Chapter 66: Media Frenzy

Aria's POV

I believed confronting Victor Montgomery would be the most difficult thing I had ever done. However, I was mistaken.

After Cole and I stood side by side and assured him that we wouldn't be broken, there was a heavy, ominous silence that followed, and that's what made me uneasy. Victor hadn't gone off like I thought he would. He didn't shout or threaten anyone directly. Rather, he walked away composedly, as though he already knew that his next action would cause more pain than words could.

I could see the storm behind Cole's eyes, despite his attempts to appear unmoved. He was getting ready for the next hit already. And a piece of me? There was a part of me that feared I might be the cause of his harm.

Once more.

I had just started breathing again after we returned from the battle with Victor when the world suddenly came crashing down around me in a brand-new way.

The following morning was when it began.

My phone kept buzzing. Perhaps it was another of Victor's power moves, or perhaps Kaitlyn was inciting something trivial once more. But I knew this wasn't a little scandal as soon as I opened the first message, which was from Maya.

"Don't go online, Aria. It's not good. Very poor.

The second message struck more forcefully.

They are investigating your father. The vineyard is making news.

I went cold.

My gut clenched in a knot. I opened the news app because my fingers reacted before my brain did.

And there it was. Directly on the home page.

"Financial catastrophe or vineyard heiress? Amid her growing influence in Montgomery Estate, Aria Bennett's troubled family history comes to light.

My hands became icy.

There were pictures. Old photos of my father entering courtrooms during his bankruptcy hearings, appearing unkempt. I was just nineteen when one of them showed me, standing next to him, feeling embarrassed and afraid.

The piece ripped through my family's history as if it were entertaining gossip rather than actual suffering. They referred to him as careless. Referred to me as unqualified. Wondered whether I could run the vineyard or if I was simply another attractive person trying to get Cole Montgomery's name.

Then it dawned on me that I wasn't the only target of this.

We were the target of an attack.

This was Victor's doing.

When I showed Cole the piece, he said, "I'll kill him." His shoulders were coiled like a spring about to break, and his mouth was clenched.

"No," I hurriedly shouted, snatching his arm before he could react. That's his desire. He wants you to blow up. To act out and exacerbate the situation.

"Your father is being pulled through the mud by him." Aria, he's doubting your value. This—this is excessively far.

My heart pounded like a battle drum as I nodded. "I understand. He wins, though, if we lose control now. We cannot allow him to dictate the story.

Cole turned to face me, his rage raging, but I noticed something else behind it.

Fear and worry.

Not for himself.

For me.

I took a step forward and put my hand on his cheek. "Let's combat this. Together. Like we have always promised.

For a little moment, the fire within him subsided as he closed his eyes and leaned into my touch.

Then he said, "All right. Together.

The days that followed were terrible.

By the gates of the vineyard, reporters set up camp. The purpose of the paparazzi stalking the grocery store parking lot was to capture me looking anxious. Even the workers at the vineyard were interrogated and forced into this mess that they had nothing to do with.

People stared at me like I was a headline everywhere I went.

I was trailed about town by whispers.

The girl whose father lost everything is that one.

"Do you think she's capable of managing a vineyard?"

I felt like screaming. to protect myself. To inform them that I was unknown to them. Yes, I was not my father, although he did make mistakes.

I chose to smile through it instead. Pretended that their remarks were innocuous.

On the inside, though, I was crumbling.

I was attempting to breathe again one night while standing by myself in the vineyard and letting the breeze blow across my face. I had trembling hands.

I muttered to myself, "You're not weak." "You've experienced worse."

However, what is the reality? Nothing had ever felt worse than this. The world was attempting to destroy what I had finally begun to construct, not because of the lies.

I couldn't let them.

Two days later, we had a news conference.

Cole made the arrangements. Managed the permits for the media. To make sure our viewpoint was heard, we even asked for a few favors.

Just beyond the vineyard gates, I stood on a wooden platform with microphones arranged like guns, cameras flashing.

Cole, a silent powerhouse, stood behind me. I took a deep breath, turned to face the crowd, and started.

I go by Aria Bennett. I'm not the daughter of a billionaire. I didn't have it easy growing up. However, I have worked diligently every day to achieve the status of vineyard owner.

Cameras swung. Journalists scrawled notes.

"Yes, my father struggled financially. There's no secret about it. He erred. However, I am not him. I have not replicated his history; instead, I have learned from it.

I stopped, my voice steady despite my racing heart.

"And I won't feel bad about loving someone who has more faith in me than anyone else in the world ever has."

The world seemed to melt away for a moment as I turned slightly to look at Cole. He fixed his gaze on mine as if he were tying me to the floor.

"I refuse to be embarrassed by my background. And I refuse to be quiet about my future.

I then moved aside to give Cole the microphone.

He remained silent.

Enough.

"You have never witnessed Aria Bennett fight if you believe she is incapable."

Boom.

It was a burning line. The reporters glowed. Before we had left the podium, social media was already a flurry of activity.

We sat on the porch later that evening, and although there was silence between us, it wasn't oppressive. It was earned.

Cole whispered, "You killed it today," as his thumb brushed the back of my hand. "I've never been happier for you."

Even though I could still feel the weight on my chest, I grinned. "It's not finished. They will return with something different.

"We'll handle it. as we always do.

My head was resting on his shoulder. "You believe Victor is finished?"

He paused before responding.

Then, "No. However, we simply made it far more difficult for him to defeat you.

However, it happened right after I thought we had gathered our breath and I was finally able to be proud.

One more article.

It's not about me.

But Cole.

It was also awful.

The following morning, Maya was nearly banging on my door, her face white, and she was holding my phone.

She shoved the screen at me and said, "You must see this."

The headline made me blink.

Was Blood Money Inherited by Col. Montgomery? Allegations of corruption are linked to the surface of hidden family accounts.

I've read it once. Then twice.

"No," I muttered. "This must be a fake,"

But there was proof.

Offshore accounts. Dates. Logs of transactions. It was emblazoned with the Montgomery name.

Even worse, one of the accounts was connected to a business that provided funding for the actual property where the vineyard presently stood.

If this were accurate, it would imply that illicit funds were involved in the vineyard's rebirth—my diligence, our fresh start.

With my heart in my throat, I collapsed onto the couch as my legs failed me.

A few minutes later, Cole rushed in, his face a whirl of anger and incredulity.

“Winner,” he growled. "He must be the one. This was set up by him.

"But the proof..." I muttered. "What if it's real?"

He became motionless.

Like poison in the air, the question hovered between us.

With burning eyes, he declared, "I'll fix this." "Whatever it takes."

But just as he was about to bolt out, a voice from the hallway interrupted him.

"I'm not entirely sure about that."

Both of us turned.

There stood Victor Montgomery.

Calm, smug.

Deadly.

He folded his hands behind his back and whispered, "I told you, son." "Leave the girl alone, or everything will fall apart."