Jennifer's POV
"Wait." Jason holds up his hand. "Before you all go charging into battle, I need to know something."
We're still standing in the parking lot, the evidence against Richard glowing on my phone screen like a weapon.
"What?" I ask.
Jason looks at Michael, Daniel, and James. Then at me. "Are you actually... all of you... together? Or is this just about destroying Richard?"
The question hangs in the air.
"Both," Michael says simply.
Jason's jaw tightens. "That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer we have right now," Daniel says calmly. "Jennifer just got divorced hours ago. We're still figuring this out."
"Figuring what out?" Jason demands. "A relationship? All four of you? That's insane."
"Maybe," I say. "But it's my insane to figure out."
Jason runs his hand through his hair, looking exhausted. "I can't believe this is happening."
"Jason." I step toward my brother. "I love you. You know I do. But I'm not asking for your permission. I'm asking for you to trust that I know what I'm doing."
"Do you?" he asks quietly. "Because from where I'm standing, you're making decisions that could blow up your entire life."
"My life already blew up," I remind him. "Richard made sure of that. Now I'm building something new. Maybe it's messy. Maybe it's unconventional. But it's mine."
Jason looks at his three best friends. "If any of you hurt her—"
"We won't," they say in unison.
"You better not." Jason's voice is hard. "Because I will destroy you. I don't care how long we've been friends. She's my sister."
"We know," Michael says. "And we respect that."
Jason nods slowly. Then he looks at me. "The board meeting is at nine AM. You need to be ready. I'll be there too, voting in your favor. But Jen... this evidence against Richard. Are you sure you want to use it? It's going to get ugly."
"It's already ugly," I say. "But yes. I'm sure."
"Okay." Jason pulls me into a quick, tight hug. "Then let's bury that bastard."
He leaves, and suddenly it's just the four of us again.
"So," James says, breaking the tension. "Who sent you that evidence?"
"I have no idea," I admit. "Someone who really wants Richard destroyed."
"Or someone who wants you to owe them a favor," Daniel says thoughtfully. "Be careful, Jennifer. Anonymous gifts always have strings."
"Right now, I don't care about strings," I say. "I care about winning."
"Then we need a plan," Michael says. He's already thinking, strategizing. "The board meeting is in nine hours. We need to organize this evidence, prepare your defense, and figure out how to present it."
"I'll handle the technical analysis," James offers. "Make sure everything is properly documented and verified. We can't give them any reason to question the authenticity."
"I'll work with Marcus on the legal strategy," Daniel adds. "Make sure we're not opening you up to any liability by using this information."
"And I'll make sure the board knows exactly who they're dealing with," Michael finishes. His smile is cold. "Richard thinks he can steal your company shares? He's about to learn what happens when you come for a Morgan."
I should feel relieved. Grateful. These three powerful men are fighting for me.
But instead, I feel something else.
Scared.
"What if it's not enough?" The words slip out. "What if we show them everything and they still vote against me? What if Richard wins anyway?"
Michael steps closer. "He won't."
"You don't know that."
"I do." His hand cups my face. "Because I've been in a hundred boardroom battles, Jennifer. And I've never lost. Not once. You're not losing your shares. I promise you that."
"Michael—"
"Trust me," he says simply.
And the crazy thing is, I do.
"Okay," I say. "What do we do first?"
"First," Michael says, "we get you somewhere safe. Somewhere Richard can't find you or serve you with more legal papers or send photographers."
"My apartment isn't safe?" I ask.
"Not anymore," James says, pulling out his phone. "I've been monitoring your building's security. There are three people watching it. Probably Richard's private investigators."
My stomach drops. "He's having me watched?"
"Of course he is," Daniel says gently. "He wants to catch you doing something he can use against you."
"Then where do I go?"
"My place," Michael says immediately.
Daniel and James both look at him.
"Our place," James corrects with a slight smile. "We're all in this together, remember?"
Something passes between the three men. An understanding. An agreement.
"Wait," I say slowly. "You all live together?"
"We share a building," Michael explains. "I have the penthouse. Daniel and James have the floors below. We've been neighbors for five years."
"Convenient," I say.
"Very," James agrees, his eyes warm.
"So if I stay there..." I trail off.
"You'll have all three of us protecting you," Daniel finishes. "Making sure Richard can't get to you. Making sure you're safe."
It should feel overwhelming. Suffocating, even.
Instead, it feels like exactly what I need.
"Okay," I say. "Let's go."
We're walking to Michael's car when Sophia appears, running toward us.
"Jen!" She's breathless, panicked. "Thank God I found you. We have a problem."
"What kind of problem?"
Sophia holds up her phone. "Amanda just posted something. You need to see this."
I take her phone and read Amanda's Instagram post, my blood running cold with each word.
