Chapter 179 Eva's Point of View The lawyer stood before me, his hands clasped together, his expression calm yet resolute. His presence in the room felt like a lifeline, a thread connecting me to the truth I had been denied for so long. It was surreal to finally stand on the edge of justice, to hea
Chapter 180 The front door creaked open, and Leo tiptoed inside, his small, polished shoes barely making a sound against the marble floor. His heart raced as he glanced around, trying to make his way past the foyer unnoticed. He had barely made it past the entryway when a voice rang out, sharp and
Chapter 181 MAX POINT OF VIEW I was going through the morning reports when Clara walked in. One look at her face and I knew something was wrong. My stomach clenched lately, every unexpected visit brought more bad news. The stack of quarterly projections on my desk suddenly seemed meaningless comp
Opening my laptop, I pulled up Emily's company records. If she and Sara were behind everything that has been happening, they must have left some trace. People always did, no matter how careful they were. I just had to find it before they made their next move. Financial records, meeting minutes, trav
Chapter 182 Mia couldn't contain her excitement as she ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Her heart was racing, but not from the climb. She'd just overheard the most amazing news, and she had to tell her siblings right away. Their dad was coming to see them tomorrow! She burst into Jame
Chapter 183 MAX POINT OF VIEW My hands wouldn't stop sweating on the steering wheel as I pulled up to Eva's house. The trunk was loaded with wrapped presents, toys, books, games, everything I could think of that five-year-olds might like. But somewhere deep in my gut, I knew no mountain of gifts c
"Sometimes," Sam continued, his young voice unnaturally steady, "she would look at pictures and get really quiet. Was that because of you too?" I swallowed hard. "Yes." "Then why should we want you here?" Leo demanded. "You hurt Mom. You didn't want us." "That's not true," I said quickly, too qui
Chapter 184 Max sat on the living room floor, surrounded by opened presents and four very different reactions to his presence. Mia beamed at him, clutching her new stuffed unicorn like it was made of gold. The boys, however, radiated waves of barely contained hostility that made the room feel ten d
As Eva and Max walked back to the main house, the night air cool around them, Max kept his voice low. "Are you sure about this? Having her here?" "No," Eva admitted honestly. "But I'm even less sure about sending her away to be hunted by Diana." "She threatened our children, Eva," Max reminded her
Inside, Victoria stood awkwardly in the center of the living room, suddenly seeming unsure of herself. Without the cover of darkness, her scars were starkly visible under the warm lighting, the contrast between her damaged and undamaged sides even more pronounced. "I'll have clothes brought over,"
The convoy of black SUVs cut through the night, headlights carving paths through the fog. Eva sat in the back seat of the lead vehicle, watching rain streak across bulletproof glass. Across from her, Victoria stared out her own window, damaged profile turned away as if to spare Eva the sight of her
"Why help her?" Eva asked. "Why come after my family?" "Because it was the only thing that made the pain bearable," Victoria answered honestly. "Thinking that one day, you would understand what it feels like to lose everything." A flash of movement caught Eva's eye, something shifting in the shado
Chapter 299 Eva parked at the far end of the abandoned shipyard, exactly where Victoria had specified. The meeting had been Eva's idea, a bold move that Max had fought until he understood there was no other way to end this nightmare. Two days had passed since the children left. Two days of Eva and
Diana leaned back. "There are excellent surgeons overseas. Part of Louis's package includes consultations with specialists in Switzerland." Victoria touched her scars. "Too little, too late." "After tomorrow, you can disappear. Become someone new." "And what life does Eva deserve?" Diana's eyes
The coffee shop sat on the edge of downtown. Victoria chose a corner table with her back to the wall, hair swept forward to cover her scarred face. Through the windows, she watched for any sign of surveillance. Thirty-six hours had passed since her confrontation with Eva in the parking garage. Thir
"You were innocent," Max reminded her. "You didn't ask to be in that prison, didn't ask to be saved from the fire." "I know," Eva agreed, sitting on the edge of their bed. "But I did get to come back to all this, wealth, family, safety. While Victoria got a ruined face and six more years in prison.
And finally, to Mia: "Dance when you're sad, my little butterfly. Find joy even in hard times. Remember how much Mommy and Daddy love you." The garage fell silent as the final goodbyes approached. Eva and Max stood together, arms around each other, facing their four children lined up beside the wai