Alle Kapitel von The Forgotten Vow (MM Romance): Kapitel 131 – Kapitel 140

Leander POVI went to see my mother the morning after I got the note. I did not go because I owed her an explanation, or because the situation demanded it. I went because she was my mother. I had spent thirty-five years withholding the truth from her, and I was done with that. My memory had returned, changing everything.Her sitting room was exactly as it had always been, pale walls, tall windows, and soft, calm morning light looking out over the garden. She was already seated when I arrived, waiting for me. It did not surprise me; my mother always knew things before she was told. I inherited a fraction of that trait, and it usually served me well in business meetings.She wore a cream-colored dress, her hair styled perfectly. She looked at me with an intensity I hadn't allowed myself to truly feel before, a gaze full of a mother's quiet affection."Sit down, Leander," she said.I sat in the chair directly across from her instead of at the far end of the room like I used to. We were c

Avelin POVThey arrived at eight in the morning, four quiet, professional technicians carrying expensive, high-end equipment. They knocked once, introduced themselves briefly, and moved through the apartment with efficient certainty.I stood in the kitchen doorway with my coffee, watching them work.Three years ago, the version of me that had learned to carry everything alone would have politely but firmly declined. I used to think accepting help would somehow erase the proof of my survival. But that version of me had been running on empty for too long. The note under the door had reminded me, in one cold line, that being unprotected was a danger, not just to me, but to our son. So I drank my coffee and let them do what they came to do.Leander had called the night before. He was not the kind of man who asked for permission when he decided something was necessary, and I had stopped pretending that irritated me. He explained the setup clearly: cameras in the corridor, a secondary coded

Leander POVThe boardroom clock ticked to 8:40 AM.I sat at the head of the long polished table, my hands flat on the wood. The glass walls showed the city below, washed in gray morning light. I chose this seat early for a reason. When the rest arrived, they must walk in and find the space already claimed.Three manila folders rested in front of me. They did not contain stacks of paper, just clear, unyielding data. Bank transfers. Timestamps. Metadata.The door clicked. Elias walked in, his face a smooth mask. He took a seat two chairs to my left and set down his coffee mug. He did not speak. He had read the files last night. He knew the parameters of the morning.At 9:00 AM sharp, the brass handle turned.Marcus Webb, Diane Cho, and Gerald Fitch entered in a tight cluster. They walked shoulder to shoulder, a unified front cooked up during some late-night panic call.They saw me. Marcus caught his heel on the carpet. Diane stiffened, her chin jerking up."Sit," I said.They took their

Avelin POVNine in the evening. A knock echoed through the apartment.Leander had warned me the night before, his voice quiet and careful. Elena requested to see me, not him, before the testimony. He understood if I refused. I spent the day turning the thought over in my mind, making Shen’s lunch, answering emails, acting as if the week hadn’t been the most complicated of the past three years. In the end, I told Leander to give her the address.She did not resemble the woman I expected. I had imagined the polished, distant Voss sister, but instead, she looked like someone who had carried a heavy burden for years and finally accepted the toll. No jewelry, simple clothes, hair pulled back. She looked human. After months of Leander’s descriptions and formal family gatherings, her presence at my door felt jarring."Avelin," Elena said."Elena. Come in."She hesitated before entering. Her eyes swept the room, the small space, the drawings on the walls, stray shoes, a dinosaur toy left on t

Conrad POVLosing is a slow process that becomes sudden.I watched the slow decline unfold over weeks, board resignations, legal filings, and Gerald Fitch feeding my secrets to Leander’s team. My mistake was trusting a man who knew exactly how deep my reach went. I spent hours in my hotel suite, watching my carefully built empire dismantle on screens broadcast to shareholders and the world.His husband. His son. Three years old.Leander had stood at that podium, delivering his ultimatum with the calm of a man who no longer feared the world. Shareholders listened, confused by this new, incomprehensible reality. I watched the legal machinery grind forward, systematic and cold. It was Leander’s now.Then, suddenly, everything changed on a Thursday. My lawyer called: Elena had agreed to testify. Her deposition would be comprehensive, the timeline she provided sealing every remaining gap in the case.Elena. My wife. The woman who wept in my arms for three years while I arranged her brother