CHAPTER 4

When the Empire Fell

News spread across every major business network.

"The Brooks Empire Collapses."

Stock prices crashed.

Investors fled.

Luxury magazines removed Adrian from upcoming covers.

Political donors cut ties.

Friends stopped answering his calls.

The mansion emptied.

Luxury cars disappeared.

Artwork entered auction houses.

Employees packed boxes in silence.

For the first time in years...

Adrian understood loneliness.

He finally visited the small apartment where Claire had stayed after being thrown out.

She wasn't there.

Instead...

Richard answered.

"You finally came."

Adrian lowered his head.

"I loved her."

Richard nodded.

"I know."

"So why didn't she tell me?"

"Because she wanted someone to love Claire..."

"...not the Ashford fortune."

Adrian closed his eyes.

For the first time...

He understood exactly when he had lost everything.

It wasn't yesterday.

MY HUSBAND SMASHED A PLATE AGAINST MY HEAD IN FRONT OF HIS ENTIRE FAMILY...

I never told my in-laws that I am the daughter of the Chief Justice of t...

I never told my in-laws that I am the daughter of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. When I was seven months pregnant, they f...

# My Husband Walked Into the NICU With His Pregnant Mistress, Threw Divo...

# My Husband Walked Into the NICU With His Pregnant Mistress, Threw Divorce Papers Onto My Bed, and Called Our Tiny Twins a Burden...

It happened years earlier...

The moment success became more important than love.