Chapter 3 - The Broken Seal
Night draped itself over the estate like a heavy, velvet shroud.
Emily huddled in the pantry, the drive hidden deep inside her dress.
She listened to the sounds of the house—the creak of the floorboards, the muffled shouting of her in-laws, the ticking of the grandfather clock in the foyer.
She felt like an intruder in her own life.
The door to the pantry swung open.
Victoria stood there, her silhouette tall and imposing against the light of the hallway.
"You're not going anywhere, Emily."
She stepped inside, closing the door behind her.
"We need to talk about your 'accident'."
Emily pressed her back against the shelves, the cans of food digging into her spine.
"It wasn't an accident, Victoria."
"It would have been," Victoria murmured, her voice silk over steel. "If you had just let go."
She reached out, her fingers tracing the air near Emily’s throat.
"You’re carrying a heavy burden. The Thorne name, the child, the expectations. It’s too much for someone as… plain as you."
Emily’s heart hammered, but she found her voice.
"You want the company," Emily said, her gaze fixed on the woman’s cold, lifeless eyes. "You think if my child is gone, you can control Arthur, and through him, the board."
Victoria laughed, a sound that lacked any humanity.
"I don't just want the company, Emily. I want the history. I want to ensure that nothing—not even a child—disrupts what I have spent twenty years securing."
She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, metallic pen.
"I have a proposition. You give me the rights to your child upon birth, and you leave this house with enough money to disappear forever."
Emily felt a surge of cold fire in her blood.
"My child is not for sale."
"Everything is for sale," Victoria countered. "Even your life."
She took a step closer, but suddenly, the pantry lights flickered and died.
In the darkness, Emily heard the sound of the back door being forced open.
Marcus.
He had signaled the backup.
Victoria turned toward the noise, her arrogance momentarily shaken.
In that fraction of a second, Emily moved.
She shoved past her mother-in-law, the metal drive hard against her skin.
She didn't look back.
She sprinted through the hallway, her belly aching, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
She made it to the grand foyer, where the doors were guarded by two of Victoria’s personal bodyguards.
She knew she couldn't run past them.
She had to make a choice.
May you like
She looked at the staircase—the same one she had nearly fallen down.
She knew what she had to do.
