The Prelim Delay

Tristan's POV The courtroom smelled like old wood and polished floors, it was suffocating and unforgiving. Every breath I took felt borrowed, like the air itself didn’t belong to me anymore. My stomach twisted violently, a slow churn that made me nauseous, and I kept my jaw locked tight, terrified that if I opened my mouth, something humiliating would spill out. A groan, a gasp, a confession I don’t even know I was holding. This wasn't my world. Boardrooms and silent wars fought over contracts and numbers... I know those rooms. I thrive there. But this? This place strips you bare without ever touching you. I sat rigid on the hard bench, my hands clasped together so tightly that my knuckles had gone white. My leg bounces uncontrollably, a betrayal I can&rsq

Last Updated : 2026-04-27

Vultures At Home

Tristan's POV The shouting followed me all the way up the driveway. Questions were still thrown like stones. Accusations sharpened by lenses and microphones. My name was being mangled into headlines before I even stepped out of the car. “Mr. Crane, did you intimidate Grace?” “Are you planning to apologize publicly?” “Is it true she was underage when you-” I didn’t slow down. The gates slid shut behind me with a metallic finality that felt like oxygen rushing back into my lungs, but even then, the noise lingered, it was echoing, clinging to my skin like sweat I couldn’t wash off. Cameras flashed through the bars. Voices rose. It was a chant of speculation and judgment. I got out of my car, still ignoring those vultures. Walking up the few steps, I unlocked the front door, stepped inside, and slam

Last Updated : 2026-04-28

The Second Time

Tristan's POV The courthouse hallway smelled like polished wood and something stale underneath it like secrets that had been sitting too long. It felt like the kind of place where lives unraveled in whispers instead of screams.I paced. Back and forth. Back and forth.Maria stood near one of the tall windows, her tablet tucked under her arm, her phone pressed against her ear for the fourth time.“Rowan, call me back. Immediately,” she said sharply before hanging up again. She exhaled through her nose. “Straight to voicemail. Again.” She was growing frustrated as well.My jaw tightened. Rowan never missed hearings except with me for my prelim hearings. I do remember he missed a court case once for someone else. He had shown up with a fractured wrist, which meant this wasn’t forgetfulness. It was deliberate or something had gone very wrong. But given the fact that he missed my previous hear

Last Updated : 2026-04-29

The News

Tristan's POV I leaned back against the wall beside the front door, the coolness pressing into my spine, my head falling against the surface as if gravity had suddenly doubled. The courthouse air still clung to me, the heaviness and the suffocating air. The murmurs of reporters, the clicking of cameras, the whispers of strangers who thought they knew me still echoed inside my skull. I dragged a hand down my face. I scoffed at the thought that Rowan didn’t show. The judge had granted another chance, but the damage was done. The headlines would spin it as avoidance, guilt and fear. I pushed off the wall and walked further into the lounge. My phone rang. I took it out of my pocket. It was Cris. I swallowed before answering. “Hey.” Her voice came through sharp and strained. “Dad… did you see the news?” “No,” I muttered

Last Updated : 2026-04-30

Things We Cannot Escape From

Elona’s POVThe message came in just as I was tying my shoelaces. I stared at my phone longer than I should have, my fingers were frozen mid-motion, the lace slipping through my grip.Tristan: Rowan Patel is dead.The words didn’t feel real. They sat there on the screen like something misplaced, like they belonged to another life, another story. It didn’t feel like it belonged to mine and Tristan’s story. My chest tightened as I read the next message.Tristan: I will be assigned a new attorney. Don’t worry about me. Focus on yourself.Don’t worry about me.I let out a quiet breath, but it didn’t ease anything inside me. If anything, it made it worse. Because I knew Tristan, and I knew that when he told someone not to worry, it usually meant he was already drowning and didn’t want anyone else pulled under with him.My fingers hovered over the screen.Me: Are you okay? Me: What happened? Me: Do you need me?I didn’t send any of them. Because I already knew the answer. He wouldn’t tell

Last Updated : 2026-07-01

Reggie

Tristan’s POVThe study room felt smaller than usual. It wasn’t the size, the ceilings or the dark oak shelves lined with books I hadn’t touched in months, the faint scent of aged whiskey lingering in the air. It had always been my refuge. My control room, where I had spent years building my company.This evening already felt like a courtroom before the verdict as I walked out of my study room, down the hallway towards the lounge. I stood by the window, staring out into the dim stretch of my driveway, the world beyond it blurred by the weight pressing behind my eyes. My hand came up unconsciously, pressing against my chest. The ache was there again, it was dull and persistent, like something was tightening slowly around my ribs.The knock on the door shook me out of my ache and thoughts, I saw a car parked behind mine in the driveway. I walked towards the door and opened it.“Mr. Crane?” The man asked.“Yes, Reggie?” I confirmed. He was all professionally dressed.“Correct.” He replie