Chapter 7: The Call That Was Never Answered
Julian stood frozen, the photograph still clenched tightly in his hand. His heartbeat pounded louder than the silence filling the office. For several minutes, no one dared speak. Daniel remained standing with his head lowered, while the executives outside exchanged nervous glances through the glass walls.
Finally, Julian broke the silence.
"Get out."
Daniel hesitated.
"Sir..."
"I said get out!"
The assistant quickly left, closing the door behind him.
Julian stared again at the photograph of Evelyn. The confident woman smiling beside presidents and CEOs looked nothing like the quiet wife who had spent five years preparing his breakfast, waiting for him after work, and apologizing whenever Cassandra insulted her.
He suddenly remembered countless moments he had ignored.
The night Evelyn effortlessly corrected the valuation of one of his overseas acquisitions after glancing at a financial report for less than a minute.
The charity gala where several foreign diplomats had greeted her warmly, only for her to pretend she didn't recognize them.
The elderly man who once visited their house, bowed respectfully to Evelyn, and introduced himself merely as "an old family friend." Julian had thought nothing of it. Evelyn later claimed he was mistaken.
Now every memory took on an entirely different meaning.
His hands trembled as he grabbed his phone.
He pressed Evelyn's number.
The call could not be completed.
Blocked.
Julian frowned and dialed again.
The same robotic voice answered.
He had been blocked.
His jaw tightened.
He opened his messaging app.
Julian: Where are you? We need to talk.
The message failed to deliver.
He tried another platform.
Blocked.
Another.
Blocked again.
For the first time since building Croft Holdings, Julian realized there was someone he couldn't reach—not because of distance, but because she no longer wanted him in her life.
He immediately called the head of his security team.
"Find Madam."
"Sir... she's no longer in Denver."
"I know that."
"We tracked airport surveillance."
"And?"
"She boarded a private jet yesterday morning."
Julian's grip tightened around the phone.
"Whose jet?"
The security chief hesitated.
"We couldn't identify the owner."
"Why not?"
"Because every record has been sealed under federal-level privacy agreements."
Julian's expression darkened.
Only a handful of families in America possessed enough influence to hide flight records that completely.
He hung up and immediately called Cassandra.
She answered cheerfully.
"Julian! Are we still having dinner tonight?"
"No."
"What?"
"When did you last see Evelyn?"
There was a brief pause.
"After... after she left the mansion."
"You told me she pushed you."
"She did!"
Julian closed his eyes.
"Did she?"
Cassandra's breathing became uneven.
"Julian... why are you asking me this?"
He remembered Daniel's report.
The security footage had never been reviewed.
He had simply believed Cassandra without question.
For the first time, doubt crept into his mind.
"Cassandra..."
His voice was frighteningly calm.
"If I discover you lied to me..."
Before he could finish, Cassandra hurriedly interrupted.
"Julian, you're scaring me."
He ended the call without another word.
Meanwhile, nearly eighteen hundred miles away in Manhattan, Evelyn entered the executive boardroom of Ashford Global.
Twenty-three directors immediately stood.
No one spoke until she reached the head of the table.
Arthur slid a blue folder toward her.
"Chairwoman, every emergency order has been carried out."
She opened it.
All new financing to Croft Holdings had been suspended.
Pending loans had been frozen.
Strategic partnerships were under review.
Three international banks had already withdrawn.
Seven investment funds had quietly exited.
The countdown had begun.
Arthur looked around the room before asking the question everyone had been waiting to hear.
"Shall we continue?"
Evelyn slowly closed the folder.
Her bruises were still visible beneath the collar of her white suit, but her voice remained perfectly steady.
"No."
The directors exchanged confused looks.
Arthur frowned.
"No?"
She looked out at the Manhattan skyline beyond the glass walls.
"Not yet."
"They've already begun collapsing."
"I know."
"Then why stop now?"
A faint smile crossed Evelyn's lips.
"Because a business failure lasts a few years."
She turned back toward the boardroom.
"I want Julian Croft to lose something far more valuable than money."
Arthur understood immediately.
His eyes narrowed.
"His reputation."
Evelyn shook her head.
"Everything."
"The company."
"The family."
"The people he trusts."
"And finally..."
She paused, her expression colder than anyone in the room had ever seen.
"The certainty that he can never be defeated."
The room fell silent.
Every director realized the same thing.
This was no longer a corporate dispute.
May you like
It was the beginning of a war.
And Evelyn Ashford intended to win every single battle.
