Katrina paced the floor of the West Wing guest room. Her bare feet sank into the plush carpet.
Her throat was parched. The intense confrontation had left her mouth feeling like sandpaper. She walked over to the small minibar, but the crystal water pitcher was completely empty.
She let out an irritated sigh. But as she stood there, the silence of the West Wing gave her a sudden, sharp idea. This historic estate had secrets she had memorized during the engagement. Specifically, the old, decommissioned dumbwaiter shaft that ran directly from this floor down to the wall behind Adelbert's private study.
Katrina didn't go to the kitchen. Instead, she walked down the dark corridor until she found the hidden wooden panel. She carefully slid it open. The dark, vertical tunnel acted like a perfect acoustic funnel.
A low, muffled voice drifted up from the ground floor.
It was coming straight up the shaft. Katrina heard her own name. She instantly froze.
She leaned forward slightly, pressing her ear near the opening, holding her breath.
Inside the study, a fire crackled in the fireplace. Adelbert, Brandin, and Jovani were sitting in the leather armchairs.
Adelbert poured a measure of amber whiskey from a crystal decanter. The liquid caught the firelight.
"Coleton is in the basement right now," Adelbert said calmly, taking a sip. "Rocco is touching him up. By tomorrow morning, he will look like a martyr."
Katrina's heart skipped a beat.
"When the press gets the photos of the battered husband and the cold, runaway wife," Adelbert continued, a smug tone in his voice, "the PR team will crucify her. The public will demand she stand by him. She won't dare file for divorce."
Brandin nodded slowly. He didn't look angry that his sister was being manipulated. He looked relieved. "It's the safest way to protect the merger."
Katrina's fingers gripped the banister so hard her knuckles turned white. Her own brother was sitting there, nodding along to a plot to destroy her reputation.
"But what if she still refuses?" Brandin asked.
Adelbert's eyes turned pitch black. "If Coleton fails to bring her back, he is useless to me."
Adelbert leaned forward. "I will activate the contingency clause in the family trust. I will bring Coen Meyer back from Europe and replace Coleton as the primary heir."
In the shadows of the study, Jovani gasped. The name Coen Meyer-the illegitimate son-made Jovani's eyes widen with pure terror and jealousy.
"Tell Coleton about Coen," Adelbert ordered. "Let the fear of losing his money force him to crawl on his knees and beg her."
Katrina didn't waste a second. She reached into the pocket of her silk robe and pulled out her phone. Her fingers trembled slightly as she hit the record button.
She held the phone near the open shaft, capturing every single word of their disgusting, calculated plot.
The audio waveform on her screen spiked with every evil sentence. But inside, Katrina's blood was turning to ice. The burning anger was gone, replaced by a cold, absolute clarity.
Every apology, every drop of blood spilled tonight-it was all a performance. A transaction.
The conversation downstairs began to wrap up. Katrina quickly hit stop and saved the file.
She clutched the phone to her chest like a weapon. She slid the wooden panel shut with zero sound. She turned around and walked back down the hallway, her bare feet making zero sound against the marble.
She slipped back into her room and shut the door with a soft click. She immediately threw the deadbolt.
She wasn't taking any chances. She grabbed the heavy, European-style armchair and dragged it across the carpet, wedging it tightly under the door handle.
Katrina sat on the edge of the bed. Her chest heaved. She pressed play on the recording.
Listening to their voices again, the last tiny fragment of hesitation inside her shattered into dust. Her will to fight back hardened into unbreakable steel.
