All Chapters of She Writes Her Own Heartbeat : Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

Pov Samantha **The morning was slow, quiet, and heavy with the residue of shame and exhaustion. I woke before Benjamin, slipping out of the big bed. He was still deep in an alcohol-induced sleep, his face looking peaceful but pale. The punch he threw at Marcus felt like a physical barrier between us, a clear sign that the partnership had a finite end.I put on my silk robe and walked into the living room. The large space felt eerie after the night's drama. I was pouring myself a cup of strong coffee when the security panel on the wall suddenly lit up with a video feed from the front door.I glanced at it, expecting Cassandra or a delivery. My hand froze mid-air, the coffee cup rattling slightly in its saucer.Standing outside the penthouse door, looking small and nervously clutching a worn handbag, was Aunt Annabelle.I hadn't seen her, or heard from her, in over a decade.Annabelle was my mother’s sister. After my parents died in a car accident when I was nineteen, she was the only

Pov Samantha ****The sight of Annabelle, my only remaining family, standing in my current sanctuary and threatening to call the police on the man I was trying to save, was the final breaking point. The stress of the attack, the financial ruin, the assault on Marcus, and Benjamin's drunken despair all culminated in a desperate, self-destructive rage aimed at the one person who offered a simple way out.I couldn't risk the mission. I couldn't risk the evidence against Sebastian. And I certainly couldn't accept rescue from the woman who had abandoned me when I needed her most.I stepped away from Benjamin and fixed my eyes on Annabelle. My voice was low, shaking, and cold with absolute finality."You need to leave, Aunt Annabelle. Now," I said.She stared at me, the fear in her eyes replaced by confused hurt. "Samantha, what are you saying? I'm trying to help you!""You're not helping," I shot back, my voice rising. "You're judging me. You walked away from me when I was nineteen, alone

Pov Samantha ***The ticking clock of the one-hour deadline was deafening. My immediate terror over Benjamin's capture quickly gave way to the icy, strategic focus I had learned from him. I knew I couldn't simply hand over the memory card; that would guarantee Sebastian's victory and potentially still leave Benjamin in danger. I had to leverage the evidence.I raced back into the corporate office, my hands shaking only slightly. The memory card contained the only irrefutable proof of Sebastian and Sophia's massive, long-term fraud and their direct involvement in the conspiracy. If I gave it up, the Zurich funds would simply be used to protect Benjamin from his brother's ongoing attacks, but Sebastian would never face justice.My solution was simple: copy the card.I slammed the small, encrypted satellite device onto the desk, quickly pulling out the wafer-thin memory card. I fumbled for the secure laptop Benjamin used for sensitive data, inserting the card into the slot.The laptop'

Pov Samantha ***The truth that I had successfully copied the evidence barely registered as we sped away from the docks. My hands gripped the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles were white, and my entire body was shaking with delayed terror. The strategic success was completely overshadowed by the raw, brutal fact of Benjamin’s pain.I wasn't the cold, calculating partner anymore; I was just a terrified woman watching the man she desperately needed bleed beside her. My focus narrowed to the sound of his ragged breathing and the horrifying realization that I had put him in this car, injured and vulnerable. My anger, my pride, my need for justice had all been a reckless gamble, and I had almost lost everything."Benjamin, we're almost there," I whispered, glancing over. Tears blurred my vision, not of strength, but of pure, helpless fear. "We need a hospital. A secure one."He tried to answer, but a groan escaped him instead, clutching his side where the mercenary had struck him with

Pov Samantha ***The feeling of relief after Sebastian and Sophia left the clinic was short-lived. I knew their show of sympathy was just a means to confirm Benjamin was incapacitated and the evidence was gone. Their next step would be to search the penthouse.I was sitting by Benjamin’s bedside, still overwhelmed by fear and exhaustion, when my phone vibrated with a discreet, urgent alarm. It wasn't a call; it was the silent security alert from the penthouse's private system, the one Benjamin had installed to replace the compromised staff."Cassandra," I whispered, holding the phone up, my voice shaking. "The penthouse. They're there now. They're searching for the evidence."Cassandra, who was overseeing security in the waiting room, immediately moved. Her face was grim but calm. "They wasted no time. Sebastian is desperate to secure that location.""They're going to find nothing," I said, rising quickly, the adrenaline cutting through my fear. "But they'll try to destroy anything