جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 30

Ryan's POVI couldn't breathe. My lungs felt frozen as I watched Serena's body crumple at the bottom of the staircase, her hair splayed across the marble floor like spilled ink. Everything around me blurred into meaningless shapes—the restaurant, the gawking patrons, everything except her still form."SERENA!" My voice sounded foreign to my own ears as I lunged forward, taking the stairs two at a time.But Julian was already there, kneeling beside her, his fingers pressed against her neck. "She's breathing," he announced, his voice tight with controlled panic. "Call an ambulance, now!"Someone—a waiter maybe—was already on the phone, rattling off the restaurant's address."Don't move her," I ordered, crouching down beside them, my hand hovering over her pale face. "She could have spinal injuries." The words tasted like acid in my mouth.Serena lay unconscious, a thin trickle of blood running from somewhere beneath her head. Her skin had taken on an ashen quality that made my stomach tw

Serena's POVAfter four days in the hospital, I finally got to leave that sterile hell. The doctors had cleared me, saying my concussion was healing well, though I still needed to take it easy. Not that I had much choice with Maya hovering around me like an overprotective mother hen."Easy does it," she warned as I slipped my feet into my flats. "No rushing.""I'm fine," I insisted, though the dull throb in my head suggested otherwise.The hospital discharge papers felt heavy in my hands—almost as heavy as the news I'd received yesterday. My lawyer had called with the update I'd been dreading: we couldn't proceed with charges against Ivy."All the security footage from that section of the restaurant has mysteriously disappeared," he'd explained, frustration evident in his voice. "And without witnesses willing to come forward..."I knew exactly who was behind the vanishing evidence.Simon Graves, Ryan's ever-loyal assistant, would have moved heaven and earth to protect the Blackwood nam

Serena's POVI watched the gossip explode across social media from my office chair, scrolling through the increasingly wild accusations against Ivy. WhisperStream had done his job well—very well. Every dirt-filled detail I'd collected on her was now spreading like wildfire."If she wants to play dirty," I muttered to myself, tapping my fingernail against the desk, "then we'll all get muddy together."I didn't feel bad. Not even a little. After what she'd done at the restaurant—after I'd ended up in the hospital with my head split open—Ivy deserved every bit of this karma.She couldn't just sit back and watch the show anymore. Now she was the main attraction.Early the next morning, I headed to Dreamland Studio, my sanctuary away from all the chaos.The office hummed with creative energy as designers sketched and collaborated, exactly how I'd always envisioned it. Maya was waiting for me with coffee and that knowing smirk of hers."Interesting development," she said, nodding toward her

Serena's POVA flash of something—regret? recognition?—crossed Ryan's face.Ivy sensed her advantage slipping. "Ryan, she's twisting everything! You know I'm the victim here. She—""That's enough, Ivy," Ryan snapped, his voice cutting through her whining like a blade. "You're embarrassing yourself. We're leaving. Now."Ivy's mouth fell open in shock, but Ryan had already grabbed her elbow, steering her toward the exit. She twisted back toward me, her face contorted with rage."This isn't over!" she hissed, stumbling in her ridiculous heels as Ryan practically dragged her away.I watched them go, keeping my expression neutral despite the triumph bubbling inside me.The crowd immediately erupted into hushed whispers, phones still recording every delicious moment of Ivy's humiliation."Well," Maya whispered beside me, "that was certainly dramatic."A subtle smile playing at Julian's lips. "Nothing sells jewelry quite like a public meltdown from the competition."He was right. After the sp

Serena's POV"Is all this really necessary, Serena?" Ryan's deep voice carried a hint of exasperation across the table.I nearly laughed at his audacity. Just sitting across from Ryan Blackwood in this private dining room was irritating enough, and now he was questioning my methods? The nerve of this man."Isn't it necessary?" I shot back, my voice cool and controlled despite the anger simmering beneath."Do you honestly think I don't know how Ivy has been systematically targeting me for years? That incident with Julian and me—I haven't even begun to settle that score yet."I straightened my posture, adjusting the crisp collar of my white suit. "Enough small talk. I have three conditions. If you don't agree to them, there's no point continuing this conversation."Before meeting Ryan tonight, Maya and I had carefully strategized these demands. If he was so determined to protect that snake Ivy, I wouldn't be showing any mercy either."First, Dreamland Studio gets thirty percent of Blackw