Chapter 46
Damien POV
The board room felt like an execution chamber.
Twelve faces stared at me from around the mahogany table—some sympathetic, most coldly calculating. They’d seen my press conference. They’d watched me commit professional suicide on live television. And now they were here to finish the job.
“Mr. Blackwood.” Richard, the longest-serving board member, cleared his throat. “We appreciate your… honesty this morning. However, your personal revelations have created a crisis of confidence p>
“I understand,” I said, keeping my voice steady even as my world crumbled. “And I take full responsibility p>
“Responsibility?” Marcus’s voice echoed through the room. He sat at the far end of the table, that same cold smile on his face. “Is that what we’re calling it? Our CEO admits on national television to emotional abuse and abandoning his pregnant wife. Blackwood Enterprises’ stock has dropped twelve percent in three hours. Our major shareholders are demanding answers p>
He was right. I’d checked the numbers before coming in. The damage was catastrophic.
But I’d do it again. I’d do it a thousand times if it meant protecting Aria and Noah.
“The personal matters you reference occurred before my tenure as CEO,” I said evenly. “And have no bearing on my ability to lead this company p>
“No bearing?” Another board member, Sarah Mitchell, shook her head. “Damien, the entire business world is questioning your judgment. If you could be so reckless in your personal life, what does that say about your business decisions p>
“It says I made mistakes,” I replied. “Ones I’m working to correct. But those mistakes happened years ago. Since then, I’ve grown this company by forty percent. I’ve secured major international deals. I’ve increased shareholder value consistently p>
“All true,” Richard conceded. “But perception matters in business. And right now, the perception is that you’re volatile. Unstable and a liability p>
Marcus leaned forward, his eyes glinting with triumph. “Which is why I’m proposing a vote of no confidence. Effective immediately, Damien Blackwood should be removed as CEO. For the good of the company p>
The room erupted in murmurs. I watched the faces around the table, trying to gauge who would support me and who would turn.
The numbers didn’t look good.
“Before we vote,” I said, raising my voice above the noise. “I’d like to present some information the board should be aware of p>
I nodded to Patricia, my lawyer, who’d been sitting quietly in the corner. She stood and distributed folders to each board member.
“What’s this?” Sarah asked, opening hers.
“Evidence,” I said, watching Marcus’s expression carefully. “Of corporate espionage, stock manipulation, and conspiracy to commit fraud. All traced back to Marcus Blackwood p>
The color drained from Marcus’s face, but he recovered quickly. “This is ridiculous. You’re making up lies to save yourself p>
“Bank records don’t lie,” Patricia said calmly. “Neither do email trails or recorded phone conversations. Mr. Marcus Blackwood has been systematically trying to undermine Blackwood Enterprises for the past six months. The leak about Damien’s son? That was Marcus. The anonymous tips to reporters? Marcus. The whisper campaign among shareholders? Also Marcus p>
I watched the board members flip through the documents, their expressions darkening. Richard looked up at Marcus, his face hard.
“Is this true p>
Marcus stood abruptly, his chair scraping across the floor. “This is a setup. Damien is desperate, and he’s fabricating evidence to”
“To what?” I interrupted. “To protect the company you’ve been trying to steal? Everything in those folders is documented and verified. You’ve been working with our competitors, feeding them insider information, manipulating stock prices. All while pretending to be concerned about the company’s reputation p>
“You can’t prove any of this,” Marcus snarled.
“Actually, we can.” Patricia’s voice was cold. “We have witnesses. Documentation. And we’ve already filed a report with the SEC. Whether this board removes Damien or not, Marcus, you’re facing criminal charges p>
The silence that followed was deafening.
Marcus looked around the room, seeing the same thing I did—he’d lost. His grand plan to destroy me and take over the company had just imploded.
“This isn’t over,” he said quietly, his eyes locked on mine. “You think you’ve won? You’ve just made yourself a target. And your family”
“Is under protection,” I interrupted. “Twenty-four-hour security. Top-tier team. If you go anywhere near Aria or Noah, you’ll spend the rest of your life in prison. And that’s if you’re lucky. Because if you hurt them, Marcus, there won’t be enough of you left for the police to find p>
Marcus stared at me for a long moment, then laughed—a harsh, bitter sound. “You really think you can protect them? You’re weak, brother. He grabbed his briefcase and headed for the door, then paused. “This isn’t over,” he repeated. “Not even close p>
The door slammed behind him.
