He sat up with a groan, body pulsing with the aftermath ofst
night’s spiral. Memories trickled back in shards: Thest night
with Olivia. Her defiance, and how Alpha Alexander took away
Olivia from him.
His phone buzzed suddenly–Reed’s name shing through
once the device finally powered up. He answered on the second
ring.
“Where are you?” Reed’s voice crackled on the other end.
“Hotel room,” Ethan croaked.
“Get dressed. We’re heading back to Hawthorne. Something
happened.”
Ethan sat up straight. “Now?”
“Yeah. Just… get your head straight.”
Momentster, Reed/burst in, dragging him toward the door. Ethan’s feet felt lead, words like acid churning in his stomach. He realized something had gone terribly wrong–not just
personally, but publicly.
Meanwhile, halfway between Wall Street offices, Alexander sat
in his car next to Gai, reviewing a glossy tabloid spread.
Headlines screamed:“Wild usations: Olivia Maniptes
Romance for Wealth.“Photo captions implied outright scandal
Alexander’s face remained serene–almost statuesque–but
something cold flickered behind his eyes. He’d seen media
storms before, but this was ufortably close.
Alexander closed the paper. “Cancel the loans.”
Gai nced over. “What?”
Alexander stiffened. “Cancel the loans for both Windsor and
Hawthorne”
Gai nodded.
“Effective immediately. Risk profile’s changed,” Alexander
replied, voice t as steel.
“But those projects–the funding ties to Alpha Ethan and the
Windsor family-”
“It’s business, Gai. Due diligence dictates reassessment.” He
exhaled. “We can revisit once they resolve their internal issues.
Until then, no money flows.”
Gai’s concern etched deeper. “That’s hundreds of million, nd
the Hawthorne–Windsor alliance…”
Alexander nced at him. “Their alliance is voluntary. My
agreement is conditional.”
At the Windsor estate, a long dining table stretched under a crystal chandelier. Wine sses glistened in the warm glow.
The air was thick with indulgence and ego.
Bob Hawthrone sat at the end of the table, his expression tight, jaw ticking slightly as he pushed his fork through a piece of seared salmon without taking a bite. Across from him, Amelia smiled brightly, but her eyes darted, calcting. To her left, Chole leaned close, giggling into her wine, lips stained red.
“Oh, Amelia,” Chole purred, “you should’ve seen the media today. They’re tearing Olivia apart. I almost feel sorry for her.” She let out augh that made even Bob twitch.
Amelia poured herself more wine, ignoring the growing frown on Bob’s face. “Feel sorry? Nonsense. That girl walked right into it. You know how long we waited for this moment? Years. Years of her ying the good girl while secretly scheming. And now?” She raised her ss. “Justice.”
Chole clinked it. “She’s nothing more than a maniptive tramp. Seduced Ethan just to get into our family, and now she cries victim?” She scoffed. “I was his fiancée. Everyone knew it. I’ve been beside him since we were teenagers.”
Ameliaughed out loud on Chole’s statement.
“And she certainly doesn’t have the ss,” Chole added with a
cruel smirk. “Did you see that video from the hotel hallway? She
looked like a gold–digging escort.”
The Windsor matriarch, seated beside her daughter, chimed in,
voice dripping with disdain. “Our family gave her every
courtesy. She turned around and humiliated us. Shameless girl.
Hasn’t her father worked at our estate for decades?”
Someone else muttered, “It’s in the blood. Her kind always
wants to climb up.”
“Now she’s trying to cry foul and y victim,” another sneered. “She seduced Ethan. She destroyed this family. And she’ll pay.”
Bob stared down at his wine ss, his grip tightening. He was clearly displeased by the disy, but surrounded by the gloating and malice, he held his tongue.
Across the table, Chole sipped again and leaned closer to Amelia. “When Ethan finally realizes she’s poison, he’lle back to me fully. I’ll be his Luna. It’s what was meant to be.”
Amelia patted her hand as if in approval. “Of course. You belong
at the top. Not her. Never her.”
Just then, a loud crash echoed from the grand entrancew~“.
The dining room fell silent.
Someone had kicked the double doors open.
A servant screamed in surprise. Bob and Amelia stood abruptly,
chairs scraping the floor.
Chole gasped, hand flying to her mouth. “What–who is that?”
Olivia’s POV
I rushed home as soon as Reed updated me about the current scenario of Olivia’s framing. This was wrong. Not just wrong but evil. And I knew, I had to stop it. Now.
I stormed into the Windsor estate’s family room. I could hear it before I saw it–Chole’s high–pitched screech in full vitriol. Her abuses at Olivia fueled me with disgust.
“Shameless!” she screamed, pacing forward as I opened the door. The family cluster–Amelia, Bob, Madeline–froze mid–sip. sses tilted, expressions drawn.