chapter 3

Lena POV

The late afternoon sun slanted through the tall windows of the Carter estate, casting long shadows across the marble floors. I carried a tray of drinks down the polished corridor, every step echoing softly. My palms were already slick with sweat, and the silver tray trembled slightly in my hands. My mind spun, still trying to piece together the cryptic warnings Ruby had whispered that morning.

I wasn’t sure if it was courage or recklessness that made me pause outside the study door, the same one I’d been warned to never approach.

But I lingered.

Low voices slipped through the cracks of the heavy oak. Rough. Urgent. Charged with something dark and dangerous.

I froze.

It was them.

Zane. Liam.

I presumed.

Their tones rose and fell like waves crashing against stone. Something about a shipment. A betrayal. A voice I didn’t recognize spoke with venom. Maybe that should be Kai.

“...he’s crossing a line. We don’t tolerate loose ends.”

“Let me handle it.”

“No. Last time you handled it, we buried two bodies instead of five.”

A chill ran through me as I crouched, pressing myself against the cold wall, clutching the tray to my chest like a shield. My heart pounded in my ears, loud, too loud. The crystal glasses rattled on the tray. I tightened my grip, trying to steady it. Their voices were close, tense, like a fuse lit and burning.

They weren’t just talking business. They were scheming ruthlessly and methodically. Words like "crush," "regulators," and "no witnesses" reached me through the crack in the door.

My breath caught, shallow and rapid.

“…We crush them before they even think of moving. No mercy, no witnesses.”

“…Bribery’s in place. The regulators will look the other way. We have eyes everywhere.”

“…And if anyone asks, we blame the Sutherlands. It’s perfect. They’ll fall, and so will any hope for Dad’s company to survive this.”

I felt sick. The tray in my hands suddenly felt ten times heavier. My fingers were starting to go numb from gripping it so tightly.

What the hell had I walked into?

My knees dug into the marble. My whole body trembled. I wasn’t supposed to hear this, no one was.

Zane’s voice sliced through the silence again, cool and razor-sharp. “We’re playing for keeps. This isn’t a game anymore.”

Kai, the calm one, didn’t sound calm anymore, his voice was flat steel. “Dad’s legacy? It dies with him if we don’t act fast. We need control. We’ll get it by any means necessary.”

Liam. His voice was a whisper over a blade. “Tonight, the final phase. We start with the factory sabotage. It’ll look like an accident. Then we move in for the kill.”

I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood.

This wasn’t just business.

This was betrayal. Arson. Fraud. Maybe worse.

Then Liam spoke, his voice low and dangerous. Too calm.

“If the old man finds out, he won’t just resist. He’ll go to war. He’ll take everything down with him.”

A beat of silence. Then Kai’s voice, sharper now.

“So… we’re doing this? Taking our father down?”

Zane let out a slow breath, the kind that meant a decision had already been made.

“It’s not betrayal if he’s the one standing in the way. The empire needs new blood. He needs to step aside, before we make him.”

I didn’t realize I was shaking until the glasses began to clink against each other. My breathing grew shallow, ragged. My vision blurred at the edges, and I blinked rapidly to keep focus.

Then Zane, almost casually: “So maybe we can help him along. A heart attack. Brake failure. He’s old enough. People will believe it.”

My hands started to tremble uncontrollably. I crouched lower, trying to quiet the sound of my breath. A cold sweat crawled down my spine.

“Once the fire clears the debt and the insurance rolls in, we’ll have what we need to force the board to sell,” Kai added.

I couldn’t move. Couldn’t blink. Couldn’t breathe.

Zane laughed low. “And that new maid… what’s her name, Lena? She’s seen too much already. I’ll take care of her too.”

My stomach dropped. My blood turned to ice. My knees nearly buckled beneath me. I slapped a hand over my mouth, trying to hold in the scream rising in my throat.

Do they know?

Liam’s voice was merciless. “No witnesses. Not this time.”

“Relax,” Zane said, almost amused. “If she’s smart, she’ll keep her pretty mouth shut. If not…”

He didn’t finish. He didn’t have to.

I started backing away, legs like rubber, ready to run

But it was too late.

The door creaked open. Leather soles tapped softly on the marble.

Zane.

He stepped into the hallway like a shadow pulled free from the dark. His gaze met mine with quiet amusement, and something colder underneath.

“Well, well,” he said smoothly. “Look what the shadows brought us.”

Behind him, Liam and Kai appeared. They didn’t look surprised. Just… calculating.

“You really shouldn’t be here, Lena,” Zane murmured, eyes locked on mine.

My throat was too dry to speak. My hands clutched the tray so tightly that my knuckles went white.

“You heard everything,” Liam said. Calm. Deadly. “And now, you know what this family is willing to do.”

Kai said nothing. Just stared at me, like he was already deciding how to erase me.

Zane stepped closer. I backed up instinctively, until the wall met my spine.

“You have two choices,” he said softly. “Forget what you heard. Walk away quietly. Or…”

He stepped into my space, and I flinched, my heart hammering so loudly it was hard to hear anything else.

“Or you can become part of this family’s problem.”

My legs wanted to bolt. My brain screamed to run. But something in me, something stubborn, held the line.

“I’m not walking away,” I said, though my voice shook.

Zane tilted his head. “That’s… brave. Or stupid.”

He circled me slowly, a predator with all the time in the world.

“You don’t understand what you’re up against. This family’s power runs deep. Deeper than you can imagine.”

“I’m not afraid.”

Lie.

But I said it like I meant it.

Zane stopped inches from me, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Good. Because now, you’re part of the game. And there’s no turning back.”

Liam and Kai stepped in closer, flanking me like a closing vice.

Zane reached up and brushed a strand of hair from my face. My skin crawled.

“We’ll be watching, Lena. Every move you make.”

I met their eyes one by one, pulse racing.

“What now?” I asked, barely above a whisper.

Liam’s breath brushed my ear. My spine stiffened.

“Now… you survive.”