CHAPTER 5
By Wednesday afternoon, the atmosphere inside the Thornton estate had become suffocatingly tense. Heavy storm clouds rolled in from the east, turning the Hudson River into a churning churning mass of grey waves beneath a dark sky.
I sat in the small sunroom off the main hall, pretending to sketch in an leather-bound notepad while watching the household staff prepare for Friday’s gala. Heavy crystal chandeliers were being polished, and floral arrangements of black calla lilies were being placed along the grand marble staircase.
They were preparing a celebration for a takeover that was built entirely on blood, deceit, and murder.
"You look lost in thought, dear sister-in-law."
I flinched, closing my sketchbook quickly as Jason stepped into the glass enclosure, holding two crystal glasses filled with amber liquid.
He offered one to me with a polite, wolfish smile that didn't reach his cold blue eyes.
"I don't drink in the afternoon, Jason," I said flatly, keeping my hands resting firmly in my lap.
"Pity," Jason murmured, taking a sip from his own glass before leaning back against the wrought-iron doorframe. "It’s a rare scotch. Twenty-five years old. Just like the freedom you’re going to enjoy once all this legal nonsense is wrapped up."
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
Jason took a slow step closer, looking down at me with an expression of intense, sickening arrogance.
"I spoke with your father this morning, Emma," Jason revealed, a cruel smirk spreading across his face. "He’s already packing his bags for a permanent vacation in Cabo. It seems the five million dollars I wired him yesterday was more than enough to buy his complete departure."
My chest tightened as a wave of deep, sickening betrayal washed over me.
"My father... took money from you?" I choked out, fighting to keep my voice steady.
"Of course he did," Jason laughed softly. "He sold you to us three weeks ago, and he just sold you out again today. He agreed to sign a non-disclosure statement promising never to contact you or the Thornton family again once the trust transfers to me."
He leaned in close, setting his glass down on the glass table beside my sketchbook with a dull clink.
"You see, Emma, everyone has a price in this world," Jason whispered, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. I jerked my head away from his touch, but he only chuckled. "Your father's price was five million. Yours was saving your family. But when Friday comes, you won't have a husband, a father, or a home."
"I have my dignity, Jason," I said, standing up to meet his gaze directly. "Something you couldn't buy if you owned every dollar in Manhattan."
Jason’s smile vanished instantly, replaced by a dark, dangerous glare that dropped his charming facade completely.
"Dignity doesn't pay for lawyers, sweetheart," Jason sneered, stepping into my personal space. "When Ethan dies on Friday night, you will be thrown out of those front gates with nothing but the clothes on your back. Remember that when you look at him lying in that bed upstairs."
He turned around and strode out of the sunroom, his polished shoes clicking sharply against the marble tile.
I sank back into my chair, my hands shaking uncontrollably as tears of anger and grief threatened to spill over my eyelashes. My own father had abandoned me completely, leaving me entirely alone in a den of wolves.
"He's wrong, you know."
I snapped my head toward the side entrance of the sunroom.
Ethan stood in the heavy shadow of the arched doorway, dressed in a black turtleneck and dark pants, his face pale but his eyes burning with intense fury. He had used the secondary service hallway to come downstairs unnoticed.
"Ethan! What are you doing down here?" I gasped, rushing over to pull him deeper into the shadows. "Someone will see you!"
"I heard everything he said," Ethan rasped, his hands reaching out to grab my shoulders, pulling me close against his chest. "Your father is a coward, Emma. But you are not alone."
I looked up into his hazel eyes, seeing a warmth and tenderness there that completely shattered my remaining defenses.
"They're going to throw me out, Ethan," I whispered, a single tear finally escaping down my cheek. "If this plan fails on Friday, I have nowhere left to go."
Ethan reached up, his large, warm hand gently cradling my cheek, his thumb catching the tear before it reached my lip.
"This plan is not going to fail," Ethan said, his voice ringing with an absolute, fierce certainty that sent shivers down my spine. "And as long as I am breathing, no one will ever throw you out of anywhere."
He leaned down, his forehead resting gently against mine, his warm breath fanning across my lips.
"You saved me from the dark, Emma," Ethan whispered softly. "I am going to build a world for you where no one can ever hurt you again. I promise you that on my life."
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My heart slammed against my ribs as I looked into his eyes, realizing in that quiet, shadowed corner of the sunroom that I was no longer just helping a stranger fight for his inheritance.
I was falling deeply, helplessly in love with my husband.
