Chapter 10: Do You Dare?

Leah's POV

Evidence? He had the nerve to look me in the eye and ask for evidence? Just because he'd been playing the role of the devoted son-in-law for years, he assumed the money had to be his doing? I let Elias keep shouting and turned to Kyle instead.

"What about you?" I asked. "Do you want to see proof, too?"

"I suppose I should," Kyle said.

Mia wasn't ready to give up. "That's different. You and Elias aren't the same."

"You're right, they're not," I said. "I know exactly what Kyle is capable of — and his fiancé doesn't have that kind of money, so there's no way he could have pulled this off." Kyle was probably still clinging to the last sliver of hope that it hadn't been me. And in the same breath, he'd managed to take a shot at Matto.

I let out a short, cold laugh. One of Matto's men had already picked up my phone from the floor and returned it to me. I pulled it out now, opened the transfer record, and turned the screen toward Kyle's face. "Look at it carefully. Does that timestamp line up with when the money hit your account?"

Kyle's whole body started to tremble. He stared at the screen, unable to look away. "No," he breathed. "That's not possible. How could you have that much?"

He still didn't want to believe it, even with the proof inches from his face.

"It doesn't matter where the money came from," I said, and pulled the phone back.

Before I could say anything else, Mia's voice cut through the room, sharp enough to make my ears ring. "Dad! It's fake! She forged it! If she actually had that kind of money, why didn't she give it to the family sooner? Why wait until everything was almost gone?"

Lyra startled, then immediately chimed in at full volume. "Exactly! None of this is real. She had someone fake it. She wants us to bow down to her, to act like we owe her everything."

It was almost funny, in the most bitter way imaginable. The evidence was right there in front of them — undeniable, unambiguous — and they were still scrambling for some excuse to call it a lie. Was their faith in Elias really so absolute that reality itself had to be wrong?

"You've got it backwards," I said, and Lyra's voice died in her throat. "I transferred that money because Kyle is my father. He treated me better than anyone else in this family ever did. When you and Mia were pointing fingers at me, he was the only one who stood by me without asking for a reason. And that company was my mother's — her legacy. I wasn't going to let it collapse."

I looked at Kyle directly. "But you destroyed all of that. You played me, lured me back here with a lie, drugged me, and tried to hand me off to Elias like I was something to be traded. Did you know — after my wedding with Matto, he was going to inject another two million into the company?"

Whatever warmth had still existed between us was gone. Nothing left but calculation.

The only problem was that the company was still in Kyle's hands.

"Two million?" Kyle's voice cracked on the number. "That's not possible."

"The eighty thousand you needed so desperately? That's less than what Matto gives me in a single month for personal expenses."

I watched the realization move across their faces — the dawning, sickening understanding of exactly what they'd thrown away.

Kyle blinked rapidly, and then something shifted in his expression, greed flooding in to replace the shock. "Leah, I — I was wrong. I'm sorry. I'll deal with Elias personally, I swear I will. But your wedding with Matto — it has to go forward, it has to —"

The speed with which he turned was almost impressive. I just felt hollow. "I'll be coming by the company in a few days to reclaim my shares," I said. "Be ready." There was nothing left worth saying to any of them. I turned toward the door.

Then came the screech of tires outside, sharp and close, and a moment later Anna stepped through the entrance in a red dress that fit like a second skin, a spectator's smile already on her face — until she took in the scene in front of her and the smile went still.

Matto's men still had Elias pinned.

Anna swept her gaze across everyone present, and her eyes landed on me. Before she could speak, Elias lurched against the grip holding him down, desperate and clawing. "Anna! Anna, help me! They don't respect you at all — tell your people to get me out of here!"

Anna didn't respond immediately. She studied Matto's men with a careful, assessing look, then finally let her gaze drift to the three figures cowering in the corner.

"Looks like someone needs to set things right here," she said at last. "Allow me to introduce myself properly — I'm Anna Coriale. Lorenzo Coriale is my father."

Kyle stared at her blankly, clearly not placing the name. It was Elias who filled in the gap, his voice strained and urgent. "The governor! Lorenzo is the governor — Anna is his daughter!"

The blood drained from Kyle's face. He stared at Anna like she'd materialized out of thin air.

Anna looked thoroughly pleased with herself. "I've heard a bit about your family's situation," she continued, her tone conversational, almost bored. "To be honest, I admire Elias. And I'd hate to see Leah make a mistake she can't take back." She paused, letting that land, then shifted her attention to Kyle. "If you can bring your daughter around — help her let go of this stubbornness and go back to Elias where she belongs — I'll have my father put his name behind your company. No one in this state will touch you. Contracts, resources, introductions — all of it, steady and ongoing."

Kyle opened and closed his mouth. "Is that — is that real? But why would you —"

Anna's answer came with a slow smile. She crossed to where Elias was still being held and nudged his cheek with the pointed toe of her heel, her eyes bright with something that looked like pleasure. "Why? Because I want to." She let the words sit there for a moment before continuing, entirely unbothered. "I've always loved watching people do exactly what I want, with no way out. The feeling of controlling the whole board — I've been addicted to it since I was a child. Especially taking things that good girls care about and watching them seethe, watching them fall apart, knowing they can't do a single thing to me." A beat. "And honestly? Sleeping with someone else's husband? The thrill of that never gets old."

She looked around the room, openly savoring the effect of her own words.

Twisted didn't even begin to cover it.

Then she turned back to Kyle, waiting.

He barely hesitated before he looked at me, his voice taking on that particular tone — coaxing, urgent, already convinced. "Leah, did you hear that? Miss Anna is willing to help the company. This is the opportunity of a lifetime. You love this company more than anything — don't be stubborn about this. With their backing, we could go further than we ever imagined. Your mother, wherever she is, would want that for us."

He started to move toward me, reaching out, then stopped short when the men beside me shifted — and ended up grasping at nothing.

"Wherever she is," I repeated quietly, "if she knew you were trying to trade me away for a business deal, she wouldn't be at peace. She'd be furious enough to drag you there herself." I had no more words for him. I'd exhausted every description that fit.

Elias, still pinned to the floor but emboldened now that Anna had arrived, threw his voice across the room. "Leah. Come back. I mean it — whatever you want, I'll give it to you. My family's resources, connections, everything. Just say the word."

"Is that right?" I looked down at him and felt something between contempt and mild amusement. "Anything I want? All right, then. Slap Anna. Slap her hard, over and over, until I'm satisfied." I held his gaze. "Can you do that?"