Chapter 41 Explain This

Chapter 41 Explain This
Ethan

A wide smile spread across my face as I read the message. Daniel had kept his word, right on time.

“Very well then.” I lifted my gaze from the phone to meet their expectant eyes. My expression hardened, and I cleared my throat. “Father, you asked for proof. I have proof that Zoey is innocent.”

All heads turned toward me at once. I almost smirked at their looks of surprise. Without wasting another second, I opened my laptop slowly, the screech of the hinge sounded like music to my ears.

“Can you get on with it already? Enough with the little show!” Leo snapped impatiently, shifting where he stood. But knowing my brother, I could tell he already suspected I’d found something.

Still, one thought lingered in my mind: he knew I would eventually uncover evidence of his involvement in Zoey’s sabotage. So why go through all this effort, only to humiliate himself in front of Father?

Leo was truly impossible to read.

I projected the file onto the main screen. The video was grainy, but clear enough. Mary entering Zoey’s floor in the middle of the night, unlocking her door, and flipping through her sketches.

Then Leo’s reflection appeared faintly in the glass behind her. What was more surprising was the faint smirk on his face, as he stared directly into the camera, as if he wanted to be caught, or was trying to make a statement.

If I didn’t know my brother better, I might’ve thought he was on drugs or something.

The room erupted in murmurs. Mary’s face went pale, that smug look she always wore vanishing instantly. Even Ava, her faithful sidekick in this charade, bowed her head in silent defeat. I could guess Leo had promised them they’d never be caught. He was their boss, after all.

My father’s expression turned to steel, disappointment etched deeply across his face. I could almost feel the heat of his anger.

“Leo!” His voice thundered through the room.

My brother’s smirk vanished.

Zoey’s hand flew to her mouth. She looked utterly stunned. Leo was the last person she’d have suspected of sabotaging her, and she didn’t need to say it; I could see it written all over her face.

As for me? I just sat there, finally exhaling the breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding, waiting to see what my father would do next.

Leo’s smirk might have disappeared, but the arrogance and disdain in his eyes remained.

“Yes, Father,” he said finally, his tone dripping with defiance. He didn’t move, he was glued to the wall like he’d become an accessory.

The silence that followed was heavier than anything I’d ever felt in that room before. Not when difficult meetings were held, not when even Gabriel made a show of himself.

This is getting interesting, I thought to myself.

“Explain this,” my father demanded, his voice a low growl that made even the guards at the door shift uneasily.

Leo leaned back in his chair, trying for that same lazy arrogance he always hid behind, but his eyes darted, betraying him. “It’s not what it looks like,” he said, forcing a laugh that sounded hollow. “Mary was just—”

“Stealing Zoey’s designs?” I cut in, my tone sharper than I intended. “You call that just?”

Mary stood frozen near the edge of the table, her face pale. “The boss.. he told me…he said Zoey didn’t deserve the spotlight. That she stole from me first. I honestly didn’t want to, I was coerced into doing it.”

A faint smile etched onto the corner of my lips. Coerced indeed.

Zoey gasped, shaking her head. “What? That’s not true! I never—”

“Enough,” my father’s voice thundered through the air. He stood, the full weight of his authority pressing down on the room. “You manipulated our staff, invaded another’s quarters, and tried to destroy a member of your own team, your own secretary. You have shamed this family.”

Leo’s mask finally cracked. “You don’t understand!” he shouted, slamming his hand on the table. “It is not about her, this is more than her! You have to believe me—”

“She earned what she has,” I shot back. “You could’ve done the same if you hadn’t spent all your time trying to bring everyone else down.”

Zoey’s eyes locked onto mine, wide and shimmering with emotion. In that moment, I saw it all, fear, confusion, and maybe, just maybe, a hint of trust lurking beneath the surface. My father gestured to the guards. “Take them both.” He pointed to Mary and Ava, who hadn’t said anything since the big reveal.

Mary broke down in tears, pleading, while Leo just fixed me with a stare, that twisted smirk flickering back for a brief, venomous moment.

“This isn’t over, Ethan,” he spat after they pulled the ladies away. “You think you’ve won, but you have no idea what she’s hiding.”

The door slammed shut behind them, and my father turned his attention to Leo. “And you, you better have a good explanation for this, I don’t care why you did it, meet me in the house at once, we will not discuss this further .” He turned to me. “Ethan, take care of the rest.”

And just like that, he walked out, almost in a hurry, as if staying to hear any more would be too much to bear.

In the heat of the moment, everyone turned to me, waiting to see what I would do next.

I closed the laptop, my hands shaking a little. “Meeting adjourned,” I said softly. “We’ll reconvene tomorrow.”

As the room cleared out, Zoey lingered.

“Thank you,” she murmured, her voice trembling.

I met her gaze, really met it. “You don’t need to thank me,” I replied. “But… if there’s anything you’re keeping from me, Zoey—”

Her eyes fell to the floor.

“Zoey?”

She looked up again, her face a mask of uncertainty. “You’re right,” she said quietly. “There’s something you need to know.”

And just like that, everything I thought I understood began to unravel.