Evelyn squeezed Maxine’s hand one last time."I’ll be right back, sweetheart. I just need to talk to the doctor."She followed him into the quiet corridor, her heart racing."Is she alright, Doctor? Truly? There isn't any permanent damage from the accident, is there?"The doctor stopped and looked at her, offering a small, reassuring nod."Physically, she is a marvel. The swelling has subsided completely, and her motor functions seem intact. She is fine, Mrs. Griffin. More than fine. But..." He paused, glancing back at the door. "Being in a coma for that long… the world she woke up to isn't the one she left. She’ll need time to process everything that has happened to her brothers and the estate."Evelyn leaned against the wall, a sob of pure relief escaping her."I don't care about the estate. I just wanted my daughter back.""She is out of the woods, Mrs. Griffin," the doctor said, his voice lowering to ensure the rest of the family inside the room couldn't overhear. "Physically, s

Harold had no idea what had happened afterward. When his eyes opened, all he saw were two nurses wheeling him down a blindingly white hallway, their movements frantic, their faces barely visible through his blurred vision.He tried to draw a breath, but his lungs felt as if they were filled with shards of ice and river silt. The nurses’ faces smeared into streaks of white and blue above him."Mother..." he wheezed, but the word died in his throat, muffled by the oxygen mask being pressed over his face.His hand twitched at the side of the gurney, fingers clawing weakly at the air as if he could still reach the woman he had dragged from the depths of the river. He needed to know if she was breathing. He needed to know if his desperate rescue had meant anything at all. But as the heavy doors of the emergency ward swung open, his strength finally gave out. The sheer exhaustion of fighting the current surged over him like a second tide, and his eyes fluttered shut as darkness claimed

Standing before them, as immovable and stern as a mountain, was Thomas.He held a silver tray in one hand, his posture perfectly straight, silver hair groomed with military precision. His gaze swept downward, taking in the scene before him.Nella, clutching her sides, was still catching her breath.Neil, disheveled and panting, his expression carved into one of profound, icy disappointment."Is there a fire in the estate of which I am unaware?" Thomas asked calmly, his voice a low, rhythmic rumble of authority. "Or have the two of you decided to transform the Washington residence into a playground for unruly children?"Neil snapped to attention instantly, smoothing his rumpled suit jacket and attempting unsuccessfully to hide the lingering flush on his face."Thomas. I… we were just… testing reaction times for tomorrow’s mission."Thomas didn’t blink. His gaze slid to Nella, who was still trembling with suppressed laughter."And you, Miss Nella?" he asked evenly. "Is your reaction tim

The atmosphere at L'Étoile was one of suffocating elegance.Crystal chandeliers hung like frozen rain from the ceiling, and the soft clink of silver against porcelain provided a rhythmic backdrop to the hushed conversations of the city’s elite.Lisa sat at a secluded corner table, her posture rigid. She had spent nearly twenty minutes adjusting her silk scarf and checking her reflection in the back of a polished spoon. On the table before her sat a glass of sparkling water she hadn’t touched. She glanced at her rose-gold watch for the tenth time in three minutes.9:58 AM.She had asked Alicia to arrive around ten. The fact that the woman wasn’t there yet sent a ripple of anxiety through her.“She has to come,” Lisa whispered to herself, her fingers twitching over her phone.She felt the urge to send a Where are you? Text, but forced herself to pull her hand away.In her world, the person who messaged first was the person who was losing. She refused to look desperate, no matter how l

Standing at the edge of their table was a waitress wearing a distinctly unimpressed expression.She held a digital tablet and pen, her gaze flicking between Lisa’s frantic face and Nella’s composed, pregnant poise. She had clearly been within earshot for several minutes, absorbing every word about divorces, mistresses, and swapped or hidden babies.“Are you ladies quite finished with the… prologue?” the waitress asked, her tone heavy with professional exhaustion. “Because you’ve been occupying this high-demand table for exactly thirty-two minutes without ordering so much as a glass of tap water. There’s a line outside of people who would actually like to eat.”Lisa flushed beet red, her mouth falling open.“I—we’re discussing a very important family matter!”“I’m sure,” the waitress replied, unfazed, tapping her pen against the tablet. “The entire floor is now aware of the monsters and the bankrupt empire. But unless those monsters are paying for the lobster bisque, I’m going to need a