CHAPTER 2 – The Fall Begins
CHAPTER 2 – The Fall Begins
The mansion remained frozen long after Elena walked away.
Daniel stood in the foyer, staring at the open doorway.
"No..." he whispered.
"This can't be happening."
The black SUVs disappeared beyond the gates.
Inside the house, silence became unbearable.
Then Daniel's phone rang.
It was the Board Secretary.
He answered immediately.
"Tell me this is some kind of mistake."
The voice on the other end was calm.
"I'm afraid it isn't, Mr. Ward."
"An emergency board meeting has been called."
"Effective immediately, your executive authority has been suspended pending investigation."
Daniel's knees nearly gave out.
"What investigation?"
"The unauthorized use of corporate assets."
His eyes slowly drifted toward the garage.
The cars...
The penthouse...
The company credit cards...
Everything had belonged to Elena.
Everything he had proudly shown Chloe...
...had never been his.
Across the room, Patricia finally found her voice.
"Fix this."
Daniel shook his head.
"I don't know how."
Chloe stepped backward.
"You lied to me."
"I didn't know!"
"You told everyone you owned this company!"
"I thought I did!"
She stared at him with complete disgust.
"You built our entire relationship on something that wasn't even yours."
Without another word...
She removed the engagement ring.
Placed it on the table.
And walked out.
May you like
For the first time in years...
Daniel realized what true loss felt like.
