บททั้งหมดของ The Hidden Heiress Returns : บทที่ 101 - บทที่ 106

KINGSLEY’S POVI know freedom has a price, I just didn’t expect Hailey to pay it alone.The message reached me before sunrise, not a phone call, not a dramatic announcement. Just a quiet notification from one of my legal contacts.*Hailey Thompson has been released from custody.*For a second, I thought I was still half asleep, then I saw the attachment.The signed agreement.My stomach dropped, I read it once, then twice.Then a third time, slower this time, every word pressing deeper into my chest.Temporary corporate authority transfer, strategic operational oversight, emergency asset protection and all legal phrases.All harmless on the surface.But I know exactly what it means.Hailey handed Robert partial control of the company legally and voluntarily.My jaw tightened so hard it hurt.“No,” I muttered under my breath.She wouldn’t, she couldn’t.Unless she had no choice.My hands clenched around the tablet as I pushed away from the desk and paced across the room.The morning sk

HAILEY’S PovThe board meeting ended exactly the way Robert wanted, with applause.Not loud applause, not genuine applause, just the polite kind people give when they’re afraid to disagree with the man controlling the room.Robert stood at the head of the table like a victorious general, explaining restructuring, talking about stability.Using words like “temporary authority” and “protecting the company’s future.”Everyone nodded, everyone pretended.I sat there quietly the entire time, watching and learning.I started counting the people who avoided my eyes, counting the ones who watched Robert instead.When the meeting finally ended, chairs scraped softly across the floor as the board members filed out, no one spoke to me.That was fine, I didn't need sympathy.I needed time.Robert gathered his papers slowly, deliberately, like he had nothing left to worry about.Then he stood and turned toward the door, toward the woman standing there that I didn't realize all this while.My mothe

HAILEY’S POVThe dress felt heavier than it should have, maybe it was because I knew what tonight meant or maybe it was because every step I took toward the door felt like walking deeper into Robert’s world.Brandson leaned against the wall with his arms folded tightly across his chest. He had been watching me get ready in complete silence for the last five minutes, and the tension rolling off him could have filled the entire room.“I still don’t like this,” he finally said.“That makes two of us.”He pushed away from the wall and stepped closer, studying my face carefully like he was trying to memorize it.“If anything feels wrong,” he said slowly, “you walk out.”“Brandson—”“I’m serious, Hailey.”His voice softened, but the warning stayed there.“I don’t care about the plan, neither do I care about the evidence. If that man even looks at you the wrong way, you leave.”I gave him a small smile.“You’ve always been overprotective.”“And you’ve always been terrible at protecting your