He Made Her Queen, Then Took Her Crown

Chapter 3: The Crack Beneath The Crown

 Three days had passed since Rowan dropped the divorce papers and left.

 No calls. No messages. Not even a ghost of a presence in the apartment they once shared. Lena didn’t care. At least that’s what she told herself every time she slipped off her heels and stepped into the silence of their—no, her condo. 

 Lena did not sign the divorce papers, or rather, she had no time to sit down to sign some papers which were practically useless. She believed Rowan would eventually come to his senses and return to her on his knees, begging for her to accept him back. The world was cruel to poor losers like him. As for her, she would eventually drop the dead weight. She just needed to clear her head first.

 She had her promotion. She had respect. She had Dominic Voss—the silver-tongued exec whose gaze always lingered too long.

 And yet…

 “Ma’am,” her assistant called from the doorway, a tight expression on her face. “The CFO from QuantumBridge just canceled the meeting. They said they'll be ‘shifting their partnerships elsewhere.’”

 Lena’s brow creased. “What? We were this close to signing that merger.”

 “I know,” the assistant said. “They didn’t give a reason.”

 Lena waved her off and sat back. Her heels ached. Her head was pounding.

 Just a bad day, she thought. Everyone has one.

 But then the emails started flooding in.

 Subject: Urgent – Redacted Funds

Subject: Supplier Contracts Pulled

Subject: Delays on Delivery. Immediate Action Required

 By noon, three major accounts had gone cold. Clients who’d practically begged to work with her just last week now refused to take her calls. Her mother, the manager of her department, walked into her office in the afternoon, her face pale.

 “They're saying there's a leak,” she whispered. “Legal’s involved. And the regional director… he’s looking into your projects personally. What is going on, Lena?”

 Lena blinked. “What the hell are you talking about?”

 Her mother hesitated, eyes flickering with doubt. “Are you sure you didn’t mess with the numbers? All this progress… it came too fast, Lena. You were top of the board for months. You don’t fail me, girl.”

 The words stung deeper than she expected.

 **************

 Lena’s heels hit the sidewalk in rushed, clipped steps. Her driver had called out sick—again—so she was left navigating the madness of evening traffic like any other ordinary person. She hated being late. Especially tonight.

 The Obsidian Tech gala was the biggest corporate gathering of the quarter. Every major player in the city would be there—investors, CEOs, partners, the press, and most importantly, Echelon Eight Group, the biggest firm in the world. She was going not just as a guest, but as the newly celebrated golden girl of the company. The woman who closed two of the most difficult partnerships in the last six months.

 Except now... both of those deals had just fallen through. She’d barely reached her building when her phone started ringing.

 Unknown Number.

 She picked it up.

 “Miss Aston,” came the voice of Mr. Granger—one of the key investors at Apex Holdings, one of Obsidian’s biggest partners. “I assume you’ll be attending the gala?”

 “Yes, of course.” She tried to steady her tone. “Why?”

 “There will be a follow-up meeting afterward. The board wants to have a word. Some questions have come up. I’d advise you to be there. Promptly.”

 Her stomach dropped. “Is something wrong?” 

 There was a long pause. Then: “Just... be prepared.” The line clicked off.

 Lena stood frozen on the curb, phone still pressed to her ear as the wind blew past her.

 Prepared for what? Bad? Good?

 As the elevator took her up to the 14th floor, her inbox was already stacking with red flags.

 Subject: Termination of MOU – Westline Digital

Subject: Urgent – Delay in Fund Release

Subject: Notice of Compliance Review

 Each ping was like a pin to her spine.

 Inside her condo, the walls felt too quiet again. She kicked off her shoes and paced, biting down on her bottom lip. She opened her laptop, pulling up the latest numbers. The math didn’t add up. None of it did.

 She called Calvin—the firm’s junior financial analyst, who always double-checked her files.

 “Did something change with the QuantumBridge account?” she asked, trying to sound composed.

 “No, I mean... it did, but I thought you knew. All the backend assistance we used to get—like the algorithm targeting and optimization systems we used for the pitches—those were handled by your private partner, weren’t they?”

 Lena paused. “My what?”

 Calvin cleared his throat awkwardly. “Rowan. I mean... I assumed you guys worked together.” Her mind reeled.

 Those pitch decks... the perfect presentations... the data insights that somehow got them in rooms no one else could.

 Rowan.

 She sank onto the couch, fingers pressing into her temple.

 She remembered now. The late nights he’d be tapping away on his laptop, casually asking her about her client list. He always claimed he just liked helping. She thought he was just messing around, playing pretend businessman while she carried the real weight.

 But now... without him...

 It felt like the scaffolding had been ripped from under her success. And no one was coming to catch her.

 Still, she shook her head. No. She’d fix this. She just needed to look sharp tonight. Smile. Keep it all together. Rowan was nothing but a loser, and really, Dominic or any other person could do what he did and more. Or she could simply hire her own PA.

 She moved to her wardrobe and pulled out her black velvet gown—the one that screamed “power” and “untouchable.” Her hair was quickly swept up, and makeup was applied with precise hands. As she added the final touch—diamond earrings she bought herself—her phone buzzed again.

 A message from her mother:

“Be careful tonight. The board isn’t happy. Something about tampered projections.”

 Her pulse quickened. Then another ping.

 Dominic Voss: “Car’s waiting downstairs. Let’s not keep the sharks waiting, superstar”

 She stared at the screen for a moment longer, then turned off her phone and grabbed her clutch.