"I don't want you to go," Marcus sobbed, his child's body shaking with terror. "Please don't leave me."Mary pulled him into a hug that felt achingly real. "Oh, baby. We're not leaving you. We'll always be with you, even when you can't see us.""That's not the same!""No, it's not." James joined the embrace, wrapping his strong arms around both of them. "But sometimes being a parent means making impossible choices. And tonight, we choose to keep you safe, no matter the cost."Through his tears, Marcus felt his adult consciousness fighting against the dream logic. This wasn't real. His parents hadn't known they were going to die. They'd kissed him goodbye without a second thought, expecting to return in a few hours.Wei's showing me the guilt I've carried for twenty years. The fantasy that if I'd known, if I'd said the right thing, I could have stopped them."There's something you need to know," Mary said, pulling back to look at him seriously. "About who you really are, Marcus. About

"Because I'm not fighting you," Marcus said. "I'm accepting you. Every terrible thing you've done, every person you've hurt, every moment of cruelty. I'm accepting that you're exactly what you fear you are."Marcus knelt down to Wei's eye level. "And then I'm choosing to believe you can be better. Not because you've earned it. Not because you deserve it. But because that's what the Chen family does. We refuse to give up on broken people."Wei's eyes filled with tears. "My sister would have been better at this than me. She was always the kind one, the one who cared about people. I'm just...""A scared kid who made a mistake and never learned how to move past it." Marcus stood, offering his hand. "But you can learn now. Starting with releasing every person you've trapped in your dreams.""If I do that, I lose my only source of power. I'll be defenseless against the other heirs.""Good. You should be defenseless. You've proven you can't be trusted with power." Marcus kept his hand exten

"Don't do what? Hold him accountable for selling you like cattle?""He's still my father." Emma's voice cracked. "As terrible as he is, as many mistakes as he's made... he's still the man who raised me."Marcus looked at her in disbelief. "After everything he's admitted...""I know. Believe me, I know." Emma wiped her tears. "But if I cut him off completely, if I let you destroy him financially, I become just another Chen heir using power to hurt people. And I'm trying really hard not to be that person."James looked up at his daughter with desperate hope. "Emma, sweetheart...""Don't." Emma held up her hand. "I'm not forgiving you. I'm not forgetting what you did. But I'm giving you one chance to make this right.""Anything. I'll do anything.""You're going to sell Williams Construction to Marcus for one dollar. You're going to sign over any claims you have to Chen family connections. And you're going to tell everyone, everyone, that your daughter married Marcus Chen because she chos

"It's a reminder that you're playing in a league you don't understand," Richard's voice hardened. "You think because you inherited some money and a company name that you belong here? You're still the same worthless waiter who couldn't keep his wife satisfied."The words hit like a physical blow. Marcus felt his System stirring, combat protocols activating as his body prepared for violence. But he forced it down, forced himself to stay calm.He wants me to lose control. To prove I'm still the same hotheaded fool who went to prison."You're right about one thing," Marcus said quietly. "I was a terrible husband three years ago. I let Emma down in ways I'm still trying to make up for. But here's the difference between us, Richard."Marcus stepped closer, his voice dropping so only Richard and Victoria could hear."I grew up. I learned from my mistakes. I became someone worthy of a woman like Emma. You, on the other hand, are still the same shallow parasite who only valued her for her fami

"You're trying to silence me! To buy my silence like you buy everything else!""I'm trying to give you a way out that doesn't end with you in prison." Marcus wrote a check and held it out. "Two hundred thousand dollars and a signed statement. That's more money than this place will make in the next five years, and we both know it.""I have evidence! Real evidence!" Tony's voice was rising with panic now."No, you have documents Richard Sterling created for you. Documents that won't hold up to thirty seconds of forensic analysis." Marcus pulled out his phone again. "I have the name of the document forger Richard used. Former employee of Sterling Development, fired for creating fake contracts. He's very interested in testifying in exchange for immunity."The lie came easily. Marcus had no such person, but Tony didn't know that."This is harassment! Intimidation!" Tony looked to the reporters for support, but they were watching the drama unfold with hungry eyes. This wasn't the story the