Ruby felt as if the air had been sucked out of the room. Karan Doe's presence was a physical weight, a gravitational pull that shifted the axis of the entire Boron empire. Beside her, Zion's hand dropped from her arm as if he'd been burned, his face contorting from smug triumph to a mask of cold, defensive fury."Karan," Silas Boron said, his voice dropping an octave, sounding like grinding stones. He didn't rise from his seat, but his knuckles whitened where they gripped the arms of his throne-like chair. "This is a private family matter. You are trespassing on Boron ground. Not even your influence can shield you from the legal repercussions of breaking into my home."Karan didn't flinch. He didn't even look at the patriarch. His focus remained entirely on Ruby, his thumb grazing the line of her jaw with a possessive tenderness that felt like a brand. "Family matter, Silas? I see a woman being held against her will. I see a child—two children—being used as collateral for a legacy that's already crumbling at the foundations. That isn't family. That's a hostage situation.""Karan, please," Zara stepped forward, her voice breathless, her hand reaching out toward him before she caught herself. The untouchable Boron princess looked fragile, her eyes wide with a longing that bordered on obsession. "You shouldn't be here. My father... he's in the right. We found the heirs. We're just bringing them home."Karan finally turned his head, his gaze sweeping over Zara with a chilling indifference that made her flinch. "Home, Zara? A home is where you're safe. This is a vault. And I've never much liked vaults."He turned his attention back to the room at large, his voice rising just enough to command the absolute silence of every socialite and judge in attendance. "I've spent the last hour reviewing the 'Perfect Bride' charter. It seems the Borons failed to mention a small, rather significant clause regarding the sponsorship. Since I've acquired the holding company that owns the Dior Dance Annex, I am now the primary benefactor of Miss Dior's contract. Which means, legally speaking..."He paused, stepping between Ruby and the Boron brothers, his shadow long and intimidating on the marble floor."She belongs to my jurisdiction. And where the mother goes, the children follow."Zion stepped forward, his eyes flashing with a dangerous light. "The DNA proves they are Borons, Karan. You can't override biology with a business merger. Those children are our blood. We will fight you in every court, in every district, until you're bled dry.""Blood?" Karan laughed, a short, dark sound that lacked any mirth. "You want to talk about blood, Zion? Let's talk about that night four years ago. Let's talk about the 'anonymous' medical trust and the way you drugged a girl to ensure she wouldn't remember which one of you laid hands on her. Do you really want to open that door? Because I have the full, unedited security logs. Not the snippets you showed Ruby to manipulate her."Ruby looked from Karan to Zion, her head spinning. The video. The twins. The lies. "You have the logs?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "You know who... who the father is?"Karan looked down at her, his expression softening for a fraction of a second, though the steel remained behind his eyes. "I know everything, Ruby. I know why Leo was taken. I know why Mira was left. And I know which of these men is currently lying to your face to keep his seat at the head of the table."Silas stood up then, the heavy chair scraping back with a screech that set Ruby's teeth on edge. "Enough! Guards, escort Mr. Doe out. Use whatever force is necessary."The Boron security detail moved in, but they stopped dead as the doors behind Karan opened again. Ten men in charcoal suits, silent and grim-faced, stepped into the foyer. They weren't just security; they were a private army, and the weapons holstered at their hips were very real."The children are being brought down as we speak," Karan said, ignoring the stand-off. He looked at Ruby, his eyes searching hers. "I have a car waiting. You can walk out of here with me, and I will give you the truth, the twins, and a life where no one ever touches you again. Or you can stay here and let the Borons decide which part of you they want to keep."Ruby looked at the stairs. She saw the "sitter" appearing at the top of the landing, Mira in one arm and Leo in the other. Mira was crying, her little hands reaching out for her mother. Leo was silent, his face a mask of confusion and fear that broke Ruby's heart."Mama!" Mira's cry pierced the tension of the room.Ruby didn't hesitate. She lunged toward the stairs, but Zion blocked her path, his hand catching her shoulder. "You aren't going anywhere with him, Ruby. He's worse than us. You think he wants to save you? He wants the heirs for himself. He wants the leverage over our family."Karan moved with a speed that shouldn't have been possible for a man in a tailored suit. In one fluid motion, he was in Zion's space, his hand gripping Zion's throat and slamming him back against the dining table. The silver platters clattered to the floor."Touch her again," Karan whispered, his voice a promise of death, "and I'll show you exactly why they call me the Doe of the Underworld."He released Zion, who slumped against the table, gasping for air. Karan turned to Ruby, extending his hand. It was an invitation and a threat all at once."The choice is yours, Ruby. But choose quickly. Because once we leave this house, the war begins. And I need to know..."He leaned in, his lips brushing the shell of her ear as he lowered his voice to a whisper that only she could hear—a whisper that made her entire world tilt on its axis."I need to know if you're ready to hear the name of the man who was actually in that room, because it wasn't a Boron, and it wasn't me."Ruby froze, her hand halfway to his. She looked at the twins, then at the man before her, her mind racing. If it wasn't a Boron, and it wasn't Karan... then who had the power to orchestrate a night that had cost her everything?"Who?" she gasped.Karan's grip on her hand tightened as he pulled her toward the door, his eyes fixing on the shadows in the corner of the room where a figure had been watching the entire scene in silence—a figure Ruby hadn't even noticed until now."The person who really owns this city," Karan said, his gaze narrowing as the figure stepped forward into the light. "And the only person the Borons are actually afraid of."
