Ch 5

"Slamming these offers down on their desks and tell them the Vance Group is not for sale!"

The heavy thud of documents striking solid mahogany shattered the tense morning silence of Julian’s office. He stood behind his desk, eyes bloodshot, shirt rumpled, patience frayed to breaking point. Before him, the firm’s three senior lawyers kept their heads bowed, faces pale—daring not to meet the gaze of their teetering CEO.

"We cannot outright refuse, Mr. Vance," one lawyer spoke, voice trembling. "Blackwood Capital seized 38% of our public shares overnight. If they secure the remaining minority stakes this morning, they become the controlling shareholder—with full legal authority to overhaul the entire board of directors."

Julian gripped the edge of his desk until his knuckles blanched white. Three years he had fortified his business empire, burying himself in relentless work to outrun the crushing guilt he carried for Clara. Now this woman—Clarissa Blackwood—had arrived with the full weight of her financial power, ready to dismantle everything he had built in a matter of hours.

Suddenly his office door swung open without a knock.

Clarissa stepped inside, her presence a striking blend of graceful elegance and quiet menace. She wore an ivory tailored blazer that contrasted sharply against the sleek black silk blouse beneath it. Behind her, two international legal counsel and her personal assistant followed, carrying bound cases of documents.

"You may leave," Clarissa commanded calmly, addressing Julian’s lawyers.

Without waiting for Julian’s consent, the men gathered their papers and hurried out—overwhelmed by the undeniable, commanding aura radiating from her.

The vast office was now left to just the two of them: separated by the massive wooden desk and an uncrossable chasm of heartbreak and resentment.

"It is incredibly rude to enter my office without permission, Clarissa," Julian said, forcing his tone to remain steady even as his chest burned with turmoil.

Clarissa walked unhurriedly to the leather chair across from his desk and sat, crossing her legs with effortless poise. "Your office? Perhaps for now. But once the stock market closes this afternoon, this space could very well belong to me, Mr. Vance."

Julian clenched his fists on the desk and leaned forward, closing the distance. "Why are you doing this, Clara? If you seek revenge for that night—take my life! Do not resort to these underhanded tactics to destroy everything I have worked so hard to build!"

Clarissa held his gaze without blinking. A faint, cold smile settled on her lips.

"First—my name is Clarissa," she stated flatly, locking eyes with his despair-filled gaze. "Second—this is not revenge. This is business. Blackwood Capital sees immense potential being utterly wasted under the leadership of a distracted, incompetent CEO such as yourself."

"You are lying!" Julian snapped, his voice cracking in the quiet room. "You do this because you hate me! You hate me because I left you trapped in that burning car! You hate me because I chose—"

"Chose Maya?" Clarissa cut in, her tone casual and unbothered—as if discussing nothing more than the afternoon weather forecast.

Julian’s heart seemed to stop beating. That implicit admission rolled so easily off her tongue.

"You... you remember everything..." he whispered, his voice weak as the burning weight of regret surged back to the surface. He lowered his gaze, fixing it on her hands—now bare, stripped of their wedding rings. "That night... I panicked, Clara. I truly believed you were a strong doctor who could save yourself... I never imagined..."

"Enough, Mr. Vance," she interrupted firmly. Her tone sharpened, cutting him off before he could wallow in self-pity. "The tragic history between you and your late wife has absolutely no bearing on the acquisition documents resting on this desk."

Clarissa slid a thick black folder across the wood toward him.

"Inside these papers, Blackwood Capital offers to buy out your remaining shares at double the current market price. If you accept, you walk away with enough wealth to provide for yourself and your companion for the rest of your lives. But if you refuse..." She paused, staring at him with icy detachment, "...we will launch a full external audit into allegations of prolonged embezzlement committed by Maya over the past two years."

Julian’s face drained of all color instantly. "What do you mean? Maya would never meddle with company funds—"

"Re-examine the marketing division’s financial records yourself," Clarissa replied smoothly as she rose from her chair, smoothing the crisp lines of her blazer with precise, deliberate movements. "The woman you risked everything to save that night has been siphoning small fortunes from your company budget—slowly, steadily—to pay off her family’s crippling debts. You were so blinded by your own guilt that you failed to see what was happening right under your nose."

Julian froze in place, struck utterly speechless. For three years, he had granted Maya unlimited access and privileges within the firm—all as penance for the terrible choice he made that night. He had never scrutinized the reports closely; his mind was too haunted, too consumed by the ghost of Clara to notice the corruption festering beside him.

Clarissa walked toward the door but paused, her hand resting lightly on the handle. Without looking back, she delivered her final words—this time dropping all formal titles to speak his name directly.

"One last thing, Julian," she said softly. The words were quiet, yet they struck his heart with the force of an explosion. "Being a strong woman does not mean being incapable of feeling pain. And even the most skilled doctor... can never heal a heart that has been shattered by the one person she trusted most in this world."