As I slumped to my chair, the silence around me was defeaning. For 20 minutes it seemed no one wanted to speak up until Richard cleared his throat. “Well. That was… illuminating. Damien, we’ll need time to review this information and discuss next steps. But in light of Marcus’s actions, perhaps we should table the vote until p>
My phone buzzed. Then buzzed again. And again.
I pulled it out, frowning. Multiple alerts from the security team I’d assigned to Aria’s building.
My blood ran cold.
“I need to go,” I said, already standing. “Patricia, handle the rest p>
“Damien, we’re in the middle of”
But I was already running.
The security alerts were clear: Perimeter breach. An unknown individual approached the building, and a subject evaded security.
And then the final message that made my heart stop: Subject last seen entering service elevator. Heading to penthouse level.
Someone had gotten past security. Someone was heading for Aria and Noah.
I called her as I ran through the hallways, ignoring the startled looks from employees. The phone rang once, then twice.
“Pick up,” I muttered. “Aria, pick up p>
Three rings. Four.
Then voicemail.
I tried again, hitting the elevator button repeatedly like that would make it arrive faster. When it finally came, I jabbed the ground floor button and called my security team.
“James, status report. Now p>
“Sir, we lost the subject in the service corridors. We’re sweeping the building, butz”
“But nothing. Find them. And get someone to Aria’s door right now p>
“Already on it, sir. But Mr. Blackwood, you should know—the subject matched the description of p>
The call cut out as the elevator descended into the underground parking garage. I didn’t wait for it to finish, squeezing through the doors as soon as they opened wide enough.
My driver was already waiting, the car running. “Ms. Monroe’s building,” I snapped. “Fast p>
Traffic in downtown Ravenwood was always terrible, but today it felt deliberately slow, like the universe was conspiring to keep me from reaching them. I tried calling Aria again. Still voicemail.
Then I pulled up the contact my security team had forwarded me weeks ago—Dr. Olivia Grant. The friend from Aria’s background report. The woman who’d been there when I wasn’t.
I’d never called her before. Never had reason to.
She answered on the third ring, her voice cautious. “Hello p>
“Dr. Grant, my name is Damien Blackwood. I know you don’t know me, but I need”
“I know exactly who you are.” Her tone went ice cold. “And I have nothing to say to you p>
“Wait—please don’t hang up.” My hands were shaking. “This is about Aria. Someone breached her building security. I can’t reach her, and I need to know if she’s”
“You need to know?” The laugh was bitter. “You need to know if she’s okay? That’s rich coming from the man who”
“I know what I did.” The words ripped out of me. “I know I have no right to ask you for anything. But please—please—if you care about her at all, go back to her apartment. Check on her and Noah. I’m twenty minutes out and every second”
There was a long pause. Then: “If anything has happened to them because of you”
“It won’t. I won’t let it.” My voice cracked. “Please, Dr. Grant. I’m begging you p>
Another pause. “I left about an hour ago. She was fine then. She was planning to” A sharp intake of breath. “I’m heading back now p>
“Please call me when you get there p>
I hung up and immediately dialed James again. “Tell me you found them p>
“Sir, we’ve searched the service corridors. Whoever it was knew the building layout. They avoided cameras, used access codes that shouldn’t have worked”
“What about Aria’s floor p>
A long, terrible pause.
“Sir, the team I sent up… they’re not responding p>
The world tilted. “What do you mean they’re not responding p>
“They should have checked in two minutes ago with the standard protocol. But we’re getting nothing p>
“Send backup. Now. And call the police p>
“Already done, sir. But if someone’s already in the penthouse”
I hung up because I couldn’t hear the rest. I couldn’t think about what might be happening right now while I sat in traffic fifteen minutes away.
My phone buzzed with a text.Tick tock, brother. Hope you said goodbye.
Marcus.
It was Marcus in the building.I called Aria again, my hands shaking so badly I almost dropped the phone.
This time, it rang once and then someone answered.But it wasn’t Aria.”Hello, Damien.” Marcus’s voice was calm, almost pleasant. “Looking for someone p>