Chapter 4 - The Shadow of the Past
For two weeks, Blackwood Point Estate became a world unto itself.
The rain finally cleared, giving way to crisp, golden Oregon sunshine. The crashing waves below the cliff created a soothing background melody to our days.
Jack and Noah blossomed under the care of the estate staff. They ate three hot meals a day, ran through the expansive gardens, and slept peacefully in their warm nursery.
Dominic kept his word. He stayed at the luxury hotel in the nearby town of Cannon Beach. Every morning at 9:00 AM, his car would pull up the driveway. He would spend the day with the boys—teaching Jack how to throw a football, building intricate wooden train tracks with Noah on the living room rug, and patiently answering their endless questions about his life.
I watched him from a distance.
I watched the most ruthless CEO in New York sit on the floor in jeans and a t-shirt, allowing Noah to place plastic crown stickers on his head. I watched him listen to Jack explain the mechanics of a caterpillar with absolute, unwavering devotion.
He was becoming the father I had prayed my children would have.
And yet, a heavy wall remained between us.
On a chilly Friday evening, after the boys had been tucked into bed, Dominic sat by the outdoor stone fireplace on the back patio, staring out at the dark Pacific Ocean. A glass of scotch sat untouched on the table beside him.
I wrapped a thick cashmere shawl around my shoulders and stepped out onto the stone terrace.
"You're quiet tonight," I said, taking a seat in the wicker armchair opposite him.
Dominic didn't look up immediately. He was staring at his open phone screen.
"My legal team in New York called two hours ago," Dominic said, his voice grim. "The periodic medical review for Lily's psychiatric confinement was submitted to the state board today."
My blood ran cold. "And?"
"Her primary attending physician was replaced last week," Dominic turned his phone toward me. "The new chief medical officer at the facility submitted a recommendation for her conditional release into outpatient care."
I stood up so fast my chair scraped loudly against the stone. "Release?! Dominic, you said she was under a permanent hold!"
"She was," Dominic’s eyes narrowed into slits of ice. "Until someone paid three hundred thousand dollars into a private offshore trust registered to that new physician's brother in the Cayman Islands."
A wave of nausea hit me. "Someone bought her release?"
"Someone inside my own family," Dominic revealed, standing up and towering over the fireplace mantle. "My uncle, Victor Vale."
I stumbled back a step. "Victor?"
Victor Vale was the senior vice-chairman of Vale Enterprises—a bitter, power-hungry man who had fought Dominic's father for control of the company thirty years ago and had spent the last decade trying to undermine Dominic at every corporate turn.
"Victor knows that as long as I am distracted in Oregon, he can rally the board of directors to call an emergency vote of no confidence next week," Dominic explained, his jaw tight. "He bribed the doctor to release Lily so she could file an emergency injunction claiming I am mentally unfit due to 'obsession with a missing wife'."
"They are using my sister as a pawn to strip you of your company," I realized, the horrifying scope of the corporate conspiracy coming into sharp focus.
"They think I will stay here to protect you and let the company fall," Dominic said, looking at me with absolute clarity. "They think I will choose Vale Enterprises over my family, or my family over Vale Enterprises."
"What are you going to do?" I whispered, my heart pounding against my ribs.
Dominic walked over to me. He reached out and gently cupped my cheek in his warm, strong hand. His touch sent a shiver down my spine—a familiar, electric sensation that four years of separation had not dulled.
"I am going to fly to New York tomorrow morning," Dominic said softly. "I am going to crush Victor, secure the board, and ensure Lily is transferred to a maximum-security state facility where no bribe can ever reach her."
Fear—sharp and instinctual—clutched at my chest.
"You're going back into the viper's nest," I said, my fingers reaching up to grip his wrist.
May you like
Dominic smiled—a sharp, lethal expression that reminded me why he was the most feared man in Manhattan.
"They forgot who I am, Nora," he murmured, leaning down until his forehead rested against mine. "They forgot that I didn't inherit Vale Enterprises. I built it. And now... I have three reasons to burn anyone who tries to take it from me."