I know everyone thinks I'm the villain in Jennifer Morgan's story. But there's so much you don't know. Jennifer wasn't the perfect wife everyone thinks she was. She had secrets too. Secrets that would shock you. I stayed quiet because Richard asked me to, but I can't anymore. The truth is coming out tomorrow at the board meeting. And when it does, you'll understand why Richard had to leave her.
Some lies are too big to hide. TruthBomb StayTuned
The post already has thousands of likes and hundreds of comments.
"What is she talking about?" Sophia asks. "What secrets?"
"I don't know," I whisper. "I don't have any secrets."
But even as I say it, doubt creeps in.
What if Richard fabricated something? What if he has more fake evidence, more manipulated videos?
"This is a bluff," Michael says firmly. "She's trying to scare you before the meeting."
"It's working," I admit.
"Don't let it." Daniel's voice is steady, calming. "Whatever they're planning to reveal, we'll handle it. Together."
"But what if—"
My phone rings. It's a number I don't recognize, but the area code is local.
I answer. "Hello?"
"Jennifer Morgan?" A young woman's voice. Nervous. Scared. "You don't know me, but... I need to talk to you. About Richard. About what he's planning for tomorrow."
My heart races. "Who is this?"
"My name is Emma. I'm... I was Richard's assistant. For two years." She takes a shaky breath. "And I know what he's going to say about you tomorrow at that board meeting. He made me help him create it. The evidence. The story. All of it."
"What story?" I demand.
"Can we meet? Please? I can't do this over the phone. If Richard finds out I'm talking to you..."
"Where?" I ask immediately.
"There's a diner on 42nd Street. Murphy's. Can you come now? Please? I'm so scared but I need to tell someone the truth before tomorrow."
I look at Michael, Daniel, and James. They're all listening, their faces hard.
"I'll be there in twenty minutes," I tell Emma.
"Come alone," she says quickly. "If Richard's people see anyone with you, they'll know I talked. Please. Just you."
She hangs up.
"That could be a trap," Daniel says immediately.
"Or it could be the answer to what Amanda's threatening," I counter. "If Richard's assistant is willing to talk—"
"Then she's risking her life," James interrupts. "People who betray Richard Morgan don't usually end well. Why would she do it?"
"Maybe she has a conscience," I say.
"Or maybe Richard sent her to ambush you," Michael says flatly. "Jennifer, you can't go alone."
"She said—"
"I don't care what she said." Michael's voice is hard. "I'm not letting you walk into a potential trap without backup."
"Then come with me but stay hidden," I suggest. "If she's legit, I need to hear what she knows. If she's not, you'll be close enough to help."
The three men exchange looks.
"Fine," Michael finally says. "But we're all coming. And if anything feels wrong, you get out immediately."
Twenty minutes later, we're at Murphy's Diner. It's old, dirty, and half-empty. Perfect place for a secret meeting.
I spot Emma immediately. She's young—maybe twenty-four—with red hair and terrified eyes. She sits in a corner booth, clutching a coffee cup like it's a lifeline.
Michael, Daniel, and James stay outside, watching through the windows.
I slide into the booth across from Emma.
"Thank you for coming," she whispers.
"What do you know about tomorrow?" I ask directly.
Emma glances around, making sure no one's listening. Then she pulls out a flash drive and slides it across the table.
"This is everything Richard's planning to present to the board. Documents. Photos. Testimony. He's built an entire case claiming you're not just mentally unstable—he's claiming you're dangerous. That you've been plotting to harm him for months."
"That's insane—"
"I know." Emma's eyes fill with tears. "I know it's all lies because I helped him create them. He made me fake emails, doctor photos, create fake therapy records claiming you've been treated for violent tendencies."
My blood runs cold. "He forged medical records?"
"Everything." Emma pushes the flash drive closer. "It's all on here. The originals before he altered them. Proof of what he did. I kept copies because... because I knew this was wrong. I knew he was destroying an innocent person."
"Why are you telling me this?"
Emma's face crumples. "Because I have a sister. And if someone did this to her, I'd want someone to help. Richard is a monster. I've watched him destroy people for fun. But what he's doing to you... it's evil. Pure evil."
I take the flash drive with shaking hands. "This could save me. Tomorrow. At the board meeting."
"I know." Emma wipes her eyes. "But Jennifer... you need to be careful. Richard has other plans too. Plans that aren't in those files."
"What plans?"
Emma leans forward, her voice dropping to barely a whisper. "He's planning to have you committed. After the board meeting, when you lose your shares, he's having you institutionalized. He has a doctor already paid off, ready to sign the papers. You'll disappear into a mental facility, and by the time you get out—if you get out—everything you own will belong to him."
The room spins.
"He can't do that," I whisper. "That's kidnapping."
