Chapter 6

Chandler POV:

The weeks following my father's funeral were a blur of legal battles, corporate defense strategies, and a crushing weight of grief. The Evans Corporation was bleeding, and Charlton, despite his best efforts, was struggling to stem the tide. Davidson's anonymous email, coupled with others he continued to leak, had destabilized the company, spooking investors and triggering investigations. My father' s legacy was on the brink.

I, too, fought. I stormed into board meetings, my voice hoarse, my arguments sharp. I met with lawyers, strategists, and potential allies. But the world, it seemed, had already made up its mind about the Evans family. We were tainted.

At a tense meeting with a crucial investor, Mr. Henderson, a man known for his ruthless pragmatism, I found myself facing a wall of skepticism.

"Miss Evans," Henderson drawled, his eyes sweeping over me with disdain, "your family's reputation is in tatters. And your personal life... well, it's hardly inspiring confidence." He gestured vaguely, his implication clear. My broken engagement, the rumors of my scandalous behavior, Julian's public dismissal of me – it was all grist for the mill.

"My personal life is irrelevant to the health of Evans Corp," I retorted, my jaw tight.

"Is it?" he scoffed. "A woman who can't hold onto her fiancé, who is publicly humiliated by her brother's dubious deals involving a certain Dr. Burke... not exactly the image of stability, is it?"

Before I could unleash the scathing retort forming on my tongue, the doors to the boardroom burst open. Julian.

He stood there, impeccably dressed, his presence commanding attention. His eyes locked onto me, then swept over Henderson, a flicker of something unreadable in their depths.

"What are you doing here, Julian?" I demanded, my voice sharp. "This is a private meeting."

"It seems, Chandler, that your 'private' affairs have a way of becoming rather public," he said, his voice cold. "I heard you were attempting to make a deal with Mr. Henderson. A deal I cannot allow."

Henderson raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing on his lips. "Dr. Burke. To what do we owe this unexpected visit? Are you here to support Miss Evans?"

Julian gave a mirthless laugh. "Support? Hardly. I'm here to ensure that neither my name, nor my research, is further sullied by the Evans family's desperate attempts to cling to relevance." He looked at me, his eyes hard. "And to remind Chandler that our 'engagement' is over. Permanently. There will be no further financial transactions, no further leveraging of my work for your family's benefit."

My heart hammered against my ribs. He was cutting ties. Publicly. Again. He was ensuring I had no leverage, no claim.

"You're making a mistake, Dr. Burke," Henderson said, a shrewd glint in his eye. "Severing ties with Evans Corp now could have... consequences. Especially with certain investigations into the source of your research funding."

Julian' s jaw tightened. "My research is beyond reproach, Mr. Henderson. And my funding sources are clear. Unlike certain corporate deals that involve anonymous emails and questionable tactics." He looked pointedly at me.

Hayden, of course, chose that moment to appear, as if on cue. She stood just outside the boardroom, looking pale and fragile, her hand clutching her chest. "Julian? Are you almost done? I'm not feeling well. My heart..."

Julian' s fierce expression instantly melted into concern. He looked from Hayden, to me, to Henderson, then back to Hayden. "I have to go," he said, his voice softening, all his previous anger forgotten. "Hayden needs me." He walked past me without a glance, heading straight for Hayden, who leaned into him, a picture of delicate dependence.

"You see, Mr. Henderson?" I said, my voice shaking with suppressed fury. "His loyalties are clear. Always have been."

Henderson merely smiled, a predatory gleam in his eyes. "Indeed, Miss Evans. Indeed." He stood up, signaling the end of the meeting. "I believe we have all the information we need. Good day."

He walked out, leaving me alone in the boardroom, the echoes of Julian's public rejection and Hayden's manipulative appearance ringing in my ears. I felt a cold despair, a sense of utter defeat.

Later that evening, numb with disappointment, I found myself in my father's study. The scent of old books and his signature cologne still lingered, a bittersweet reminder. I poured myself a glass of his expensive scotch, the amber liquid burning its way down my throat.

I picked up an old photograph from his desk. It was of my father, mother, Charlton, and me, years ago, on a family vacation. We were all smiling, carefree. A painful echo of a happiness that felt irretrievably lost.

"Dad," I whispered, my voice thick with unshed tears. "I'm so sorry. I failed you. I failed us."

The company was in freefall. Charlton was trying his best, but the damage was too extensive, the sharks too many. I felt a desperate need to fight back, to salvage something, anything, from the wreckage.

I thought about Davidson, about his smug face, about the anonymous emails that had triggered my father' s final stroke. A cold, hard resolve began to form within me. I wouldn't just defend. I would attack.

I remembered Mark Davidson's taunt at the funeral: "He knows you drugged him. He forced yourself on him. And he hates you for it."

The memory was a hot brand, searing my mind. The shame, the humiliation, the sheer desperation of that night. It had been reckless, impulsive, born of a twisted love. But now, it was a weapon that could be turned against me.

A sudden chill ran through the room. I felt a presence. I looked up to see Hayden standing in the doorway, her eyes wide, her face pale. She carried a familiar silver locket in her hand, the one Julian always wore, never taking it off.

"Chandler," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "What are you doing here?"

My blood ran cold. How did she get in? And why was she holding Julian's locket?

"What are you doing here, Hayden?" I retorted, my voice sharp. "And why do you have Julian's locket?"

