Chapter 6: The Assistant's Terrifying Discovery
Julian had not slept.
By sunrise, three more investment funds had withdrawn from negotiations, two acquisition deals had been suspended, and Croft Holdings' legal department was flooded with requests for contract reviews. None of it made sense. There was no scandal, no financial irregularity, no failed earnings report. Yet it felt as if an invisible hand was slowly tightening around his empire, squeezing the life out of every partnership he had spent years building.
He stormed into the executive floor before anyone else arrived.
His assistant, Daniel Brooks, was already waiting outside the office, clutching a thick stack of files. The young man had worked for Julian for nearly eight years. He had witnessed hostile takeovers, billion-dollar negotiations, and courtroom victories. Never once had he looked this frightened.
Julian tossed his briefcase onto the desk.
"I trust you have good news."
Daniel lowered his head.
"I'm afraid... I don't."
Julian's patience snapped.
"Then explain why every company is suddenly acting as though Croft Holdings has become radioactive."
Daniel silently placed several folders on the desk.
"I spent the entire night tracing every canceled investment, every delayed loan, every frozen acquisition."
Julian flipped through the reports.
"They're all connected?"
"Yes, sir."
"To Ashford Capital again?"
Daniel nodded.
"But this time we traced the ownership structure further."
Julian looked up sharply.
"And?"
Daniel hesitated for several seconds.
His voice became almost a whisper.
"Ashford Capital is only one branch."
Julian frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"It answers to another company."
Daniel slid the final document across the polished desk.
Ashford Global Holdings.
Julian stared at the familiar name.
"I've heard of them."
"Everyone has."
"They're private."
"Extremely private."
Julian leaned back.
"So who owns them?"
Daniel swallowed hard.
"No public records exist."
"But..."
"My contacts in New York found something that was never meant to become public."
Julian's eyes narrowed.
"Speak."
"The founder died years ago."
"I know that."
"The company has only one surviving heir."
Julian tapped his fingers impatiently.
"And?"
Daniel's hands were visibly trembling now.
"The sole heiress returned to New York yesterday morning."
Julian shrugged.
"So?"
Daniel looked as though he wanted to say something but couldn't force the words out.
Finally, he spoke.
"Sir..."
"What?"
"I requested an internal identity verification through a private intelligence firm."
Julian's expression darkened.
"What did they find?"
Daniel slowly opened the final folder.
Inside was a photograph.
Not of a billionaire.
Not of a celebrity.
Not of a Wall Street executive.
It was Evelyn.
The picture had clearly been taken years ago.
She stood in front of a towering glass headquarters, dressed in an elegant white suit, confidently shaking hands with world leaders during an international economic summit.
Julian stared at the image.
His face drained of color.
"No..."
Daniel continued cautiously.
"The facial recognition system returned a ninety-nine point nine-eight percent match."
Julian slammed both hands onto the desk.
"Impossible!"
"Sir..."
"My wife worked in a charity foundation before we met!"
Daniel closed his eyes.
"We verified every document."
"The records from five years ago were fabricated."
Julian felt the room spin.
Every memory suddenly returned.
Evelyn never cared about expensive jewelry.
She never asked for money.
She never argued when he worked late.
She had even smiled when he once joked that she looked too ordinary to survive among billionaires.
Not once had she defended herself.
Because she never needed to.
Daniel finally uttered the sentence he had been dreading all morning.
"Boss..."
His voice shook uncontrollably.
"We're doomed."
Julian looked up slowly.
Daniel took one deep breath.
"Madam is back in New York..."
"...and she's the sole heiress of Ashford Global."
The office fell into absolute silence.
For the first time in his life, Julian Croft wasn't thinking about money.
He wasn't thinking about business.
He wasn't even thinking about the billions disappearing before his eyes.
He was thinking about one terrifying truth.
The woman he had thrown into the rain...
The woman whose ribs he had ordered broken...
May you like
Was the only person powerful enough to destroy everything he had ever built.
And she finally knew exactly how to do it.
