Chapter 5 - The Voice on the Line
The name hung in the cold kitchen air like a physical threat.
Julian Vance.
Daniel’s face went hard as stone. He reached out and snatched the phone from the counter, his thumb hitting the speaker button to take the call directly.
“Uncle Julian,” Daniel said, his voice dropping into a dangerous register. “Leave her alone.”
“Ah, Daniel,” the smooth voice replied, completely unruffled. “I was wondering when you’d catch up to the girl. How touching. The lost heir found in a second-floor walk-up wearing a patched-up dress.”
Emma’s hands clenched into fists. The humiliation of the ballroom rushed back, but this time it wasn't just embarrassment—it was rage.
“Who gave you this number?” Emma demanded, stepping past Daniel to grab the phone back.
“My dear,” Julian Vance said smoothly, “when you run a development conglomerate for thirty years, you learn how to find people who have things that belong to you. Or rather, things that belong to the board.”
“Nothing in this apartment belongs to the board,” Daniel snapped into the phone. “The equity agreement is valid, Julian. I’ve already seen the original.”
“A piece of paper from 1998 signed by a dead woman in hiding?” Julian chuckled softly. “Good luck holding onto it in federal court once my lawyers get through with her background, her tax filings, and her mother’s medical debt history. We can drag this out for twenty years, Daniel. Or we can settle it quietly tonight.”
Emma’s heart hammered against her ribs. She looked at Noah, who was pale and staring at the floor, then down at the metal box filled with her mother’s secrets.
She realized then what Daniel had meant. The money, the empire, the patents—they weren't a lottery win. They were a target painted on her back.
“What kind of settlement?” Emma asked, her voice cold and steady.
Daniel shot her a warning look, but Julian’s voice purred through the speaker.
“Smart girl,” Julian said. “Sign the quitclaim deed relinquishing all corporate claims to Carter Rowe Development by midnight, and my legal team will ensure your brother’s college fund is fully paid, and your mother’s outstanding hospital debts are wiped clean. Refuse… and you won't even be able to afford the rent on that apartment by Monday.”
The line went dead with a sharp click.
Daniel stared at the phone in Emma’s hand. “Don't listen to him, Emma. He’s bluffing. The board can't legally touch those shares without a court order, and—.”
“And how long will a court case take, Daniel?” Emma asked quietly, looking up into his eyes.
Daniel hesitated. “Months. Maybe a year.”
“We don't have a year,” Emma said, her voice dropping to a whisper as she looked at Noah. “We have rent due in four days.”
Daniel took a step closer, his expression intense and unyielding. “If you sign that paper tonight, you give them everything. But if you trust me… we fight them together.”
Emma looked down at the faded yellow thread on the hem of her dress, then back at the man who had walked out of a ballroom to defend a stranger.
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“Together?” Emma said. “You didn't even know I existed an hour ago.”
“I know who your mother was,” Daniel said softly. “And I know what my family did to her. I’m not walking away.”
