Semua Bab The Billionaire's Greatest Loss: Ex-Wife Please Come Back : Bab 21 - Bab 30

THE ANNOUNCEMENT(Serena's POV)The photo of Elena tied to that chair burned in my mind. My hands shook as I stared at my phone. Eleanor had my best friend. The woman who'd stood by me through everything."We can't let you go to Riverside Park," Agent Martinez said. Her voice was firm. "It's obviously a trap.""I know it's a trap." I stood up from the interview room chair. "But what choice do I have? Elena will die if I don't show up.""We can send a team. Surround the area. Catch Eleanor when she...""She'll kill Elena the moment she sees federal agents." I pressed my hands to my belly. The baby was kicking hard now. "Eleanor doesn't bluff. She doesn't make empty threats."My father looked at me with worried eyes. "There has to be another way."I walked to the window. Outside, the city glittered in the darkness. Millions of people living their lives. All of them unaware that my world was falling apart."There is another way," I said quietly."What?" Agent Martinez leaned forward.I t

THE CONFRONTATION(Damien's POV)Riverside Park at midnight felt like the end of the world. Dark trees swayed in the wind. Empty benches lined the paths like tombstones. The only light came from old streetlamps that cast long shadows on the ground.I walked slowly toward the designated meeting spot. My hands were empty. My phone was off. Just me and the darkness and the weight of twenty-seven years of bad choices.Eleanor stepped out from behind a large oak tree. She looked smaller than I remembered. Older. More fragile. But her eyes still burned with the same cold fire that had terrified me as a child."Damien." Her voice was soft. Almost gentle. "I was expecting your pregnant little whore.""She's not coming.""No?" Eleanor tilted her head. "Then I suppose Elena Martinez dies for nothing."She nodded toward the tree. Victoria emerged, dragging Elena behind her. Elena's hands were tied. Tape covered her mouth. But her eyes were alert. Angry. Fighting."Hello, brother," Victoria said.

THE ESCAPE(Serena's POV)The morning news hit like a slap to the face.I sat in my office, feeding Isabella her bottle, when Elena burst through the doors. Her face was pale. Her hands were shaking."Turn on the news. Now."I reached for the remote with my free hand. The headline appeared on screen in bold red letters."ELEANOR BLACKWOOD RELEASED FROM PRISON DUE TO DEMENTIA"My blood turned to ice.The news anchor's voice was professional and clinical. "Eleanor Blackwood, 85, convicted of conspiracy and racketeering, has been released from federal prison after medical reports indicated severe dementia. The court ruled she was no longer fit to serve her sentence.""That's impossible," I whispered. "Eleanor's mind is sharp as a knife."Elena sank into the chair across from me. "The medical reports are signed by Dr. Patterson. He's been on the Blackwood payroll for thirty years."I switched channels. Every news station was covering the story. Photos of Eleanor being wheeled out of priso

THE ATTACK(Damien's POV)Three weeks after the interview aired, Victoria's war against Serena was in full swing.I sat in the Blackwood mansion's library, watching Eleanor pace back and forth like a caged tiger. The fake dementia was gone now. Her back was straight, her eyes sharp, her mind calculating every move."The scandal about her sleeping with all three men didn't stick," Victoria said, throwing down a newspaper. "People actually defended her. Called her a 'strong woman making her own choices.'"Eleanor stopped pacing. "What about the story that she's using Isabella for publicity?""Backfired. The public sees her as a protective mother keeping her child safe from the 'unstable Blackwood family.'" Victoria's voice was bitter. "Everything we throw at her just makes her look better."I looked at the headlines spread across the coffee table. Every attempt to destroy Serena had failed."SERENA VAUGHN: MOTHER OF THE YEAR""VAUGHN INNOVATIONS STOCK HITS ALL-TIME HIGH""THE WOMAN WHO

THE VICTORY LAP(Serena's POV)The morning after the gala, I woke to the sound of Isabella's soft babbling from her crib. The sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my penthouse bedroom, painting golden squares across the marble floor.I picked up my daughter, marveling at how perfect she was. Her dark hair had grown longer, curling slightly at the ends like Damien's used to do. But her eyes were mine, fierce and intelligent, already showing the determination she'd inherited from both sides of her family."Good morning, sweetheart," I whispered, kissing her forehead. "Ready to conquer another day?"Isabella gurgled happily, reaching for my hair with her tiny fingers. She had no idea that last night had been one of the most important evenings of my life. The night I'd finally, completely defeated the Blackwood family.My phone was buzzing constantly on the nightstand. Messages from reporters, congratulations from business associates, interview requests from major net