Her eyes darted nervously. "Oh, this? I... I found it. In his office. He must have dropped it." She clutched it tighter, a possessive gleam in her eyes. "He' s so careless sometimes. But I take care of him."

"That's a lie," I snarled, my anger flaring. "He never takes that off. It belonged to Kathryne."

Hayden's innocent facade cracked, revealing a sliver of malice. "Does it matter? He gave it to me. He trusts me. He loves me." She deliberately opened the locket, revealing a tiny, faded photograph of Kathryne. "He told me I remind him so much of her. So innocent. So pure. Not like... some people." Her gaze flickered to me, heavy with implied accusation.

My vision blurred with rage. Here she was, in my home, holding his most cherished possession, flaunting her victory, daring to compare herself to Kathryne. And then, her words hit me. "He knows you drugged him."

The words echoed Davidson' s taunt. So Julian did know. And Hayden knew that I knew.

A fresh wave of fury, cold and implacable, washed over me. This was it. The ultimate provocation. My father was dead, my company was falling apart, and my supposed fiancé was publicly rejecting me while his new pet flaunted my humiliation.

I lunged at her, propelled by a raw, white-hot rage. "Give me that!" I screamed, tearing the locket from her hand.

Hayden shrieked, stumbling backwards. "Julian! Help me!"

Just then, Julian burst into the study, his eyes scanning the scene. Me, breathing heavily, the locket clutched in my hand. Hayden, cowering, her face a mask of terror. And my father's study, a silent witness to the chaos.

His gaze hardened, fixing on me with a contempt that chilled me to the bone. "Chandler," he snarled, his voice a low growl, "What the hell is wrong with you?" He pushed me away from Hayden, his force sending me reeling back, my head hitting the edge of my father's heavy mahogany desk. A sharp pain shot through my skull, and my vision swam.

"She stole it!" I protested, clutching my head, the locket still in my hand. "She was flaunting Kathryne's locket!"

Julian ignored me. His eyes were only for Hayden. He cradled her in his arms, his touch gentle, reassuring. "Are you hurt, Hayden?"

She looked up at him, her eyes brimming with tears. "I just wanted to make sure your locket was safe, Julian. I found it in your office. I was worried you'd lose it." She gave me another fleeting, triumphant glance. "But Chandler... she's so angry. So violent."

Julian looked at me, his eyes filled with disgust. "Get out, Chandler. Right now."

"This is my home!" I cried, the words raw, tearing at my throat. "My father's home!"

"Not anymore," he said, his voice cold and hard. "You're a danger to everyone around you. To Hayden. To yourself."

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "A danger? And what about the anonymous emails that drove my father to his grave? What about your darling Hayden's 'accidental' discovery of damaging information about Evans Corp? Did you know she sent them, Julian? Did you know she orchestrated all of this?"

Julian's face remained impassive. "Don't you dare try to deflect, Chandler. This has nothing to do with Hayden. You're just lashing out."

"You're blind, Julian!" I choked out, tears streaming down my face. "She's manipulating you! She's destroying everything!"

"Enough!" he roared, his patience clearly at an end. He grabbed my arm, his grip bruising, and dragged me towards the study door. "You need help, Chandler. You're unstable."

"Unstable?" I laughed, a broken, hysterical sound. "I'm unstable? You're the one coddling a poisonous snake! You're the one who let my father die, Julian! You chose her over him! Over me!"

He didn't reply. He just kept dragging me, his strength overwhelming. My head throbbed, my body ached, and my heart felt like a raw, exposed nerve.

Just then, my phone rang, a shrill, insistent sound. Julian paused, annoyed, but the caller ID burned into my vision: Charlton.

Julian ignored it, continuing to pull me towards the exit. But Hayden, ever the opportunist, spoke up. "Julian, wait! Maybe it's important. It's Chandler's brother."

Julian hesitated, then snatched the phone from my hand. He answered, holding it to his ear, his face a mask of irritation. He listened for a moment, then his eyes widened, a look of genuine shock spreading across his features.

"What?" he said, his voice suddenly sharp with concern. "Data leak? The K.W. Initiative? Who? How?"

He looked at Hayden, a dawning horror in his eyes. Her face, usually so composed, was now pale, her lips trembling. She looked terrified.

He ended the call abruptly, his gaze darting between Hayden and me. "My K.W. Initiative project data has been leaked. All of it. Confidential research, patient data... everything. It's catastrophic."

Hayden whimpered, her eyes wide with feigned innocence. "Oh, Julian! No! Who would do such a thing?"

Julian' s eyes narrowed, a flicker of suspicion in his gaze as he looked at her. But then, almost immediately, his focus shifted to me. His jaw hardened.

"Chandler," he said, his voice cold and steady, "you're going to pay for this."

"What are you talking about?" I rasped, disbelief warring with terror.

"You were threatening me, threatening my work," he said, his voice laced with accusation. "You were just here, raging about the company, about how you would destroy everything. This has your fingerprints all over it."

"No! Julian, I didn't-"

He didn't let me finish. He dragged me out of my father's study, his grip unyielding. "You're done, Chandler. You've gone too far."

He released me just outside the study, then turned back to Hayden, his eyes filled with a terrifying mix of protectiveness and misplaced blame. "Hayden, I'm so sorry. I'll fix this. I promise."

I stood there, swaying, the world spinning. Data leak. The K.W. Initiative. My father' s study. And Julian, believing I was the culprit.

This was it. The final, devastating blow. He was framing me. To protect her.