The court session was adjourned and pushed to a later hearing, but Ethan was far from content. He storms into the house, lashing anything in his way. Sothan kept his distance, not wanting to become the target of his father's anger.
Sofia watched from the balcony, her hands clenched into fists, anger churned inside her, burning hotter with every passing second. He was fighting to gain custody of the children when he could barely take notice of the one before him.
"Sofia," he barged loudly, his voice echoing like a thunderstorm. Sofia was rigid, her body instantly frozen, but she pulled herself together, refusing to give in to the fear.
"Yes," she answered firmly, meeting his gaze. "One job," he chuckled, his heavy steps hammering the floor. "All you had was one job, and you messed it up," he yelled, veins popping out of his head. Sofia instinctively took shaky steps backward, distancing herself from him.
"I did my best, Ethan," she murmured, her fingers tightening around the hem of her dress. "He promised… " her voice cracked. "I slept with him for that promise." But her words did nothing to calm the beast before her.
"You should have done better. I am sure you were terrible in bed, just as you're a terrible mother." She stood frozen, his words echoing within her like a broken record. She laughed bitterly, her eyes darkened. The woman who stood, scared, was gone.
"See who gives parenting advice when he can hardly tolerate his son. You can do anything. I am a useless woman and a horrible fiance, but never dare question my love for my son, for you know nothing of being a parent." Sofia took steady steps forward, meeting his gaze.
"I know you want the company. Your empire is falling, and you want it back at the expense of your children, but what happens when you get them, Ethan? Have you considered your role in their life, or you think they will be gone with the case?"
For a while, Ethan stood lost; the anger within him suddenly vanished. Sofia did not look like the woman he knew, the one he had spent years with. For a split second, he saw Blair in her. Just like he had turned his back on her, tossed her to the side, she had risen like an eagle, and now, after his flesh, sudden fear rooted within him.
"I didn't mean it like that," he said softly, stepping forward. Sofia held out a hand, halting him.
"I don't care. I meant every word of mine, and if you should continue treating my son as trash, I shall take him where he is cared for and loved… let's see how you deal with that." Unlike the pitiful woman he had wanted her to be, Sofia proved stronger by the day. But he should have known Sofia was the least of his problems.
His business crumbled while he trashed the penthouse and frightened his fiance and son. His secrets were out, and his reputation was dragged to the mud. The company was no longer his. The bidding had been successful, but now he had lost the shares of every trusted shareholder. His biggest supporters were gone, and everyone left him to dance to the tune of his misery.
The media was wild. No one could trace the source of the evidence, but it poured on every website like rain. It ranked first on the official pages, and despite attempts to take it down, it did not bulge.
Tax evasion, bribes, extortion, kidnapping… His crimes were too much. Ethan banged his fist hard on the desk. This was not how he had envisioned the arrival of the Merge into society.
He had a full written plan, involving him doing business with them and having his son gain favors by befriending the twins. But here, he was like a slave struggling under their great rule. With every effort, he found himself dragged behind a thousand steps.
"Leave," he ordered the rest of the staff as they scrambled to flee. Ethan sighed heavily, staring at the night sky. So much had changed in just a few weeks. His office, a place of solitude and pride, was now a fraction of its former comfort. His phone vibrated on the table, disrupting his train of thought.
"Hello," he said. The line was quiet for a while, and then he heard her. "Cheers to the sale of your company," her cocky yet sweet melodious voice announced. Ethan felt his blood rush; he had not sold the company.
"What do you mean?" he demanded, but Blair had long hung up. Staring at the phone in his hands, he dashed it to the wall, watching it shatter like the pieces of his life. What had he gotten himself mixed up with? He did not know.
Blair should have been his ex-wife, a woman who would come begging and crawling for his sympathy. Instead, he was pushed to a corner with no way out by the same person he had expected to come crawling. Ethan clenched his fist, and his knuckles turned white.
"What do you want, Blair?" he murmured, the walls of his office swallowing up his words
The night felt colder than usual. The penthouse was empty, with no sign of life or comfort. Ethan stared down at the wine bottles scattered all over the floor. His phone rang, and he ignored it, but the persistent noise didn't disappear.
"What!" he screamed into the speaker like a mad man. "Are you drunk? How can you be drinking at a time like this, Ethan?" Sofia's furious voice echoed through the speaker.
"What would you want me to do? Kill myself for the company?" he sneered, but deep down his heart was dying with his company.
"Yes... if that is what it would take to purchase it.. How can you sit and drink knowing your company is the first to be sold at the cheapest rate to a beggar? Do you think this is some casino bet?" Ethan felt his body heat up. "What did you say?" The words came out in hushed tones.
"Your ex-wife has rubbed you in the mud," and the phone went dead. Ethan quickly searched online, and every article was about his mighty fall. His body trembled. He was suddenly no longer tipsy; the news had washed away his drunkenness. Quickly, he dialed her number, and for an eternity, he waited for her to pick up.
"Hello, Ethan," the devil's voice echoed through the speaker. "What have you done?" he demanded, almost pleading, but the scoff from the other end sliced his heart like a chopper's knife.
"I sold it," she said calmly but shatteringly. Ethan felt his eyes grow wet. "How much did you sell it for?" he asked.
"A penny… " she smiled, smudged
"Isn't that what it's worth?"