CHAPTER 3 – THE WOMAN WHO STOLE SEVEN YEARS
Roman Blackwood had spent his entire adult life believing that betrayal had a face.
A competitor who smiled while planning his downfall.
A business partner who shook his hand while stealing from him.
A politician who promised loyalty before selling information to the highest bidder.
Betrayal was supposed to come from enemies.
Not family.
Not people sitting at his dinner table.
Not people who knew where he kept his heart.
But as Roman stood alone in his office at three in the morning, staring at the evidence Marcus had placed in front of him, he finally understood something far more painful.
The people closest to you were the only ones who knew exactly where to cut.
The file sat open on his desk.
Seven years of lies.
Seven years of missing memories.
Seven years of believing Grace Bennett had walked away because she no longer loved him.
Every page made his anger grow colder.
The messages.
The emails.
The fake conversations.
The carefully created evidence that made it appear as if Roman had chosen Vanessa Cole over his wife.
It had all been designed perfectly.
Too perfectly.
Someone had not wanted Grace gone temporarily.
Someone had wanted her erased.
Marcus stood across from the desk, his expression grim.
“I traced the access logs.”
Roman did not move.
“And?”
Marcus hesitated.
That alone told Roman enough.
Marcus Shaw did not hesitate.
Not in front of enemies.
Not in front of anyone.
“What?”
“The access came from inside Blackwood Tower.”
Roman’s eyes lifted.
“Inside?”
Marcus nodded.
“Someone used a company device. Someone with clearance.”
The room became silent.
Roman looked back at the documents.
There were only a handful of people who had access to his private accounts.
His executives.
His security team.
His family.
His mother.
The last possibility felt impossible.
Until it didn’t.
“Find out who.”
Marcus nodded.
“Already working on it.”
Roman leaned back.
For the first time in years, he looked exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
“She thought I abandoned her.”
Marcus looked at him.
“Roman—”
“She was carrying my children.”
His voice cracked slightly.
Almost invisible.
But Marcus noticed.
“She went through everything alone.”
Marcus had known Roman for fifteen years.
He had seen him injured.
He had seen him threatened.
He had seen him destroy enemies without blinking.
But he had never seen him look like this.
Like a man mourning something he could never get back.
Grace found him in the office at sunrise.
She stopped at the doorway.
Roman had not slept.
She could tell.
His suit jacket was gone. His sleeves were rolled up. His usually perfect hair was slightly messy.
It was strange.
Because Roman Blackwood was always controlled.
Always polished.
Always untouchable.
But now?
He looked human.
“Roman.”
He looked up.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Grace stepped inside.
“I heard you were awake all night.”
“I was working.”
“That’s what you call it?”
He looked away.
Because she knew him too well.
Grace walked closer.
“What did you find?”
Roman was silent.
Then he pushed the file toward her.
She looked confused.
“What is this?”
“The proof that I didn’t leave you.”
Her hand froze.
Slowly, she opened the folder.
The first page.
The second.
The third.
Her expression changed.
Confusion.
Shock.
Then pain.
“No.”
Roman watched every emotion cross her face.
“Grace.”
“No.”
She shook her head.
“This can’t be true.”
“It is.”
She looked at him.
“Someone created all of this?”
“Yes.”
“Someone made me believe you hated me?”
Roman swallowed.
“Yes.”
Her eyes filled with tears.
Not because she was happy.
Because she was angry.
Seven years of pain did not disappear because of a few documents.
“You have any idea what I felt?”
Roman went still.
Grace’s voice trembled.
“I thought my husband looked me in the eyes every day while secretly planning a future without me.”
She closed the file.
“I thought I wasn’t enough.”
Roman stood.
“Grace.”
“I thought our marriage meant nothing to you.”
His chest tightened.
“Never.”
She looked at him.
And that word hurt.
Because it was what she had needed seven years ago.
Not now.
Later that afternoon, Roman made a decision.
One he knew would create war.
He called his mother.
Evelyn Blackwood answered on the third ring.
“Roman.”
Her voice was calm.
Elegant.
Controlled.
Just like always.
“Mother.”
A pause.
“You sound serious.”
“I found the messages Grace received before she left.”
Silence.
Not long.
Barely a second.
But Roman heard it.
The hesitation.
And suddenly, he knew.
“You knew.”
Evelyn’s breathing changed.
“Roman—”
“You knew.”
His voice was quiet.
Dangerously quiet.
“I don’t know what you think you found—”
“Do not insult me by lying.”
The silence that followed was heavier.
Evelyn had always been able to manipulate rooms.
But she had forgotten something.
She had taught Roman everything he knew about power.
Including how to recognize fear.
“Why?” Roman asked.
The question was not angry.
That made it worse.
“Why would you do this?”
Evelyn sighed.
