The elevator creaked like it had seen better days, groaning with each floor it passed. Ashley tapped her foot against the scuffed linoleum, pulse quickening as the doors slid open to the third floor. A narrow hallway stretched before her, lined with different offices that bore frosted glass panels and brass plaques dulled by fingerprints. The scent of burnt espresso and copier ink hovering above the air.
Brooke's office was halfway down, its door propped open with a file box. A plaque announced: Brooke Anderson, Attorney at Law.
Not "Anderson & Partners." Not even "Associates." Just Brooke.
Ashley smiled faintly. That was so her. No pretenses, no unnecessary polish. Just the real deal and she was good at her job.
She stepped inside. The secretary looked up from behind a cluttered desk, offering a polite and tired smile. Ashley waved, then knocked lightly against Brooke's door.
"Come in, Ash," Brooke's voice called, casual as if she had been expecting her all morning.
Brooke gave her a once-over, her mouth twisting. "You look like hell."
Ashley sank into the chair opposite her and sighed. "I feel like hell."
"Vegas husband? Trouble in paradise?" Brooke asked, arching a brow.
Ashley groaned. "Do we have to keep calling him that? Be nice Brooke"
"Well, unless you'd prefer I call him Mr. Right Now…" she said laughing and hinting she had more coined names to roll out.
"Brooke, his name is Julian,."
Her friend smirked. "Fine, fine. Sit down and tell me why you're here, other than to look tragically beautiful and hung on a man you barely know."
Ashley fished into her tote bag, pulled out her phone,opened her mail box and slid it across the desk. "Because of this."
"The secretary said they're the ones who bought it, they're always acquiring distressed assets. " Ashley leaned forward, voice tight. "I've done a little digging around, Brooke. Our company isn't the first. It's a pattern. Small family businesses swallowed up overnight. No one hears from them again."
Brooke opened the mail and scanned the letterhead. "Stonehenge ltd is the receiver, Hmm. Never heard of them. Sounds like those vulture funds companies. Who are they?"
Brooke frowned. "And you think they're just a front?."
"I know it," Ashley whispered.
Silence settled for a moment. The hum of traffic drifted in through the cracked window.
Brooke set the phone down carefully. "Okay. Let's slow down. Who do you think is really behind it?"
"I don't know," she said instead. "That's why I'm here, i want you to do a little digging and let me know what you find."
Brooke's eyes sharpened. She looked less like her best friend and more like the sharp attorney Ashley knew she could be. " Stonehenge is always selling to blackwood corporation. If they're involved, we're not just talking about a takeover. This is corporate predation. If we can prove a pattern, we might have grounds to fight."
Ashley's heart thumped. "You think we can stop it?"
Brooke leaned back, twirling her pen. "Stop it? Maybe, maybe not. Slow it down? Possibly. Make it messy enough that they think twice? Absolutely."
Ashley pressed her palms against her knees. "Brooke, my dad looks like he's carrying the world on his shoulders. My mom keeps pretending everything's fine, but she's wearing the same smile she used at Grandma's funeral. If this deal goes through, we lose every fighting chance. The house, the company. Our history."
Brooke's tone softened. "Dont worry i will do my research and get back to you ,before the meeting. What about him? This… Julian?"
Ashley bristled. "What about him, you seem so vested in him?"
Ashley's mind flickered to Julian, the man who kissed her under a sky full of stars, who made her laugh on the boat, who she woke up tangled with, in sheets that smelled like salt and citrus.The man who hadn't even bothered to call.
Brooke studied her, tapping the pen against her chin. "Does he know about all this, he's your husband after all?"
They both laughed at Brooke's insistence on being silly.
Brooke leaned forward, her eyes intent. "Be careful. Until we know more, trust no one. Not even him."
Brooke's focus shifted instantly, the lawyer rising. "Step one: find out who stonehenge really works for,as someone bigger is hiding behind them.
"And if it is?" Ashley asked
Brooke gave a humorless smile. "Then we make their lives hell."
Ashley exhaled, relief curling around her chest. "So I wasn't paranoid."
Brooke chuckled. "No, Ash. You're paranoid and right. It's my favorite combination."
Ashley let out a shaky laugh, then sobered. "I hate that this is happening. I hate that my family's livelihood is just another pawn on some corporation's chessboard."
Brooke smirked. "Welcome to America, sweetheart. But don't worry, we'll fight dirty if we have to."
Ashley rose from the chair, gathering her bag. She felt both lighter and heavier at once. Relieved Brooke was in her corner, terrified of what truth they might find out.
"Give me a day," Brooke said, holding up her finger. "I'll dig and don't forget to forward the mail" . Ashley nodded, but her chest still ached. She turned toward the door, but Brooke's voice stopped her.
"Ash?"
"Yeah?"
" It will be fine, don't worry so much about that. Prepare the proposal like we discussed,let the numbers do the talking, hopefully they'll bite. Goodluck babe, I love you. Whenever you need me don't hesitate to call on me ok?"
Tears welled up on Ashley's eyes, before she crossed over the table hugging Brooke.
"Thanks so much, I don't know what I would have done without you in my corner.