson look incompetent. And he destabilizes the board’s confidence.”

Savannah staggered back a step.

“So he’s trying to ruin me,” she whispered.

Jackson’s voice went deadly quiet. “He’s trying to ruin us.”

The floor felt unsteady beneath her. A week ago, she had been a woman fighting for her home. Now she was in the heart of a corporate war she never asked for.

“Savannah.” Jackson’s voice broke through the panic spiraling in her chest. She met his eyes. Something burned behind them , rage, yes, but also… fear? “You are not their target. You are their excuse.”

“But my father, ” Her voice cracked. “His care, his stability, ”

“He will be safe,” Jackson said firmly.

“How?” she demanded. “How can you promise that when everything is falling apart?”

His jaw clenched. “Because I won’t let the world touch him. Or you.”

Her breath trembled out. “Jackson… this marriage was business for you. I get that. But my family, ”

“Is now under my protection,” he finished. “Contract or not.”

Savannah’s chest twisted. She didn’t know whether to believe him , or to be terrified by how badly she wanted to.

Before she could respond, the intercom buzzed sharply.

A servant’s voice shook through the speaker. “Sir… Harrison Sterling is here. And he’s demanding an audience.”

Savannah felt the blood drain from her face.

Jackson’s expression darkened into something lethal. “He would.”

Grayson stepped forward. “Jackson, don’t, he’s here to provoke you.”

“I’m well aware,” Jackson replied coldly.

Savannah reached out without thinking, fingers brushing Jackson’s arm. “Don’t go alone.”

His eyes softened a fraction , the smallest fracture in his armor , before he covered her hand with his.

“I’m not leaving you,” he said.

And he didn’t.

He took Savannah’s hand and opened the study door. The air in the corridor felt charged, the house itself holding its breath.

Harrison Sterling waited at the end of the hall.

Savannah had seen him before, but never like this. Rage etched every line on his face, stark and dangerous. His gray suit was immaculate, but his eyes burned with a fury that made Savannah instinctively step closer to Jackson.

Harrison’s gaze landed on her first.

“So,” he sneered, “the wife shows her face.”

Jackson stepped between them. “Watch your mouth.”

Harrison’s smile was razor-sharp. “I will speak however I please. You brought this disgrace into my company.”

Savannah’s pulse spiked. “I didn’t do anything, ”

“You existed,” Harrison cut in. “That was enough.”

Jackson surged forward, but Savannah grabbed his wrist. “Don’t,” she whispered.

His father laughed. “Look at you , letting a girl from the gutters leash you.”

Jackson’s voice dropped to a tone Savannah had never heard. “Say that again.”

Harrison stepped closer. “You’ve embarrassed this family. You broke the trust terms. And now the world sees you for what you are , weak.”

Savannah braced for Jackson’s rage. But what happened next froze her.

Harrison turned his cold fury on Savannah.

“You,” he hissed, “ruined my son.”

Savannah’s breath caught. “I didn’t, ”

“You did. With your hospital bills and your debt and your pathetic sob story. You think I don’t know? You think I didn’t see the documents?”

Her heart stopped.

He was right , he had seen them. Her father’s discharge papers. The bills. Her address. Her debt. All of it.

“You are a liability,” Harrison continued. “A stain on our name.”

Savannah’s vision blurred.

Jackson moved in front of her so fast it was a blur. “You don’t speak to her like that.”

Harrison scoffed. “Oh? And what are you going to do? You’ve already lost the company.”

“Not yet.”

“You think a marriage to some starving artist from Arizona is going to save you?” Harrison stepped closer, face inches from his son’s. “You have no power. No leverage. Nothing.”

Savannah’s pulse hammered.

Jackson’s jaw flexed. “You’re wrong.”

“Am I?” Harrison’s voice turned cruel. “You don’t even know what she’s capable of.”

Savannah froze. “What do you mean?”

Harrison’s eyes glittered with triumph.

“She signed the contract amendment.”

Savannah felt her knees weaken. “What amendment?”

Jackson spun to her. “Savannah , don’t answer.”

Harrison grinned. “Oh, she already answered. With her signature.”

Savannah shook her head violently. “No , I didn’t, ”

“Yes,” Harrison said. “This afternoon. When you received that pretty picture of your father, you didn’t hesitate. You signed the amendment immediately.”

Savannah’s pulse exploded. “No , that wasn’t, I didn’t, ”

But then it hit her.

She had replied. She had opened the attachment. She had pressed “confirm” without reading when panic overtook her.

Her breath left her in a painful rush.

A trap.

A beautifully crafted, devastating trap.

Jackson turned back to her, eyes dark with disbelief and something like heartbreak. “Savannah… tell me he’s lying.”

“I, I didn’t mean to,” she whispered. “I thought it was hospital paperwork, I didn’t know!”

Harrison’s victory was palpable. “And with your signature, my dear, you voided the marriage protections. You gave me the company back.”

Savannah swayed.

Jackson caught her before she fell.

“Savannah,” he whispered urgently, “look at me.”

But she couldn’t.

Her vision dimmed.

She had destroyed everything.

Jackson’s father smiled coldly. “Thank you, daughter-in-law. You were useful after all.”

Jackson’s roar shook the hall.

“GET OUT.”

But Harrison only laughed.

“You can’t protect her now,” he said softly. “You can’t protect any of it.”

Then he walked away.

Savannah clung to Jackson’s shirt, tears slipping silently down her cheeks.

“I didn’t mean to,” she whispered, shaking. “Jackson… I swear… I didn’t know.”

And for the first time since she’d met him, Jackson Sterling looked truly afraid.

“Savannah,” he breathed, pulling her close, “listen to me.”

His voice shook.

“We are not losing. Not yet.”

But Savannah heard the tremor beneath his certainty.

She had no idea how much she had just cost him.

Or how far he would go to take everything back.