All Chapters of THE UNDERESTIMATED BILLIONAIRE TYCOON : Chapter 11
- Chapter 20
73 chapters
What a SLAP in the face!
Emma's throat closed.The guards waited, expressions professionally neutral, but their posture screamed authority. Behind them, the crowd pressed closer, phones already raised to capture whatever humiliation was about to unfold.Emma recognized faces in the mass—former clients who'd dropped her the moment bankruptcy hit, investors who'd deleted her emails, competitors who'd probably celebrated her downfall over champagne. They were all watching now, waiting to see her dragged out like the charity case Lillian claimed she was.She tugged at Blake's sleeve, whispered urgently. "Blake, we should just go. Please."Blake didn't move. Didn't even glance at her.The lead guard cleared his throat. "Sir, your pass?""I don't have one," Blake said calmly.The lobby erupted.Laughter rolled through the crowd like a wave breaking against shore. Someone whistled. Someone else called out something Emma couldn't quite hear but that made others laugh harder.The guard blinked, clearly not expecting s
WHEN THE TIDE TURNS
The whispers started before Emma could process Sam's words."CloudPeak Systems? Wasn't that—""—the company that went bankrupt—""—suspended? NovaTech is suspended?""Did he just say—"Lillian's face had gone from shock-white to fury-red in the span of a breath. "There's been a mistake." Her voice came out strangled, pitched too high. "That's not what the press conference said yesterday. I haven't received any notice about—"Her phone buzzed.Everyone heard it in the sudden quiet. A sharp vibration that made Lillian fumble for her purse, hands shaking so badly she nearly dropped it. She pulled out her phone, stared at the screen.And the color drained from her face entirely."No." The word was barely a whisper. Then louder: "No, this is wrong. This can't—"She looked up at Sam, phone clutched like evidence of a crime. "It says—it says my company's IPO has been halted. Suspected violations. Investigation. But that's impossible! We followed every regulation! Every single—"Her voice cra
RAGE TO SHOCK
Lillian's phone vibrated three times before she heard it.She was slumped in the back of a taxi—no driver would recognize her now, not with mascara streaking down her cheeks and her five-thousand-dollar dress wrinkled like garbage. The phone buzzed again. She almost ignored it.Then she saw the caller ID: City Police Department.Her stomach dropped."Hello?""Is this Lillian Sterling?" The voice was clipped, professional, bored. "We have a Mary Patterson in custody. She listed you as her emergency contact. You need to come down and post bail."The world tilted. "My mother? What happened? Is she hurt? Was there an accident—""Ma'am, she's been charged with trespassing and disturbing the peace. Central Station. You have two hours before we process her into holding overnight."The line went dead.Lillian stared at her phone, brain stuttering over the words. Trespassing? Her mother?The taxi pulled up to the curb outside the banquet hall—she'd told the driver to circle back, some desperat
ABOUT TO SNAP
The ice pack was melting.Madam Mary pressed it harder against her swollen cheek, but the cold had already turned lukewarm, useless. Water dripped onto her torn blouse. She sat hunched on the bench in the station's service hall, looking smaller than Lillian had ever seen her.Lillian stood three feet away, arms crossed, jaw so tight it could crack diamonds."You're unbelievable." Lillian's voice was low, controlled, the kind of quiet that preceded explosions. "Do you know how busy I am? Do you have any idea what kind of day I've had? And now I have to waste my time bailing you out of jail like some common criminal?""Lillian, sweetheart, if you'd just let me explain—""Explain what?" Lillian's control shattered. "What could you possibly say that would make this okay? I'm drowning, Mother! My company is suspended, my investors are fleeing, my entire career is imploding, and you're out here getting arrested for trespassing?"Madam Mary flinched. The ice pack slipped, exposing the angry
THAT SON OF A BITCH!
