LOGINLuna's answer leaves Marcus frozen in place."Marcus, do you still remember how you felt five years ago, when you sat in my family's living room and told me to leave the country and get rid of my child?"Her voice is soft, but every word cuts."Maybe you forgot a long time ago."Luna lifts her eyes to him, the hatred in them clean and merciless. "But I remember. I remember every word you used to humiliate me. I remember sitting on the floor while you stood over me with that arrogant, judgmental face, as if my pain was nothing more than an inconvenience to your precious sister."Marcus stares at her, suddenly unable to breathe.This version of Luna feels like a stranger.Maybe her affection has been a lie from the very beginning."How does it feel?" Luna asks, a faint smile touching her lips.She raises one finger and presses it hard against his chest. "Does it hurt? Is it unbearable?"Marcus staggers back half a step."You can't even handle knowing I never loved you?" Luna lets out a
When she steps inside, the entire apartment is pitch-black.With the Vane Group bleeding millions on the market, she expects Marcus to be at headquarters, fighting fires all night.Then she turns on the lights. A shadow shifts on the sofa.Luna's heart skips.Marcus sits in the dark, his chin resting against the backrest, his clothes wrinkled and his eyes bloodshot."Luna..." His voice carries the desperate whine of a wounded stray. "You're finally back.""Why are you sitting here without the lights on?"Marcus lifts a trembling hand toward her. His hair falls messily over his forehead, and grief has stripped him of every trace of arrogance. He looks like a beautiful, broken boy drowning in a storm he cannot survive.Luna stares at his outstretched hand for a long moment.Then she places her palm in his.She walks around the sofa and sits beside him. The second she settles down, Marcus drops his head onto her shoulder and buries his face into her neck."How could they just die like th
The moment Luna leaves the ward, she is dragged into a dizzying chain of procedures.She claims Nathan's charred "remains," processes the emergency death certificates, and sends her driver straight to Ethan's penthouse. By the time she sinks into the sofa, her body is running on nothing but exhaustion.The stamped death certificate rests in her hands.A smile spreads across her face.Nathan Vane is dead.Even if Marcus still holds 25 percent of the Vane Group, it is time to lay her cards on the table. With Nathan's transferred assets and the 10 percent public shares Ethan has quietly bought up for her, Luna now controls 46 percent.Gerald Vane is already powerless. Even if he combines his remaining shares with Marcus's, he can no longer outvote her.Luna closes her eyes.The moment she returns home, she will strip Marcus of his final illusion.Right on cue, her phone vibrates against the table."Marcus.""Are you in New York?" His voice cracks through the receiver, breathless and stra
"What do you mean, it's not your child?" Grace Caldwell's eyes widen in horror.The cold smirk on Ethan's face confirms her worst fear. She turns stiffly toward the hospital bed, staring at the pale, trembling woman beneath the sheets."Stella...you cheated on him?"Tears stream down Stella's face as she bites her lower lip, her bloodshot eyes locked on Ethan."How could you hire a body double to sleep with me in the dark?" Stella screams, her voice hoarse after days of torment. "How is that any different from rape?"She has not cheated. Ethan has orchestrated his own betrayal, using her body and her obsession as the weapons that destroy her.Ethan leans back in his chair. "Aren't you a fan of forcing yourself on people, Stella?""Five years ago, you colluded with my mother to drug me and take advantage of my incapacitated state," he says. "Compared to what you did, my methods are already merciful.""So what are those tears for?"Grace finally pieces the truth together. She gasps and
A single amber floor lamp casts long shadows across the dining room, its glow catching Luna's elegant features as she props her chin in one hand and watches Nathan slice the medium-rare steak on her plate."Did I ever agree to a candlelight dinner with you?" Luna asks, her voice sleepy and irritated. She has been buried beneath her duvet until Nathan pulls her out of bed."Didn't you?" Nathan asks, barely lifting his eyes as he points at the leather folder beside her left hand. "Read that before you give me your final answer."Luna frowns, pulls the folder closer, and flips it open.SHARE TRANSFER AGREEMENT.The bold words make her heart skip. She scans the terms quickly, and her gaze freezes on one number.Twenty-six percent?"Is this really all the stock you hold in the Vane Group?" Luna asks, suppressing the sharp flicker of excitement in her chest.How can he possibly overthrow Gerald Vane with only 26 percent?"Too little for your taste?""Didn't you promise me everything you own
Stella traces the gold rim of her teacup, a highly satisfied smile playing on her lips.She has just signed the final share transfer agreement, placing her portion of the Vane empire securely into Ethan's capable hands.As expected, Nathan wastes no time tracking her down to confront her."You are an absolute fool," Nathan sneers. "You hand over your only piece of leverage, and you are still sitting here counting the money for the man who played you. Let's see exactly how long Ethan stays with you now that you are useless.""You are just bitter because you can never have Luna's heart, so you assume everyone else is as miserable as you," she snaps back, casually gesturing for the estate manager to escort him out. "Ethan has been incredibly devoted to me and our baby. I know exactly what true love looks like."Nathan lets out a low chuckle. "Then enjoy playing the perfect Mrs. Caldwell and the untouchable Vane heiress...while it lasts."His parting smile sends a cold, inexplicable shive
"Another video call."Anticipating that the incoming video call carries a family weight she shouldn't explicitly be privy to, Luna smoothly lowers her eyes and steps back half a pace—precisely enough to demonstrate a courteous respect for his privacy, yet remaining just visible enough within the ca
The rain hasn't stopped.Inside the master suite, Marcus stands motionless before the fogged bathroom mirror. As the steam slowly clears, he looks at his collarbone and feels confusion, recollection, and then a particular variety of self-directed irritation that has no clean outlet.It is a bite ma
The entire booth goes dead silent for two seconds.Then, as if choreographed, every single fashion executive at the table turns to stare at them, their faces collectively mirroring the immense satisfaction of people who have just been handed irrefutable confirmation of a secret they already suspect
The next week, Sophie slides the folder across the table without ceremony.Nolan looks at it for a long moment without touching it. The kraft paper envelope, the slightly too-neat edges of something that required effort to compile—he knows what it costs to get information that's been buried this th