“You were making a mistake.”
Roman closed his eyes.
There it was.
The justification.
“I loved her.”
“You were obsessed with her.”
“No.”
“You were losing focus.”
Roman laughed once.
A cold, humorless sound.
“You destroyed my marriage because you thought my wife distracted me?”
“She was not suitable.”
The words landed like a slap.
Roman’s expression hardened.
“Not suitable?”
“She came from nothing.”
Roman stared at the phone.
For years, he had defended his mother.
Excused her coldness.
Her obsession with reputation.
Her need for control.
But now?
She had stolen his children.
“You made me lose six years.”
Evelyn’s voice softened.
“I protected the Blackwood name.”
“No.”
Roman’s voice dropped.
“You protected your idea of the Blackwood name.”
He ended the call.
For the first time in his life, Roman Blackwood chose someone else over his family.
He chose Grace.
Vanessa Cole knew the moment everything started falling apart.
She knew because Roman stopped answering her calls.
Stopped attending family dinners.
Stopped pretending their engagement was real.
Three days after Grace arrived, Vanessa entered Blackwood Tower without an appointment.
The entire lobby became silent.
Everyone knew who she was.
Future Mrs. Blackwood.
Or at least, that was what they had believed.
She walked into Roman’s office.
He did not look surprised.
“Vanessa.”
She closed the door.
“You’re ending this.”
Roman looked at her.
“Yes.”
No explanation.
No apology.
Just yes.
Her face tightened.
“Because of her?”
“Because of the truth.”
Vanessa laughed softly.
“The truth?”
She stepped closer.
“You really think Grace is innocent?”
Roman’s expression changed.
“What does that mean?”
Vanessa smiled.
A small, cruel smile.
“Ask her where she really went after leaving you.”
Roman became still.
“What?”
“She wasn’t in Boston immediately.”
His eyes narrowed.
“Vanessa.”
“She disappeared because she knew something.”
Roman stared at her.
“What are you talking about?”
Vanessa leaned closer.
“You think I’m the villain because I got the ring?”
Her voice lowered.
“But Grace knew exactly how to make you hate yourself.”
Roman’s expression turned cold.
“Leave.”
“Roman—”
“Leave.”
She did.
But her words stayed.
That evening, Roman found Grace on the balcony.
The city lights reflected in her eyes.
“You’re angry.”
She smiled sadly.
“You’re very observant.”
He stood beside her.
“Vanessa said something.”
Grace looked at him.
“What?”
“She said you knew something before you left.”
The silence was immediate.
Too immediate.
Roman noticed.
“Grace.”
She looked away.
And that scared him.
Because Grace Bennett had always been honest with him.
Even when the truth hurt.
Especially when the truth hurt.
“What didn’t you tell me?”
Her eyes closed.
“Roman…”
“Please.”
Not an order.
A request.
The first one she had heard from him in years.
Grace took a slow breath.
“When I left…”
She stopped.
“I didn’t just leave because of the messages.”
Roman waited.
“I found something.”
“What?”
“A document.”
His expression changed.
“What document?”
Grace looked at him.
“One that showed your family had been investigating me.”
Roman froze.
“Investigating you?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Her voice became quieter.
“Because someone believed I was trying to steal the Blackwood fortune.”
Roman felt anger rise.
“But you were my wife.”
“I know.”
She looked down.
“But your family never saw me that way.”
The pieces began connecting.
The lies.
The manipulation.
The timing.
Someone had wanted Grace gone.
But why?
Roman turned toward her.
“Where is the document?”
Grace hesitated.
“I destroyed it.”
“Why?”
“Because I was afraid.”
Roman softened.
“Of me?”
“No.”
Her eyes met his.
“Of what would happen if I stayed.”
That answer broke something inside him.
Because suddenly he understood.
Grace had not left because she stopped loving him.
She left because she believed staying would destroy everything.
That night, Roman sat beside his sleeping children again.
But this time, he was not thinking about lost years.
He was thinking about the future.
About protecting them.
About protecting Grace.
About finding everyone responsible.
His phone buzzed.
Marcus.
Roman answered.
“What happened?”
Marcus’s voice was urgent.
“We found the person who accessed your account.”
Roman stood.
“Who?”
A pause.
Then:
“Your mother wasn’t acting alone.”
Roman’s face hardened.
“Who else?”
Marcus lowered his voice.
“The person who helped her…”
A pause.
“Was Grace’s father.”
Roman felt the blood leave his face.
Impossible.
Grace’s father had died years ago.
“How?”
Marcus hesitated.
“He didn’t.”
Silence.
“He’s alive.”
Roman looked through the glass doors.
At Grace.
At his children.
May you like
The past he thought he understood had just opened another door.
And behind it was a truth that could destroy them all.