"It's legal if a spouse claims someone is a danger to themselves or others," Emma says. "And Richard's been building that case for months. The fake therapy records. The threatening messages. The 'unstable behavior.' It all leads to one conclusion: you need to be locked up for your own safety."
"Oh my God."
"There's more." Emma's voice shakes. "Richard's also planning to hurt the three men you've been seeing. He knows about them. Has photos. He's going to claim they're part of your breakdown—that they're taking advantage of you, manipulating you. He's going to destroy them too."
I think of Michael, Daniel, and James waiting outside. These men who've offered to fight for me.
Richard's going to ruin them.
"When?" I ask. "When is he planning all this?"
"Tomorrow. Right after the board meeting." Emma stands up. "I have to go. If Richard realizes I'm gone too long... Jennifer, please use that information. Stop him. Before he destroys you completely."
She hurries out of the diner, looking terrified.
I sit there, clutching the flash drive, my mind racing.
Richard isn't just trying to take my money.
He's trying to take my freedom. My sanity. My life.
I walk outside. Michael, Daniel, and James immediately surround me.
"What happened?" Michael demands. "What did she say?"
I tell them everything. With each word, their faces get darker.
"He's trying to have you institutionalized," Daniel says, his voice deadly quiet. "That's attempted kidnapping. False imprisonment. A dozen felonies."
"We need to go to the police," James says.
"And say what?" I ask. "That my ex-husband might be planning to commit crimes? We need proof he's actually going to do it, not just plans."
"The flash drive—" Michael starts.
"Shows what he's already done," I interrupt. "Not what he's planning to do tomorrow. By the time we prove his intentions, it might be too late."
"So what do we do?" Daniel asks.
I look at the three of them. These powerful, dangerous men who've become my allies. My protectors.
Maybe something more.
"We don't just win the board meeting tomorrow," I say slowly. "We destroy Richard so completely that he never gets a chance to hurt anyone ever again."
"How?" James asks.
I think about the evidence from the mysterious sender. About Emma's flash drive. About everything Richard has done.
"We expose everything," I say. "Every lie. Every crime. Every evil thing he's ever done. We don't just defend me—we put him on trial. In front of the board. In front of the whole world."
"That's risky," Michael says. "If we go that big and somehow fail—"
"We won't fail." I'm surprised by how strong my voice sounds. "Because we have the truth. And the truth is louder than his lies."
Michael studies me for a long moment. Then he smiles. "Okay. Let's go to war."
We're walking back to Michael's car when my phone rings.
It's my mother.
I almost don't answer. But something makes me.
"Hello?"
"Jennifer." My mother's voice is ice. "I'm calling to inform you that I'll be attending tomorrow's board meeting. And I'll be voting to remove your shares."
My heart stops. "What?"
"You've embarrassed this family long enough. Your behavior, your choices, your public spectacles—it ends tomorrow. The board has already made their decision. You're out."
"Mom—"
"Don't call me that," she snaps. "You stopped being my daughter the moment you chose scandal over dignity. Goodbye, Jennifer."
She hangs up.
I stand there, phone in hand, feeling like I've been punched.
My own mother just disowned me.
"Jennifer?" Daniel's voice is gentle. "What happened?"
I tell them. My voice shakes but I get through it.
"She's voting against you?" James sounds shocked. "Your own mother?"
"Apparently Richard and Victoria convinced her I'm a disgrace to the family name." I laugh, but it sounds broken. "So that's it. My mother's against me. Victoria's against me. Half the board is against me. Even with all our evidence, I don't know if we can win."
"Yes, we can," Michael says fiercely. "Your mother doesn't control the whole board. Jason's voting for you. I have connections with three other board members. We're going to win this."
"But what if—"
My phone buzzes. Another message from the unknown number that's been helping me.
Your mother's vote doesn't matter. Because tomorrow, she won't be at the meeting. None of Richard's allies will. Trust me. Everything is already in motion. You just need to show up and tell the truth. The rest has been handled.
Tomorrow, you don't just win. Tomorrow, you become untouchable.
- Someone who's been watching over you longer than you know
I show the message to the three men.
"Who the hell is sending these?" James demands.
"I don't know," I whisper. "But they've been right about everything so far."
"Or they're setting you up for the biggest fall of your life," Daniel says quietly.
"Either way," I say, "tomorrow at nine AM, we'll find out."
I look at Michael, Daniel, and James. At the men who've chosen to stand beside me in this war.
"Whatever happens tomorrow," I say, "thank you. For fighting for me. For believing me. For..."
"For what?" Michael asks softly.
"For making me feel like I'm worth fighting for."
Michael pulls me close. "You're worth everything, Jennifer. And tomorrow, we're going to prove it to everyone."
But as we drive toward Michael's penthouse, I can't shake the feeling that something big is coming.
Something that will change everything.
And I have no idea if I'm ready for it.