All Chapters of THE CASTAWAY HEIR: POWER UNSEEN: Chapter 21
- Chapter 30
119 chapters
CHAPTER 21
The next morning dawned clear and golden. Sophia sat in the passenger seat of Ryan’s black sedan, crossing one leg over the other. Her freshly polished nails—painted a sharp shade of crimson—caught the light as she lifted her sunglasses, setting them neatly on the bridge of her nose before flipping her glossy hair over her shoulder. “You okay?” Ryan asked,. “I’m fine. I'm just excited that today’s the day everything goes back to normal.” Ryan flicked a glance toward her, then back to the road. He gave a small, certain smile and a slow nod, as if sealing a private bargain. “It will,” he said, voice low and cold. “I’ve set the stage. By the end of this, that pathetic ex-husband of yours and his tawdry mistress will be shamed into silence.” “You really think so?” Sophia asked, searching his expression for a hint of doubt. “I do,” Ryan said firmly. “You’ve got exactly what he wants—results, contacts, stability. Walk in, make your case, show your proof, and you won’t have
CHAPTER 22
Brandon looked up and met their gaze. Sophia didn’t bother with niceties. She stepped forward, eyes hard as flint, and spat,”you fool! What the hell are you doing here?" “A walking joke in a suit,” she sneered. “You strut around like someone important, but if only you knew—everyone sees you for what you really are: a charity case with delusions." “Tell me, Brandon, how does it feel to wake up every day and pretend you’re not a failure? Do you rehearse the lies in front of a mirror?” Ryan cut in without waiting, leaning close enough for Brandon to smell the arrogance. “Pathetic,” he purred. “You’ve spent your whole life feeding off leftovers that stronger people leave behind. Charity is the only reason you’re still breathing—and the only thing keeping you dressed.” And now look at you—standing here like some lost stray. What is it this time? Another handout? Or did you come crawling for a security job?” Sophia gave Brandon a disdainful look as she stepped closer, unti
CHAPTER 23
Within moments, the command was relayed down the chain — from the manager to his secretary, and finally to the sleek marble reception area, where Ryan and Sophia sat waiting. The secretary, a young woman in a neat gray suit, approached cautiously, her heels clicking softly against the polished floor. Her movements were careful, deliberate — as though she knew the message she carried would not be well received. “Excuse me, Mr. Cooper, Ms. Bennett,” she began hesitantly. “The CEO has requested that your appointment be canceled. He won’t be available to meet you today — or in the foreseeable future.” The words hit the air like a slap. Ryan blinked, unsure if he’d heard correctly. “I’m sorry,” he said, forcing a laugh that sounded brittle. “Could you repeat that?” The secretary hesitated, her eyes flickering toward Sophia before returning to Ryan. “Your meeting has been canceled, sir. Effective immediately.” Ryan’s face darkened. The confidence he’d worn like armor
CHAPTER 24
Ryan leaned back in the sleek white leather chair of the reception area, trying his best to look composed, even relaxed. He shifted slightly, crossing one leg over the other to appear calm, though his palms had begun to sweat. He could feel the weight of the moment pressing against him, heavier with each passing second. He forced himself to glance casually at Sophia, who sat beside him — flawless as always, one leg crossed elegantly over the other, chin raised in that effortless way that screamed confidence. She was smirking, even gloating, clearly amused by the absurdity of being “mistakenly denied” entry.“I told you,” she said, brushing back a lock of her golden-brown hair with a manicured hand, “this kind of thing always happens. Some underpaid staffer probably mixed up our names. They’ll sort it out once you're able to get across to Mr Whitmore."Ryan managed a half-smile, but it felt heavy on his lips. “Exactly,” he murmured. “They’ll sort it out soon.”Still, beneath the su
CHAPTER 25
Ryan and Sophia stood side by side, laughing quietly. The tension from earlier had finally begun to fade as the both of them prepared to leave. Just then, they noticed a sudden quietness in the lobby. The atmosphere shifted as if a hand had closed over the lobby. Footsteps approached and the idle conversations that had bubbled through the space thinned into a string of distracted murmurs. The grand lobby, with its polished marble and curated art, seemed to narrow around the sound, concentrating it until every echo mattered. Both Ryan and Sophia instinctively turned toward the sweeping staircase that led from the upper offices down to the main floor. Descending with a fluid, effortless grace was Jessica Marion. She moved as if the building had always been hers to enter—poised, controlled, radiating a reserve of confidence that had nothing to prove and everything to command. Her coat swung around her legs in understated motion and her face was composed. What made Ryan’
CHAPTER 26
Jessica’s shoulders didn’t twitch. Even as Sophia’s words came out like venom, Jessica’s face remained a smooth, unreadable mask. The lobby seemed to narrow around them — the marble, the glass, the bright corporate logos — yet she stood utterly composed, as if the world had slowed for her alone. “You don’t get to threaten me. You made your choices. I made mine. If you want to destroy me, go ahead. But know this: I don’t fear your empty threats,” Jessica responded coldly. The words hung in the air. Sophia’s face turned bright red; her lips moved as if to speak, then snapped shut. She lunged forward, but Jessica and Brandon, both smirking at the scene, just turned and walked away. In that moment, Sophia’s anger turned into cold, bitter scheming. She wanted Jessica humiliated, exposed, and ruined. Now, she wanted nothing but revenge! ********* Two days later, Ryan lounged in his living room and tapped a number on his phone. “Hey, Johnson.” “Ryan — what’s up?”
