Staring at the gray , overcast sky , I almost laughed at the absurdity . Ethan's so - called " business genius " had been nothing but my grandfather's silent charity . My grandfather was a titan of industry , with assets spread across the country . Three years ago , for my sake , he had quietly connected Ethan to powerful partners . Those deals Ethan boasted about " winning through skill " had been sealed with a single word from my grandfather . Pathetic - because even when the resources were handed to him , Ethan still managed to screw them up . How many times had my grandfather's carefully arranged clients walked away because of Ethan's arrogance ? How many guaranteed - profit projects had he ruined with his idiotic decisions ? If not for my family's protection , his little company would have collapsed hundreds of times over . And now , this man who owed everything to my family had killed our child in his scramble to curry favor with the powerful . The next morning , my father placed a folder on my bedside table . On top was the divorce agreement already signed by Ethan . Beneath it was a thick file of information on Vanessa . I flipped it open and let out a cold laugh . So the " heiress of the Blake Corporation " was nothing more than an expensive escort . The documents showed the company's chairman had only one son - no daughter . Her entire " background " was an elaborate lie . " How ironic , " I murmured . " Ethan threw me away for a fake heiress - and helped her kill his own child . " My father patted my hand lightly . " People like that aren't worth your grief . " Chapter 10 18.81 % I closed the file , my eyes hardening . " Dad , we can start . " He nodded and immediately began making calls . Within thirty minutes , a full - scale corporate siege was underway . First , the bank abruptly recalled all of Ethan's loans . Next , his three largest clients simultaneously cut ties . Finally , the tax bureau arrived to freeze his accounts and audit the company . All of it , done with just a few phone calls from my grandfather . The irony was almost sweet . Ethan's prized " connections " evaporated in an instant - every so - called ally turning their back . The business partners who once called him " brother " now avoided him like the plague . The subordinates who used to fawn over him were handing in their resignations one after another . My phone buzzed with push alerts : [ ColeTech Faces Bankruptcy Amid Cash Flow Crisis . ] [ Founder Ethan Cole Blacklisted for Credit Default . ] A cold smile tugged at my lips . Three days later , I was sipping tea in the garden when my butler rushed in . " Miss , Ethan is kneeling at the gate asking to see you . " I set my cup down slowly , a chill curling through my smile . " Let him in . " By the time the guards brought him to me , the man before me was a shadow of the arrogant figure I had once known . Chapter 10