Chapter 5 - The Trap Snaps Shut"You really are a fool, Elliot," Camille said, her heels clicking slowly against the wooden floor of the foyer as she stepped toward us. The two security guards stood behind her, their hands resting near their jackets. "You thought you could just sail into Rhodes territory and steal our leverage? You've spent too much time reading fairy tales."
I kept Bella pressed against my shoulder, my hand covering her head to shield her from the harsh light. Naomi stood close to my side, her fingers gripping my coat so hard I could feel them trembling.
"This isn't leverage, Camille," I said, my voice dropping to a low, dangerous register. "This is kidnapping. You had Naomi forced onto a private boat. You held a mother and a two-year-old child against their will on an isolated island. That’s a federal crime."
Camille laughed—a high, sharp sound that echoed off the high ceilings.
"Kidnapping? Please. Naomi signed a voluntary relocation agreement," Camille said, waving a piece of paper she pulled from her designer handbag. "Of course, she only signed it because my father's lawyers suggested that her refusal would lead to a very public investigation into her tax records and her past... indiscretions. It's amazing what people will sign when they're terrified."
She stepped closer, holding out the silver pen.
"But you can end all of this tonight, Elliot. Sign the voting shares over to me. Once the merger is finalized under my sole control, Naomi and Bella can leave this island. They can move to Europe, to South America, wherever they want—funded by a very generous monthly allowance from my personal account. They will be safe, happy, and completely out of our lives."
"And if I refuse?" I asked.
"If you refuse," Camille's face hardened, her beautiful features turning into a mask of pure, unadulterated venom, "I will have my guards arrest you for trespassing and assault. My father's sheriff in this county will ensure you are held without bail until after the board meeting tomorrow morning. And while you're in a cell, Naomi will be declared an unfit mother by a judge who owes my father his seat. Bella will become a ward of the state. Do you want to gamble your daughter's life on your pride, Elliot?"
I looked at Naomi. Her eyes were filled with a desperate, pleading terror. She shook her head, tears streaming down her face.
"Sign it, Elliot," Naomi whispered, her voice cracking. "Please. I don't care about the company. I don't care about the money. Just don't let them take Bella."
I looked down at the contract. The words blurred before my eyes. For my entire life, I had been defined by my name, my fortune, my position at the head of the Cross empire. But as I looked at the little girl sleeping against my shoulder, holding her stuffed elephant, I realized that none of it mattered.
An empire built on the suffering of those you loved was nothing but a monument to your own cowardice.
I reached out my hand. "Give me the pen."
Camille’s eyes flashed with a triumphant, greedy satisfaction. She handed me the silver pen, her smile wider than it had been on our wedding day.
I placed the contract against the wooden balustrade of the staircase. My hand didn't shake. I signed my name at the bottom of the page, surrendering forty percent of the Cross family’s legacy with a single stroke of ink.
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"There," I said, throwing the pen to the floor. "It's yours. Now let us go."
Camille snatched the contract, her fingers tracing my signature with a sickening reverence. "The boat is at the dock, Elliot. Get off my island. And don't ever let me see your face in Boston again."
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