The early morning sun filtered through the penthouse windows, casting a golden glow across the marble floors. Brooklyn stood barefoot in the center of Damien's living room, coffee in hand, as she stared out at the Manhattan skyline. Her thoughts were miles away, tangled in the chaos that had erupted since Geneva's public challenge to the legitimacy of her unborn child.
Geneva Carter had always been dangerous, calculated, icy, and used to getting her way. But now, she had declared open war.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Damien's voice cut through her thoughts. He walked in, tie undone, suit jacket tossed over a chair. His eyes met hers, dark with concern.
Brooklyn didn't answer right away. She turned from the window, setting her coffee on the nearby table. "She's painting me as a liar. As a gold digger trying to trap you with a child that doesn't belong to you. What choice do we have?"
Damien crossed the room and stopped just in front of her. "We fight her. Together."
"I've been fighting alone for so long," Brooklyn whispered. "I don't know what it feels like to be on a team."
"Well, get used to it," Damien said, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "Because I'm not letting you face her alone. Ever."
---
That afternoon, Damien made arrangements for a high-profile interview. If Geneva wanted to play this game in public, they would meet her on that battlefield too. Brooklyn agreed, though nerves coiled in her stomach like a serpent. The spotlight terrified her not because she had anything to hide, but because she knew how cruel the public could be.
At the studio, the lights were bright and hot. Brooklyn sat in a sleek chair beside Damien, her deep emerald dress elegant and powerful. The host, Julia Hayes, smiled politely as she clipped a microphone to Brooklyn's collar.
"We're live in five, four, three…"
---
"Good evening," Julia began. "Tonight, we have Damien Carter and his wife, Brooklyn James Carter, here to address the controversy surrounding their marriage and recent inheritance disputes. Thank you both for joining us."
"Thank you for having us," Damien said.
Brooklyn nodded. Her hands rested on her lap, fingers laced tightly.
"Let's start with the obvious," Julia continued. "Geneva Carter has filed a legal motion claiming your unborn child is not eligible to inherit any Carter assets. How do you respond?"
Brooklyn took a deep breath. "Geneva is attempting to use a dormant clause from a draft never approved by the board. It's not about inheritance. It's about power."
Damien added, "My aunt is leveraging outdated technicalities to undermine my wife's credibility. But more than that, she's trying to erase our child before they're even born."
"Is it true your marriage began as a business arrangement?" Julia asked.
Brooklyn didn't flinch. "Yes. We both had reasons. Damien needed the marriage to gain control of the Carter board. I needed safety, stability. But somewhere along the way, it stopped being about business."
Damien glanced at her. "Brooklyn became my home."
The sincerity in his voice made something in Brooklyn's chest tighten.
"Brooklyn," Julia pressed gently, "there's also been chatter online about your identity. A woman named Grace Hawkins?"
Brooklyn nodded slowly. "That was my name before. I exposed financial corruption at a tech firm I worked for. My life was threatened. I had to disappear. Geneva is now using that to suggest I'm unstable, manipulative. But I won't apologize for telling the truth."
"And why stay in the public eye now, knowing how vicious it can be?"
Brooklyn's voice was clear and unwavering. "Because I'm done hiding. Because my child deserves better. And because I won't let anyone write my story for me again."
---
The interview aired within the hour, exploding across social media. Brooklyn's past, her strength, her refusal to be silenced—it resonated with viewers. The public was divided, but thousands rallied behind her. Hashtags trended. Opinion pieces swarmed the internet.
Inside Carter Enterprises, however, chaos brewed.
"Geneva is furious," Vivienne said the next morning as she paced Damien's office. "She's already called an emergency board meeting."
"She's desperate," Damien replied. "The public is shifting in our favor."
"She's also dangerous," Grant added. "She's digging into Brooklyn's past. Looking for anything to use."
Brooklyn leaned against Damien's desk. "Let her dig. I've survived worse than her threats."
Vivienne gave her a long look. "You really are something, Brooklyn."
---
In the Hamptons, Geneva threw her wine glass against the fireplace, the crash echoing through her estate.
"She thinks she can win the public?" she snapped. "We're not playing a popularity contest. We're playing legacy."
Her assistant stood silently nearby.
"Find someone from her past. Someone she left behind. Anyone with a grudge. I want her credibility burned to the ground."
"Yes, ma'am."
---
Two days later, Brooklyn received a message that chilled her to the bone.
A photo.
Of her. Outside a shelter. From years ago. And below it, a caption: You've run before. Let's see you run again.
Brooklyn dropped the phone.
Damien picked it up, read the message, and his face went cold.
"She wants war?" he said quietly. "We'll give her war."
---
Brooklyn walked into the Carter Enterprises boardroom with her chin high. Geneva sat at the head of the table, eyes sharp.
"Before we begin," Brooklyn said, "let's get one thing straight. I'm not here to beg. I'm here to fight. For my name. My child. My husband. And I don't care what skeletons you think you've found. I buried them. And I'm not afraid to dig them up myself if that's what it takes to win."
The room fell silent.
Damien smiled.
Geneva's lips curled. "Then let the games begin."