Carter's brain was on fire.The keycard felt like a live grenade in Madam Mary's trembling hand, and he had maybe three seconds before it exploded in his face. He could see her squinting at the faded logo, recognition dawning in her eyes, and Lillian was watching him with that laser focus that meant she was two thoughts away from connecting dots he desperately needed to keep separate.He laughed.The sound came out loud, unexpected, cutting through the tension like a knife. Both women jumped."Oh my God." Carter strode forward, snatched the keycard from Madam Mary's hand before she could protest. "I'm such an idiot. Mother Mary, I'm so sorry. This whole thing is my fault."Madam Mary blinked. "What?""The keycard. It wasn't registered yet." Carter's words came fast, smooth, each one laid down like a stone in a path that led away from the truth. "I was so excited about the apartment that I gave it to you before I even went through the property office. Of course it didn't work! The syst
HE WAS A THIEF
Carter's hands shook as he typed "Blake Sterling" into the search bar for the fifteenth time that hour.Nothing. Again.Just vague references to "Sterling interests" and a few business articles that mentioned the name without substance. No photos. No background. No social media footprint. It was like Blake had been professionally erased from the internet.Carter's phone rang. Marcus—his so-called powerful contact, the regional manager who was supposed to help him take down Blake."Marcus, thank God. Listen, I need you to—"Marcus's laughter cut him off. Sharp. Mocking. "You called me about Blake Sterling? Are you insane?"Carter's stomach dropped. "What?""I don't know who you think you're dealing with, Carter, but you're playing with fire. Actual fire. The kind that burns everything you've ever touched." Marcus's voice lost all humor. "Don't call me again. And if anyone asks, we never spoke."The line went dead.Carter stared at his phone, pulse hammering in his ears. What the hell h
WE HAVE A PROBLEM
Blake's fury was the quiet kind—the kind that didn't scream or break things, just calculated and executed."Sam," he said, voice ice. "I want everything on whoever sent that photo. Now."Sam was already at his laptop, fingers flying across the keyboard. "Running metadata analysis. Photo was taken with a professional camera, telephoto lens. File was stripped of most identifiable markers, but whoever did it missed something."Blake watched the screen, jaw tight. Emma's face stared back at him from the surveillance photo, completely unaware she'd been watched. Hunted."There." Sam pointed. "GPS coordinates embedded in a hidden layer. They were sloppy." He typed faster. "Location triangulates to an office building downtown. Running the address now."The search results loaded. Sam's expression darkened."Cross Investigations. Private firm. Owner is Vincent Cross."Blake's blood went cold. "Vincent Cross.""You know him?""Ten years ago. He represented a plaintiff against Sterling Industrie
A REASON TO STOP HOLDING BACK
The envelope landed on Lillian's doorstep like a death sentence.She'd been pacing her apartment for an hour, running numbers that wouldn't add up no matter how many times she recalculated. Rent was due. Her lawyer's retainer was due. Everything was due, and she had nothing.Then she saw the return address. Law offices of Morrison & Black.Her hands shook as she tore it open.Sterling v. Sterling-Davidson, Davidson, and Webb. Defamation. Damages sought: $500,000,000.The number punched the air from her lungs. Five hundred million. She couldn't even conceptualize that amount of money. It was abstract. Impossible. A figure so large it ceased to have meaning.Except it did have meaning. It meant Blake could take everything she'd ever own. Everything she'd ever earn. For the rest of her life.Her phone was in her hand before conscious thought caught up. Carter answered on the third ring."This will bankrupt me!" Lillian's voice was raw, stripped of everything except panic. "Five hundred m
WHEN YOU DESTROY THEM, I WANT TO WATCH
Blake burst through CloudPeak's entrance, ignoring the receptionist's startled greeting.Emma's office was on the third floor. He took the stairs three at a time, Sam matching his pace. The security detail Blake had assigned stood outside Emma's door, expressions grim."She's inside," one of them said. "Won't let anyone near her."Blake pushed through without knocking.Emma stood at her window, back rigid, hands clenched into fists at her sides. The photos were scattered across her desk—glossy prints of her father's grave defaced with red spray paint, obscenities scrawled across the headstone in jagged letters.She didn't turn when Blake entered."Emma.""They vandalized my father's grave." Her voice was flat. Controlled. The kind of calm that came before explosions. "My father, who worked himself to death so I could have a better life. They spray-painted filth on his headstone because they want to hurt you."Blake moved closer, careful. "I know.""Do you?" Emma finally turned, and Bl
HER SUFFERING WILL BE LEGENDARY
Detective Morris arrived at the cemetery within twenty minutes, two patrol cars behind him.He surveyed the scene with the practiced eye of someone who'd seen too much human ugliness. The tire marks were fresh, carved deep into the grass where the sedan had swerved. Morris knelt, studied them, then looked at Blake and Emma with something between sympathy and frustration."You're making powerful enemies, Mr. Sterling.""They made themselves my enemies first," Blake replied.Morris stood, brushed dirt from his knees. "We've got the license plate. Car's registered to Cross Investigations. I'm bringing Vincent Cross in for questioning now.""He won't crack," Blake said. "He's too smart for that.""Maybe. But let me try."Morris was as good as his word. By the time Blake and Emma reached Sterling estate an hour later, Vincent Cross was already sitting in an interrogation room at the precinct, looking completely unbothered by his surroundings.Morris had sent Blake the live feed. Blake watc