Ryan sat at the head of his father’s old mahogany desk, tapping a pen absently on the table. The fire crackling in the nearby fireplace did little to ease the chill in his veins. The room felt colder, darker, ever since his father had fallen ill and Bella had begun tightening her grip on the Kendrick empire. Victor Empire now, he thought bitterly. The name change had been swift, too swift for his liking. He knew Bella and her brother, Victor, had plans of their own, but something about their rise to power, their sudden control, didn’t sit right with him. Ryan wasn’t blind—he had seen the signs and heard the whispers within the company. Bella and Victor were playing a dangerous game, and he intended to find out exactly what that game was. His phone buzzed on the desk, pulling him out of his thoughts. It was Luca. Luca: “I have something. Meet me in 30 minutes. ”Ryan stared at the message for a moment, feeling his heart rate spike. Luca had been helping him dig into Bella’s past f
She looked calm, almost too calm, as if she had everything under control. But Ryan knew better now."Bella," he said as he entered the room. She looked up, smiling softly. "Ryan, you’re home late. Everything okay?"Ryan sat across from her, his gaze steady, searching. "We need to talk."Bella’s smile faltered just slightly, but she maintained her composure. "What’s on your mind?"Ryan leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. "You’ve been busy lately. I haven’t seen much of you since the rebranding." Bella took a sip of her wine, her expression unreadable. "There’s been a lot to manage with the company. You know that. I’m just trying to make sure everything runs smoothly." Ryan nodded slowly. Bella’s phone buzzed in her hand. She glanced at it, and a sinister smile spread across her face. But something was different today. As she busied herself, Ryan noticed her occasionally glance toward a particular drawer in the hallway. A look of uncertainty flickered across her face eve
The house was eerily quiet as Ryan sat in the sunlit living room. The rays filtered through the curtains, but their warmth did little to lift the fog that clouded his mind. He ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated. It had been weeks of the same routine. Bella left early for the office, and he was confined to the house. The walls seemed to close in on him more and more each day. "Rest," she kept saying. "You need to rest and fully heal."But he felt fine. His body was stronger. His mind? That was another story. He couldn't shake the flashes, those brief moments of clarity when another version of his life danced before his eyes, only to vanish like smoke. His thoughts were interrupted by the creak of the front door. Bella stepped inside, dressed immaculately as always, her high heels clicking against the marble floor. She smiled when she saw him, but there was something behind her eyes. Something he couldn’t quite place." Ryan, love," she called, setting her bag on the counte
“You’re lying,” she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. “This can’t be true.” “I wish I was lying,” Luca said softly, his voice filled with regret. “But it’s the truth, Ivy. And now that you know, you’re in danger too.”Ivy shook her head, refusing to believe what she was hearing. “No,” she said, her voice rising. “This can’t be happening. My mother… she wouldn’t…” “She would,” Luca said firmly, cutting her off. “She’s done worse. And she won’t hesitate to get rid of anyone who stands as a threat to her if she thinks you’re a threat.” Ivy’s legs felt like they were going to give out beneath her. She stumbled back, collapsing into one of the armchairs, her mind racing. “Why are you telling me this?” she asked, her voice barely audible.“Because I care about you, Ivy,” Luca said, stepping closer. “I couldn’t stand by and watch as you were kept in the dark. You deserve to know the truth—so you can protect yourself.” Ivy looked up at Luca, her vision blurred by tears. “What do I do
Bella sat in her sleek new office at the top of the Kendrick tower—now rebranded as Vector Empire. She gazed out the floor-to-ceiling windows, looking over the city as it shimmered under the midday sun. A sense of triumph washed over her. She had nearly everything she ever wanted: the power, the company, and control over the entire Kendrick fortune. Yet, as she swirled the glass of wine in her hand, the victory felt hollow.“If only Ryan had loved me,” she muttered to herself. “None of this would’ve been necessary.”Her mind wandered back to that fateful night, the night that had set everything into motion. It was the night she had finally decided to take control of her destiny and cement her position in Ryan's life—by any means necessary.She had asked him out for lunch that day, trying to act casual, like the friend who had always been by his side. Ryan had been distracted, his thoughts clearly elsewhere, but Bella had insisted. "You’ve been so stressed with everything going on,
His tall, imposing figure cast a shadow across the room, and Bella could sense something was wrong immediately."Bella," he said, his voice low, "we have a problem."She raised an eyebrow, setting her glass down."What is it?"Victor sat down across from her, his hands resting on the armrests of the chair. "It’s Luca He’s been digging into our past. He knows about the offshore accounts."Bella’s heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean? How could he know?""He’s not as clueless as we thought," Victor replied, his eyes narrowing. "Luca has been working. He's been investigating us for weeks, and I think soon he might find the accounts we’ve been funneling Kendrick's money into."Bella’s mind raced as she processed the information. "So what do we do now?"Victor leaned forward, his gaze cold and calculating. "We can’t wait any longer. We need to move faster. If Luca takes it to Ryan and then he takes this to the board, everything we’ve built will crumble."Bella gripped the edge of her desk,
Ryan sat in the passenger seat of Luca’s car, the city lights flickering through the window as they sped through the quiet streets. His thoughts raced faster than the car, the weight of everything pressing down on him—Bella’s betrayal, Victor’s manipulations, the company slipping through his fingers, and now this meeting with Luca. He needed answers, and he needed them fast. Luca drove in silence, his grip tight on the steering wheel. They both knew they couldn’t afford to raise suspicion, especially with Bella’s guards likely watching Ryan’s every move. The less noise they made, the better their chances of discovering the truth.Finally, they pulled into the driveway of Luca’s secluded house on the outskirts of the city. It was a modern, minimalist home, surrounded by high walls and trees that shielded it from prying eyes. Luca parked the car and gestured for Ryan to follow him inside.Once they entered the house, Luca led Ryan to the living room, motioning for him to sit on the l
Chapter 103Ryan sat on the edge of the bed, staring at Mrs. Jessica with an expression of helplessness and frustration. The weight of everything was suffocating him his company stolen from under him, his heart torn apart by the fact that the woman he truly cared for was still being held captive. He had failed at everything, and it was killing him inside.Mrs. Jessica lay in the bed, her frail body barely moving. Her eyes, however, were full of fire as she looked at Ryan with a mixture of disbelief and resentment. She had endured so much, and Ryan knew that his words were not enough to make amends for the pain she had suffered."I’m sorry," Ryan began softly, his voice trembling. "I... I’m sorry for everything you’ve been through. I didn’t know I couldn’t have known. Please... forgive me."Mrs. Jessica didn’t respond immediately. Her hands tightened into fists under the blanket as she glanced away from him, clearly struggling with her emotions. “You have no idea what I’ve been t