Chapter 5 - The Ashes of Ambition
With the custody battle won and the Thorne assets frozen, the vultures began to circle. Marcus’s business partners, realizing that he was under federal indictment, immediately cut ties. His office, once the seat of his pride, was liquidated within forty-eight hours.
I took Maya, my sister, to the estate—which was now technically under the receivership of my own holding company. We walked through the rooms that had once felt like a prison.
“He really thought he had you,” Maya said, touching the mantle of the fireplace.
“He thought he had a woman who would disappear,” I replied. “He forgot he was living with a soldier.”
We found Marcus in the study, packing a single suitcase. He looked like a man who had aged twenty years in one week.
“The bank is taking the house, aren’t they?” he asked, his voice hollow.
“They aren't taking it,” I said. “I’m selling it. The proceeds go toward the restitution of the employees you cheated out of their pensions.”
May you like
He looked at me, a flicker of something that might have been regret—or just pure spite—crossing his face. “You’ll never be happy, Sarah. You’re too cold.”
“I’m not cold, Marcus,” I said, turning to leave. “I’m just finally comfortable in the truth.”
