Chapter 72

Damien’s POV

Morning used to be the quietest part of my day.

A calm start.

A moment of clarity.

A reset.

But today…

Today the universe decided to punch me in the gut the second I opened my eyes.

My phone wouldn’t stop buzzing. It vibrated against the bedside drawer with the desperation of someone banging a door, demanding attention. At first I ignored it—assuming it was some board member trying to get ahead of business hours, or a reminder from Elizabeth about the meetings I had canceled this week.

But then it buzzed again.

And again.

And again—so violently that the sound alone scraped my nerves raw.

“What the hell,” I muttered, reaching for it.

The moment the screen lit up, I froze.

Over a hundred notifications.

And every single one had Ava’s name in it.

My stomach dropped.

I tapped one of the messages and it opened straight into a gossip headline plastered across my feed.

Damien Blackwood ’ NEW GOLD-DIGGER? Mystery Girl Exposed for Manipulating Billionaire While Hiding Her Troubled Past.

My grip tightened around the phone.

I clicked another.

INSIDE SOURCES: Ava M. Signs Contract to Leech Off Disabled CEO—Is She Taking Advantage of His Condition?

My heart slammed violently in my chest.

What the—

How—

Where—

I scrolled faster, my breath quickening.

Photo after photo.

Comments filled with venom.

Posts ridiculing Ava, calling her desperate, opportunistic, a parasite.

People digging into her family, her mother, her job, her background—twisting it into a weapon.

I felt sick.

This wasn’t just media gossip.

This was an orchestrated hit.

A very personal, calculated attack.

On Ava.

Someone did this intentionally.

I rubbed my forehead, trying to think, trying to understand—but everything blurred, and for the first time in years, confusion felt like a fist squeezing my lungs.

What is going on?

I needed to find Ava.

I needed to talk to her.

I needed—

Before I could move, the door burst open.

Vanessa sauntered in like she lived there, phone in hand, wearing a triumphant smile she pretended was concerned.

“Oh my God, Damien,” she gasped dramatically. “Have you seen the news?”

I stared at her, cold fury simmering under my skin.

This woman timing her entrance right after a scandal broke? Suspicious as hell.

“Not now,” I said sharply.

She ignored that entirely and stepped closer, extending her phone toward me, its screen lit up with the same headline I had just seen.

“Look at what they’re saying about her,” she insisted, fake pity dripping off her voice. “It’s awful. I knew something like this would happen eventually. I kept warning you—”

“You warned me of nothing,” I snapped.

Her eyes widened.

Surprised? Offended?

I didn’t care.

“Damien, I’m just trying to help. This is serious. Your name is all over the internet—”

Before she could finish, there was a knock.

Hard. Urgent.

Elizabeth stepped inside without waiting for permission—another person who had zero respect for boundaries today.

“Sir,” she said breathlessly. “We have a problem.”

Oh, really? Hadn’t noticed.

She held out her tablet, already opened to the trending feed. “The board is starting to circulate concerns. The PR team is asking how to respond. The investors will want—”

“I don’t need a report right now,” I cut her off.

She blinked, startled. “But—in this situation—it’s blowing up everywhere, Damien. We need control. We need—”

“We need silence,” I said through clenched teeth. “Right now, I need silence.”

Vanessa stepped forward like an obedient echo. “Elizabeth’s right, Damien. This is spiraling out of control. You have to act fast. She’s dragging your name in the mud without even trying.”

My jaw tightened. “Stop talking like you know anything.”

Her lips parted. “I’m only saying this because I care.”

No. She was saying it because she wanted this.

Because she was enjoying this.

Before I could say another word, another knock sounded.

This time, Adrian.

Perfect.

Exactly what I needed—my treacherous cousin showing up during a crisis.

He entered with that fake concerned expression he put on whenever he wanted to look innocent.

“Dahm,” he said softly. “I came as soon as I saw the news. Are you alright?”

No, I wasn’t alright.

My blood was boiling.

My mind is racing.

And the room felt like it was closing in.

“Don’t call me that,” I snapped.

Adrian lifted his hands in surrender. “Alright. I’m not here to cause trouble.”

You are the trouble was what I wanted to say. But I didn’t. Not yet.

He approached slowly, eyes flicking between Vanessa and Elizabeth, then back to me. “This Ava girl… seems like she’s attracting the wrong kind of attention. Do you want help cleaning this up?”

My vision blurred.

My patience cracked.

All three of them—standing in front of me, circling like vultures pretending to care, offering solutions I didn’t trust—were suffocating me.

Ava was alone.

Hurt.

Terrified.

And these people were trying to bury her deeper.

I needed time.

I needed to think.

I needed to figure out who the hell did this.

And who I would destroy for it.

I raised a hand, stopping all of them. “Enough.”

They fell silent instantly.

“I need privacy,” I said slowly, deliberately, my voice low but lethal. “All of you. Out.”

Vanessa blinked rapidly. “Damien—”

“I said out.”

Elizabeth stiffened. “Sir, with all due respect—”

“That wasn’t a suggestion,” I growled. “Leave. All of you. Now.”

Adrian’s lips curled into a tiny smile—like he enjoyed watching me unravel—but even he nodded and stepped back.

Vanessa tried again, “But I can help—”

“Vanessa.” I turned my eyes on her fully. “Get out.”

Her face flushed with humiliation and anger, but she obeyed, stomping toward the door.

Elizabeth followed, clearly irritated that I dared dismiss her.

Adrian walked out last, giving me a fake sympathetic pat on the shoulder that made my skin crawl.

The moment the door closed behind them, I exhaled shakily.

Finally,

Silence.

I closed my eyes and let the storm inside me settle just enough to think.

Someone orchestrated this.

Someone leaked Ava’s information.

Someone wanted to break her—and me.

And whoever it was…

They were in this house.

I opened my eyes, fury solidifying into resolve.

I would find out who destroyed Ava’s name.

And when I did?

No amount of money, lies, or fake concern would save them.