The front door clicked shut, sealing Kane’s departure for the office.
"Have a great day, honey," I had told him, offering a flawless smile.
He had kissed my cheek, completely oblivious to the venom coursing through my veins.
An hour later, the doorbell rang.
I set my coffee mug on the granite counter and walked through the foyer. I expected a courier. Maybe another bouquet of apology roses from Kane.
I pulled the door open.
Mia stood on my welcome mat.
She wore a crimson silk dress. It hugged her waist perfectly, the fabric shimmering under the porch light. I recognized the design instantly. The charge had appeared on Kane’s corporate card three weeks ago under the label "Client Entertainment."
"You have a lot of nerve showing up here," I said, keeping my voice entirely flat.
"And you have a lot of nerve pretending yesterday didn't happen," Mia shot back, pushing past me into the apartment.
She walked straight into the living room, her gaze sweeping over the custom furniture and expensive art. She belonged in a college dorm, yet she surveyed my home like a queen inspecting her newly conquered territory.
My hand slipped into my pocket. My thumb found the side button on my phone.
Swipe. Tap.
The recording app activated. I left the phone resting deep in the fabric of my cardigan, the microphone perfectly positioned.
"Did Kane send you?" I asked, turning to face her.
"Kane doesn't know I'm here," Mia said, trailing a finger along the back of the velvet sofa. "He’s too busy running the empire you claim to have built."
"I see." I leaned against the doorframe. "Would you like a cup of tea while you insult me in my own home?"
Mia paused, her eyes narrowing. She clearly expected me to scream. She wanted a screaming match, a hysterical woman she could report back to Kane about.
"You really are pathetic," she sneered.
"Am I?"
"You think you’re his partner." Mia crossed her arms, the crimson silk shifting. "You're just a free nanny. You organize his calendar. You fetch his dry cleaning. You play house."
"I managed the initial capital," I corrected mildly. "I secured our first three major accounts."
"Ancient history," Mia scoffed. "He told me everything, Iris. He said you nag him about budgets while I actually make him feel alive. You have zero value to him now."
I tilted my head, studying her flushed face. "He said that to you?"
"He says a lot of things to me." She took a step closer, her chin raised. "He never loved you, Iris. You were just useful. A stepping stone so he could get off the ground. Now he’s at the top, and he wants a woman who fits his status."
"A woman like you."
"Exactly." She smoothed her hands down the front of her dress. "Do you like the silk? He bought it for me in Paris. We spent three days in a suite overlooking the Eiffel Tower while you were back here, balancing his spreadsheets."
The old Iris would have shattered. The old Iris would have fallen to her knees, weeping over the betrayal.
Today, a dark amusement bloomed in my chest. She was handing me the exact ammunition I needed, wrapping it in a bow, and delivering it to my living room.
"Paris," I repeated, making sure my phone picked up the audio. "Using company funds."
"He owns the company," Mia said proudly. "He can spend his money however he wants."
"Half the company," I reminded her. "I hold fifty percent of the shares."
Mia let out a sharp, mocking laugh. "Not for long. He already has David Miller lined up to buy you out for pennies. You have zero leverage, Iris. You are completely outmatched."
My jaw tightened for a fraction of a second before I forced my muscles to relax.
"So what is your goal here, Mia? Why show up at my door?"
"To tell you to pack your bags," she demanded, her voice rising with sudden authority. "Sign over your board seat. Take your cheap clothes and disappear. Stop dragging this out."
I looked at the floor, letting my shoulders slump. I needed her to feel victorious. I needed her to leave this apartment thinking she had crushed my spirit entirely.
"You want me to walk away," I whispered, injecting a slight tremble into my tone.
"I want you gone by Friday," Mia ordered. "If you make this difficult, Kane will ruin you in court. He has the lawyers. He has the money. You have nothing."
I kept my gaze fixed on the hardwood floor. "I understand."
Mia paused, clearly surprised by my rapid surrender.
"You understand?" she asked.
"I won't fight both of you," I said, lifting my head just enough to show her a perfectly crafted expression of defeat. "I will get out of your way."
A triumphant smirk spread across her face. She looked at me like I was a bug she had just squashed beneath her shoe.
"Smart girl," Mia said. "Leave the keys on the counter when you go."
She turned and marched out the front door, her chin held high, radiating pure arrogance.
I waited until the elevator doors closed at the end of the hall.
Then, I locked the deadbolt.
I pulled the phone from my pocket and stopped the recording. Five minutes and twelve seconds of pristine audio. I played back the last minute. Mia’s voice echoed clearly in the quiet foyer, bragging about corporate fraud, illicit buyouts, and Kane’s intent to ruin me.
I uploaded the file to a secure cloud server.
Then, I opened my text messages and sent the link directly to Ethan.
*Iris: The ghost has a voice now. Check the link.*
His reply came less than ten seconds later.
*Ethan: Beautiful. He really picked the dumbest girl in the city. Now, open your email.*
I walked into the kitchen and poured my cold coffee down the sink. I tapped the mail icon on my screen.
Ethan’s message sat at the top of my inbox. The subject line was simply: *Miller Contracts.*
I opened the attached PDF.
It was a scanned document from Kane’s private server. A loan agreement.
I zoomed in on the fine print, my eyes scanning the dense legal jargon.
Kane wasn't just selling my shares to David Miller.
He had taken out a massive, high-interest loan under a shell company. And he had used my personal LLC—the one that held my family’s estate—as the sole collateral.
I stared at the final page.
There, resting on the dotted line, was my signature.
Perfectly forged.
If Kane defaulted on this hidden loan, the bank would seize my childhood home. He was planning to bankrupt me before I even realized we were at war.
My phone buzzed in my hand. Ethan was calling.
I answered, pressing the speaker to my ear.
"Did you read it?" Ethan asked, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.
"He forged my name," I said, staring blankly at the kitchen wall.
"He’s moving the money tomorrow at noon," Ethan warned. "If that transfer clears, you lose the estate. We need to strike before the board meeting."
"No," I replied, a cold smile touching my lips. "Let him move the money."
Silence stretched over the line.
"Iris, if he moves that cash, you are legally on the hook for ten million dollars."
"I know," I said, grabbing my coat from the back of the chair. "Meet me at the bank, Ethan. We are going to let Kane dig his grave ten feet deeper before we bury him."
