POV: Elise Carter
The lobby of Blackwell Industries didn't look like a corporate building. It looked like a palace for sinners—obsidian floors, minimalist gold trim, and a chandelier shaped like a crown of thorns suspended above the central atrium. Every detail whispered of power, dominance, and danger.
I stepped in at exactly 9:58 a.m.
The receptionist smiled, clearly briefed. "Miss Carter, Mr. Blackwell is expecting you. Please take the elevator to the top floor."
Top floor. Of course.
As I walked across the marble, I felt the weight of the past pulling at me. I had walked into this same building five years ago to plead for funding on behalf of my family. I was ignored. Overlooked.
But this time, I wasn't here to beg.
I was here to conquer.
POV: Adrian Blackwell
She walked in like she owned the place.
Not the meek, doe-eyed woman the tabloids once called "the golden daughter of the Carter family." No, this Elise Carter moved like she knew her worth—and how dangerous it made her.
She wore a crimson blouse tucked into tailored black slacks, her hair swept into a loose knot that framed her cheekbones like sculpture. And the folder in her hand?
It looked like a bomb.
I leaned back as Naomi led her in.
"Miss Carter," I said. "Right on time."
She smiled, all sharp charm and deadly confidence. "I'm always punctual when something valuable's on the table."
I motioned to the chair across from me, and she sat—crossing her legs with calculated ease.
"Show me what you've brought."
POV: Elise Carter
I opened the folder and slid the documents toward him.
"The Greenwave Initiative," I said, "was designed with my late mother's climate models. After she passed, the data was folded into a dummy shell company—Carter Tech, which I recently acquired."
He flipped through the paperwork, eyebrows lifting as he scanned each page. Contracts. Research patents. Licensing rights under my name.
"Convenient timing," he muttered.
I tilted my head. "No, Mr. Blackwell. This isn't about convenience. This is about control. The Carters don't get to bury me again. I'm taking what's mine."
"And what exactly do you want from me?"
"Simple." I leaned forward. "A partnership. You get exclusive development rights. I get fifty-one percent ownership, and a seat at your board."
He actually laughed.
"I don't share my throne, Miss Carter."
I didn't flinch. "Then maybe you're not ready for this innovation. Because I'm not looking to sell. I'm here to rebuild."
He stared at me for a long moment.
Then his lips curled into something dangerous. "You want to play in my sandbox, Elise? Fine. But don't be surprised if you get buried."
POV: Adrian Blackwell
She reminded me of someone I once knew.
Someone who didn't just want a seat at the table—she wanted to flip it.
Elise Carter wasn't bluffing. The documents were real. Her data could push my renewable energy division ten years ahead of schedule.
And still, I didn't trust her.
Trust got you killed in my world.
But power? Power got you everything.
"You start Monday," I said finally.
She didn't smile. She nodded like she already knew I'd say yes.
"I'll have Naomi set up your office."
"Oh," she said, standing. "No need. I know the layout. After all, I used to date your Chief Technology Officer."
I blinked.
She smirked and turned on her heel.
Was that true? Probably not. But it didn't matter.
She knew the value of uncertainty—and used it like a weapon.
And that made her dangerous.
Exactly the kind of woman I needed close.
POV: Tiffany Carter
"Elise is what?" I shouted into the phone, nearly knocking over my latte.
Gregory's voice was stone on the other end. "She signed a development contract with Blackwell. The patent was real. She blindsided us."
I gripped the phone tighter. "This wasn't the plan. She's supposed to be broken. Controlled."
"She's clearly playing a deeper game now."
A deeper game? No.
This wasn't Elise playing a game.
This was Elise declaring war.
I glanced at the man across from me—Liam, silent and pale.
"You said she was done," I hissed. "That she'd never recover."
"She—she wasn't like this before," he stammered. "I don't know what happened."
I did.
She rose from the ashes we poured on her.
And now she was coming for all of us.
POV: Elise Carter
By late afternoon, I stood in my new office, overlooking the city. Naomi had handed me a keycard, a company ID, and a security pass stamped Level 5 Access.
Not bad for day one.
I pulled out my phone and scrolled through my notes. My real goal wasn't just the patent. It was access—to Blackwell's encrypted records, his shareholders, his biggest contracts.
Because deep inside this empire was a secret.
One tied to my mother's death.
Adrian may not remember what his father did to mine. Or how our families were once entangled in something far messier than business.
But I remembered everything.
And now?
I was inside the lion's den.
And I didn't come to tiptoe.