Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Evans POV

The studio door slammed shut behind me, the sound echoing my rage. Sienna. That bitch. How dare she? How dare she throw those papers in my face?

Those were private. My business. She had no right. No damn right at all. She owed me. After everything. After all the years I'd wasted on her.

My hands trembled as I walked down the street, each step burning with fury. This wasn't guilt. This was pure, unadulterated injustice. I was the one wronged here. I was the one who had tried to build something. To rebuild something. And she, with her fancy art and her smug friend, was trying to destroy it. Trying to destroy me.

My phone was a hot brick in my hand. I needed to move. Fast. They had information. Too much information. Lila Dubois. That viper. I knew she was behind this. Always sticking her nose where it didn't belong.

I pulled out my phone, my mind racing. Assets. What could I hide? What could I move? The few accounts I had left. The small investments. Anything that wasn't already tied up in some impossible knot.

My first call was to my lawyer. Not the one for family matters. The other one. The one who understood 'creative solutions.'

"It's Evan. We have a problem. A big one. Information has been leaked. Compromising financial details. I need immediate action. Asset protection. Now." My voice was tight. Controlled. No hint of the panic churning inside me.

The lawyer sounded bored. "Evan, this again? I told you, these shell companies are thin. It's a house of cards. But I'll see what I can do. What exactly is 'leaked'?"

"Everything," I hissed. "Bank statements. Fraudulent schemes. Evidence of manipulation. They have it all. I need to move funds. Disappear assets. Anything to make it harder for them to trace."

He sighed. A long, weary sound. "I'll do my best. But it's going to cost you. And this sounds like more than just a leak, Evan. This sounds like an investigation."

I hung up before he could say more. Investigation. The word tasted like ash. They couldn't. They wouldn't. This was just Sienna's pathetic attempt at revenge. But if Lila was involved... she had connections. Deep ones.

My mind spun. I needed a distraction. A shield. The kids. Zoe and Leo. They were my leverage. My undeniable truth. Sienna wouldn't risk hurting them. Not really.

I called Zoe. She answered quickly. Her voice still sounded upset from our last talk. Good. Let the anger fester.

"Zoe, darling," I began, softening my voice, making it sound pained. "Your mother just threw me out of her studio. She's completely lost it. She's gone mad with anger. She has all these ridiculous papers. Saying I'm broke. Saying terrible things about me." I made sure my voice trembled just slightly. "She wants to destroy me, sweetheart. She wants to cut me out of your lives for good. She doesn't want us to be a family."

"What?" Zoe blurted. Her voice was sharp. Furious. "But why? I don't understand."

"Because of Daniel," I explained, laying it on thick. "He's poisoned her against me. He's convinced her that I'm... that I'm evil. He wants her all to himself. He wants to replace me. To replace our family. He wants to take your mother away from you. And she's letting him." I painted a picture of betrayal. "She's choosing him over us, Zoe. Over our chance to be whole again. She's even threatening to tell everyone lies about me. Lies that would hurt our family forever. Lies that would make you and Leo ashamed."

There was a silence on the line. Then Zoe's voice, cold and hard. "I don't believe you. Mom wouldn't do that." But there was a flicker of doubt. I heard it.

"She already is, Zoe," I stated, pushing the knife in deeper. "She told me she would. She wants to ruin me. And if she ruins me, then what happens to our plans? To our future together? To our family? She's letting Daniel pull her strings. She's letting him turn her into someone I don't even recognize." I made my voice sound defeated. "I just wanted us to be happy. All of us."

"I'll talk to her," Zoe declared. Her voice was firm. Angry now. "I'll make her see. She can't do this. She can't let him destroy us."

"Be careful, Zoe," I warned, injecting a hint of fear into my tone. "She's volatile. And Daniel... he has a hold on her. Just be careful. Protect your brother. And remember what we talked about. Remember what's truly important."

I hung up, a slow, satisfied smirk touching my lips. Good. The seeds of doubt were planted. Zoe would fight. And that would buy me time. Time to move my assets. Time to disappear if I had to.

But this wasn't just about money anymore. This was about principle. About pride. Sienna thought she could expose me? Destroy me? She had another thing coming. I was a cornered animal. And cornered animals were dangerous.

She didn't know what I was capable of. She didn't know the lengths I would go to. This wasn't over. Not by a long shot. She had opened a door she shouldn't have. And now, she would see the real Evan Thompson. The one who never lost. The one who always got what he wanted.

I looked around the apartment, my temporary refuge. It felt small. Closing in. I needed to act. I needed to plan. I needed to make my last move. A desperate, final, dangerous move. One that would make Sienna regret ever digging into my past. Regret ever allying with that bitch Lila. Regret ever letting Daniel back into her life.

This wasn't just about money. This was about making her pay. And I knew exactly how to do it.