CHAPTER 27
Sophia paced across the living room with her heels striking the polished floor, while Ryan leaned casually against the doorway with a sly smirk spreading across his lips. “No one humiliates me and gets away with it,” Sophia said. Ryan’s smirk deepened. “Go on, finish what you started. Celebration can wait—do what must be done.” That was all Sophia needed to hear. Fueled by Ryan’s encouragement and her own festering resentment, she set to work that very night. She drafted a formal petition addressed to the regulatory authorities and the board of Scott Holdings. Her tone was controlled but poisonous — professional enough to sound credible, yet infused with sharp insinuations that Jessica had committed corporate fraud and stolen Sophia’s intellectual property. The petition accused Jessica of deceit, citing “unethical manipulation of corporate listings and the wrongful appropriation of proprietary market data.” In the supporting statement, Sophia referenced Jessica r
CHAPTER 28
The footage exposing Ryan and Sophia’s lies had gone viral before the night was even over. Within hours, snippets of the scandal flooded every major news platform. Hashtags trended worldwide — #RekonCollapse and #SophiaRyanScandal — while gossip sites feasted on every detail. The city was merciless. Screens replayed the moment their faces had fallen, the way the crowd had gasped, and the visible panic that had rippled through the hall when their deceit was revealed.By dawn, reporters were stationed outside Rekon International’s headquarters. Cameras flashed from every corner. Questions flew like bullets:“Miss Bennett, was it true you forged corporate documents?”“Mr Cooper, did you conspire against Miss Jessica Marion?”“Do you have anything to say about the evidence revealed last night?”Ryan had kept his head low as he shoved through the sea of microphones, pulling Sophia by the hand. Her eyes were now red and unfocused. She didn’t respond to a single question. She didn’t ha
CHAPTER 29
Sophia's head jerked up, eyes darting toward the phone. For a moment, she just stared at it. The past few days had been filled with calls — reporters demanding interviews, furious investors threatening lawsuits, creditors demanding explanations. Nothing good ever came through that phone anymore. Still, something inside her told her to answer. The screen flashed a name she hadn’t seen in months: Claire – City Branch Manager (Aurora Beauty Co.) Sophia blinked. Aurora Beauty was her cosmetic brand and her first business — the one she’d started years before she’d become CEO of Rekon. She’d almost forgotten it existed, having handed full control to her loyal assistant, Claire, when Rekon took off. Aurora had once been her dream. With a hesitant breath, she pressed “answer.” “Hello?” her voice cracked slightly. “Ma’am! Thank goodness you picked up!” Claire’s voice came through the line, bright and almost breathless. “I’ve been trying to reach you all day — you w
CHAPTER 30
Ryan noticed the shift in Sophia’s expression immediately. Just moments ago, Sophia had been radiant with relief, smiling through tears, even laughing faintly as if the world had finally given her a reason to breathe again. But now, her expression had changed. Her shoulders sagged and her fingers tightened around her phone.He stepped closer with his voice barely above a whisper. “Sophia, what is it? What’s wrong?”She didn’t answer at first. Her gaze stayed fixed on the glass wall in front of her. Finally, she sighed, lowering her phone onto the table. “Ryan,” she said quietly, “I just… I don’t think I can do this anymore.”Ryan frowned, taken aback. “Do what?”“Manage all of it,” she murmured. “Aurora Beauty, the cosmetics branch — I thought hearing the success news would make me happy again. I thought it would remind me of who I was before everything fell apart. But now that it’s actually growing, I realize… I’m not ready. I’m not in the right state to lead anyone right no