Chapter 28 After that , I walked out . Didn't even wait for a response . The ripple hit fast . By sundown , three other investors had pulled their funds . A week later , seven more followed . Then the media got wind , and that's when the bleeding began . Massaro Pharmaceuticals stock tanked like a plane with no wings . Sixty - five percent and falling like gravity owed me a favor . Their PR team scrambled , but it was like trying to mop up blood in a hurricane . And me ? I started buying . Quiet . Clean . I used shell corps , offshore fronts , even borrowed a few names from ghosts I buried years ago . I bought out every minor shareholder they had until I had enough votes in my back pocket to start pushing boardroom changes . One of my guys asked if I was trying to sink their ship . I said , " I'm not just sinking her ship . I'm buying the goddamn ocean . ' Then the phone rang . Torren . I let it ring twice before picking up . " You fucking bastard , " he growled . " Are you doing all this because of Therese ? You think I don't see through this ? You're ruining everything . The company . My family's legacy- " I cut him off . " Why don't you ask your mother why she tried to kill my bride . " He went quiet for a second . Then the shouting started . " You son of a bitch ! You're bluffing . My mother wouldn't ! She wouldn't . You're just using Therese as an excuse to tear us down . " leaned back in my chair , calm as ever . " You sure about that , Torren ? Because I've got a dead driver , a wrecked car , a witness , and a name . Want me to send you the file ? Or are you too much of a coward to look at what your mother's capable of ? " " She's not- " " She is , " I snapped . " And you know it . Deep down , you always knew your family was rotten . You just didn't have the balls to say it out loud . " Torren started cursing again . Furious , manic , threatening lawsuits and board interference He Left Me for Dead . Now He Beas Me for Mercy 1/3 82.8 % 22:33 Sun , Aug 10 47 % X and restraining orders like any of that could touch me . I let him scream until he ran out of breath . Then I said , " She tried to end the woman I love . I'm ending her instead . And if you get in my way again , I'll bury you right next to her . " I hung up before he could say another word . Fuck lawsuits . I don't play by courtroom rules . I play by blood . ** TORREN'S POV I stormed into the Langford estate with my fists clenched and my blood boiling . My phone hadn't stopped ringing for hours … lawyers , board members , press . Everyone was screaming . Everyone's panicking . The stock was still in free fall . Forty percent . Thirty - two . Twenty - eight . My empire was bleeding out in real time . The fucking doors weren't even locked . I shoved them open so hard they cracked against the wall and echoed down the halls . Servants scattered like rats . No one dared speak . Just wide eyes and silence and the heavy thud of my shoes slamming against marble . I followed the trail of lavender and sunlight and found her . My mother . Eloise fucking Massaro . Sitting in the sunroom like we weren't drowning . Sipping tea like we weren't hours from collapse . Orchids bloomed all around her , pale and perfect . Next to her , Ruby stood up when she saw me and smiled like she thought I came for her . " You came- " I grabbed the nearest vase worth of billion and hurled it at the floor . It shattered right in front of her feet . Sharp white pieces flying across the tiles . Ruby screamed and flinched , stumbling back . The smile vanished . I pointed straight at my mother and roared , " You fucking tried to kill her . " Eloise didn't even blink . She just sipped her tea and looked out the window . " You had her car rammed off a fucking cliff ?! She's in a coma , and now Ephraim Lambert is tearing everything apart ! " She set her cup down , calm as ever . " Damn that woman . She's still alive ? I should've hired someone more competent . " My vision went black for a second . I slammed my fists on the table and it rattled under my hands . I wanted to flip it over . I wanted to burn the whole fucking house down . " Because of what you did , we lost ninety - five percent of our investors . We are two days , Chapter 28 3/3 83 8 22:33 Sun , Aug 10 two fucking days , from bankruptcy ! " Her hand froze in the air . The teacup tilted , just slightly . " What ? " 47 % 0 X I looked her dead in the face . " Ephraim is gutting us . Every deal , every ally , every backdoor pipeline we ever had . He's using our own shares against us . And you ! " I dragged a hand through my hair . " You gave him the reason . You handed him the damn match and begged him to burn us ." She hesitated . Then her eyes shifted . " It wasn't me ," she said too fast . " It was her . It was Ruby's idea ." She turned her icy stare to Ruby , who looked like a deer about to be shot . "She said silence was the only option . She said Therese had to be dealt with . " Ruby stepped forward , wide - eyed and trembling . " What ? No ! No - I said we should watch her , not kill her ! " I turned toward her , jaw clenching . " You told me she would ruin everything if she woke up . You said she'd drag us all down . " Ruby shook her head , her voice pitching high . " Torren , baby , please ! Listen to me , I didn't mean it like that , I meant … " I didn't let her finish . I grabbed her by the throat and shoved her hard against the glass wall . Her feet barely touched the ground and her hands clawed at mine . " You killed her , " I said through gritted teeth . " You killed everything . " Her eyes filled with tears . Her face turned red as she choked . Behind me , Eloise finally spoke . " Control yourself , Torren . Ruby is pregnant with your child . " I didn't even turn around . I kept my hand on Ruby's throat and stared into her panicked eyes . " If Therese dies , " I said slowly , " you'll wish I left you dead beside her . I don't give a shit if you're carrying my child or not . I will end you . " I let go . Ruby dropped to the floor coughing and gasping for air . Her makeup was smeared and tears ran down her face . " It's not me ," she sobbed . " It's your mother . She planned it . Please , I never wanted this! " I turned away from her and faced Eloise again . She still hadn't moved . " You fix this , " I said . " Or I will walk into Ephraim's office myself and hand him your fucking Chapter 28 3/3 848 % 22:33 Sun , Aug 10 B 47 % X RUBY'S POV