The black car purred softly as it turned into the sweeping driveway of the Hale estate. The mansion rose ahead, grand and imposing, its glass walls reflecting the fading sunlight. To outsiders, it was the image of wealth and power. To Thalia, it was a gilded cage beautiful from afar, but suffocating once you stepped inside.
She leaned back against the leather seat, forcing her expression into neutrality. Cassian's face flickered through her mind briefly, his raised brows when she dropped the bombshell about marriage. He hadn't said yes. He hadn't said no, either. It was a start. But here, in this house, she couldn't afford to look like she was grasping at hope.
The driver opened her door. "Miss Hale."
Thalia stepped out gracefully, her heels clicking against the stone tiles. Her posture was as straight as it had been walking into Cassian's office chin lifted, eyes cold, shoulders squared. Inside, her pulse was steady. No matter how often she returned here, she never allowed herself to show weakness. That was exactly what Vivienne and her children fed on.
The tall double doors opened before she even touched them. The head butler bowed stiffly. "Welcome back, Miss."
She gave him a curt nod and entered.
The foyer was alive with warm light, the chandelier above dripping golden beams onto the marble floor. But the warmth didn't reach her. It never did.
Voices drifted from the living room laughter, her stepmother's lilting tone cutting through the air like a knife wrapped in silk. Thalia's jaw tightened. She wanted to head straight upstairs, but stepping into the lion's den was unavoidable. If she slipped past, Vivienne would use it against her later: so rude, so cold, so ungrateful.
Thalia smoothed her hair back, plastered on a polite smile, and walked into the room.
Vivienne was lounging on the velvet sofa, her dark red dress hugging her frame, a glass of wine balanced carelessly in her hand. Her beauty hadn't faded with age if anything, it had sharpened. She was elegance wrapped around poison.
Adrian sat beside her, legs sprawled arrogantly, scrolling on his phone. His sharp jaw and tailored suit mirrored his mother's style, but his eyes gleamed with smugness. He barely glanced up when Thalia entered, but a smirk tugged at his lips.
On the opposite side, Selene perched like a cat, legs crossed, her eyes narrowed at Thalia. Just twenty-one, she already carried Vivienne's venom in her veins. Victor, younger by two year year, slouched in an armchair, sipping soda with a bored expression.
"Thalia," Vivienne drawled, as if her name were a nuisance to say.
Thalia's polite smile didn't falter. "Vivienne. Adrian. Selene. Victor."
Victor raised his soda can lazily. "Back from conquering the city, sis?"
"Don't call me that," Thalia replied smoothly, hanging her coat on the rack.
Vivienne tsked softly. "Really, darling, you're so uptight. Family banter shouldn't offend you."
Thalia crossed the room with measured steps and poured herself a glass of water from the crystal decanter. "Perhaps it wouldn't, if there was family here."
That earned her a sharp look from Adrian. "Watch your tongue, Thalia. You forget whose house you're standing in."
Thalia turned her gaze on him, cold and steady. "My mother's name built part of this house. Don't you forget it."
The air shifted, a tense silence stretching for a moment. Selene let out a mocking laugh, breaking it.
"Oh, here we go again," she sneered. "Dragging that poor woman's ghost into every conversation. Give it a rest, Lia. She's gone. And she left nothing behind but you. Honestly, the company was already struggling when she died. If not for Father and Mother, we'd all be in ruins."
Thalia set her glass down carefully. Her fingers itched to shatter it against the marble, but she wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing her lose control.
"My mother," she said softly, her tone sharp enough to cut, "inherited Hale & Co. from her family and she took the company from where it was to where it is now ."
Victor rolled his eyes. "History lesson's boring. We're the present, aren't we? Adrian's already being groomed to take over. You should relax, Lia. Enjoy being… irrelevant."
Adrian smirked at that, leaning forward. "Exactly. You're wasting your time with these little power plays. No board is going to side with you over me. Not when Father himself supports me."
Her jaw tightened. Adrian, born of betrayal, smugly flaunting Gregory's approval, as if legitimacy didn't matter. As if the years her mother had been humiliated meant nothing.
Before she could respond, Vivienne raised her glass, her smile languid. "Children, children. Don't be so harsh on Thalia. She simply hasn't accepted her place yet. Not everyone can lead. Some of us are born to follow."
Thalia's gaze flicked to her stepmother, her voice even. "And some of us weren't born at all. We were… smuggled in."
The room stilled. Selene's mouth dropped slightly, Victor choked on his soda, and Adrian's face darkened instantly.
Vivienne's smile didn't falter, but her eyes hardened like steel. "Careful, Thalia. You don't want to sound ungrateful. Your father gave you everything you have."
"My mother gave me everything I have," Thalia corrected. Her voice was calm, but inside, her pulse thundered. "And I intend to make sure her legacy isn't stolen by those who never deserved it."
She turned on her heel before anyone could answer, walking out with unhurried grace. Their voices rose behind her Adrian muttering curses, Selene hissing something about arrogance, Victor laughing nervously but she didn't stop.
The grand staircase stretched upward, and she climbed it steadily, ignoring the burn in her chest. She didn't allow herself to crumble until she reached the sanctuary of her room.
Once inside, she locked the door and pressed her back against it, her composure cracking for the first time.
Her mother's portrait hung on the far wall. Not the grand, painted one in the hallway Gregory had insisted on taking that down years ago. This one was smaller, framed simply, but it was Thalia's treasure. Her mother's smile seemed alive, soft eyes gazing at her as if reminding her why she endured.
"I won't let them win," Thalia whispered. Her voice trembled, but her conviction did not. "Not Adrian. Not Vivienne. Not anyone. Your name will never be erased."
She moved to her desk, pulling out a folder she'd hidden beneath a stack of books. Inside were reports, shares data, whispers of board members leaning toward Adrian. Every document was evidence of the walls closing in.
Her phone buzzed. A message from an unknown number:
Time's running out, Miss Hale. Adrian is moving faster than you think.
Thalia's hand tightened around the phone. Whoever sent it, they were right. She couldn't win this alone.
Her mind drifted to Cassian. His measured stare, his slow, calculating smile. He wasn't someone who made promises lightly. If he agreed to her plan, she'd have the backing to stand against Adrian and Vivienne. And for six months, at least, she wouldn't be fighting alone.
Her eyes flicked back to the portrait. I'll protect what was meant to be yours, Mother. Even if it costs me everything.
She sat at her desk, pen scratching furiously across paper as she drafted her next steps. Outside her locked door, the laughter of her step-siblings echoed faintly through the halls, mocking and cruel.
But Thalia's resolve only sharpened.
This was war.