Chapter 5 - The Shadows of the PastThe news of Victoria Hail’s sudden removal and the collapse of the Hail-Ashford merger sent shockwaves through Wall Street. By late afternoon, the media was in a frenzy. Headlines across major financial publications read: DYNASTY DERAILMENT: GARRETT HAIL OUSTS MOTHER IN SURPRISE BOARDROOM COUP.

While the corporate world burned outside, inside my Tribeca penthouse, the air was finally still.

Posie was fast asleep on the oversized sofa, wrapped in a plush cashmere blanket, her tiny hand gripping a stuffed bear Wesley had bought for her at a toy shop downstairs.

Mave sat at the dining table, staring out at the Manhattan skyline. The tension of the last twenty-four hours was starting to show on her face—she looked exhausted, fragile, yet remarkably resilient.

I walked over, carrying two mugs of tea, and sat down beside her. I placed one mug in front of her and gently reached across the table to cover her hand with mine.

"It's really over, isn't it?" she asked softly, looking up at me with her warm brown eyes. "She can't hurt us anymore?"

"Her executive power is gone," I said reassuringly. "Our legal team filed for a restraining order this afternoon, and the federal prosecutors have already issued a subpoena for her offshore financial records based on the evidence Coraline provided. She’ll be spending the next few years defending herself against federal indictments, not bothering us."

Mave let out a long, shaky breath, letting her head drop into her hands. A single tear slipped down her cheek.

"Mave?" I stood up, moved my chair closer, and pulled her into my arms.

She clung to me, burying her face into my shoulder, her body trembling as three years of suppressed fear, grief, and exhaustion finally poured out of her. I held her tight, breathing in the subtle scent of rain and vanilla that had haunted my dreams every night since the day she disappeared.

"I missed you so much, Garrett," she sobbed softly into my suit jacket. "Every single day. Every time Posie looked at me with your eyes, my heart broke all over again because I thought you hated me. I thought you believed I took that money."

"I never hated you, Mave," I whispered, kissing the top of her head. "I was furious, I was destroyed, but I never stopped loving you. Not for a single second."

She lifted her head, looking up at me through wet eyelashes. "Even when you were going to marry Coraline?"

"I was marrying a business arrangement," I confessed candidly. "I had turned my heart off. I thought if I couldn't have you, it didn't matter who sat at the dinner table with me. But the second I saw you across Fifth Avenue... the world came back into color."

We sat together in the quiet room for a long time, holding each other as the sun began to set over the Hudson River, painting the room in deep shades of gold and purple.

Around 8:00 PM, my private phone chimed. It was Julian.

I stepped into my home office to take the call, leaving the door cracked open so I could keep an eye on Mave and Posie.

"Garrett," Julian’s voice was serious. "We have a problem."

My chest tightened. "What kind of problem? Did Victoria post bail?"

"No, Victoria is currently trapped at her Hamptons estate with her defense attorneys," Julian said. "It's not your mother. It's Arthur Ashford."

I frowned. "Coraline's father? What about him?"

"Arthur just left a private meeting with a private investigator named Marcus Vance," Julian explained, sending a photo file to my phone. "Vance is a disgraced former NYPD detective who specializes in black-market enforcement. Arthur realizes that with Victoria down, he’s going to take the full fall for the maritime fraud unless he can leverage something against you."

"Leverage what?"

"Mave's brother, Liam," Julian said grimly. "Arthur's legal team was the one who placed the administrative hold on Liam's academic credentials and medical trust three years ago. Before Coraline could execute the paperwork to release those holds today, Arthur transferred the custody of those files to an offshore private server."

My eyes darkened. "He's going to try to blackmail me into dropping the charges against Ashford Maritime."

"Worse," Julian warned. "Vance’s team was spotted twenty minutes ago near the apartment complex where Mave's family stays in upstate New York."

Before I could reply, a sudden sharp knock echoed through the penthouse foyer.

I hung up with Julian and grabbed the small concealed handgun kept in the top drawer of my desk. I motioned for Wesley, who was stationed near the kitchen, to stay back with Mave and Posie while I approached the door.

I checked the digital peep-hole display.

Standing in the hallway was Coraline Ashford, her hair disheveled, a bloody scratch running along her left cheekbone.

I instantly unlocked the heavy door and pulled her inside. "Coraline! What happened?"

Coraline leaned against the entryway wall, gasping for air. "It's my father... Garrett... he’s lost his mind. When he realized I gave you the server keys, he went to Vance. They... they knew you were going to go after Liam's records."

"Is Liam okay?" Mave came running out of the living room, her face pale with terror.

"My father's men picked Liam up from his campus an hour ago," Coraline said, her voice shaking with rage and panic. "They're holding him at our private boathouse in Long Island. My father called me ten minutes ago. He said if you don't drop the federal fraud charges and sign over thirty percent of Hail Enterprises to him by midnight... he’s going to make sure Liam disappears forever."

Mave let out a stifled scream, her hands flying to her mouth.

I caught her before her knees gave out, pulling her close as my mind calculated every tactical option.

"Wesley," I barked, my voice turning into pure steel. "Get the tactical team ready. Call the state police chief—the one who owes my father a favor. We are going to Long Island."

"Garrett, no!" Mave gasped, clutching my coat. "It's too dangerous! Arthur is desperate!"

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I looked down at Mave, taking her face in my hands, forcing her to look into my eyes.

"Three years ago, I let my family destroy ours because I didn't know the truth," I said with absolute certainty. "I am not that man anymore, Mave. Nobody touches your family. Nobody touches our family. Ever again."