Chapter 2: The Arrogance of Entitlement
Victoria let out a shrill, mocking laugh. "The legacy? You mean this house? This name? You think you can walk in here and claim the Blackwood name? You’re delusional."
Victoria glanced at Thorne, her eyes narrowed. "Why are you sitting there like a statue, Aris? Read the waiver. Make her sign it so we can be done with this charade."
Thorne opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He looked at Maya, then at the envelope. He knew the contents. He knew that the moment he broke that seal, his own career—built on years of helping Victoria manipulate the estate—would evaporate. He had helped Victoria hide her reckless spending, her board-room betrayals, and her callous treatment of the staff. He had thought he could bury the truth forever.
"I can't, Victoria," Thorne finally croaked.
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"You can't?" Victoria stepped toward him, her poise finally cracking, revealing the petulant, spoiled core underneath. "I pay your firm millions. I am the sole beneficiary of the Blackwood estate. That is the law. That is the will. Open it and get it over with."
Maya watched them, her heart beating with the steady, rhythmic calm of a drum. She had spent years working in the shadows of the Blackwood empire, watching the heiress waste, destroy, and hoard. But she had also been the one constant in the father’s final, lonely years. She was the one he trusted.
