PARIS's POV

"what have you done?" I asked my mother as she worked on her knitting.


"What are you talking about Paris? Can you be more specific?" she didn't look up at me though, but simply continued with her knitting. Meanwhile, I was boiling from within and was doing my best to not let my demons win. She was my mother after all.

" I told you to stay out of my company matters. I told you I would look into it. But what did you do? You went ahead and sent a lawyer's letter to Ember. You didn't even stop there, you sent one to the new company he is working in. Who asked you to do that?"

"you were taking too long. I only stepped in and did the needful," she said and also put away her needlework to look at me.


"the needful? You call this evil and unnecessary thing you've done, needful?" I asked, enraged. But I was doing my best to keep from losing my temper.

"Look at you, Paris. Just look at the hold that girl still has on you."


"This isn't about that! " I barked and ran a hand through my hair, completely frustrated, "This Isn't about Ember having any kind of hold on me. This is about you, preying after an innocent girl, and that's not okay." I said, trying to be calm, "You didn't even run it by me, Mother."

"I'm sorry, I didn't think I needed to run every action I took by my own child."

"That's beside the point. And since you've decided to not face the facts, face the fact that what you did was wrong, then the least you can do is send a letter both to Ember and Her company rendering those letters null and void."

"Excuse me?" she asked, narrowing her eyes,

"You heard me, mother. Take back those letters. Stay out of my company while you are at it."

"I'm sorry Paris," she said, and picked up her knitting tools, got back to it, "but I'm afraid that I'll have to tell you no. That girl deserves what she's getting," she said, dismissing me.

"you're impossible," I said in a quite angry tone, and she looked at me,

"you've been impossible for the past three years," she said in a quiet tone, and I stared at her coldly.

"you're not perfect, but I never knew you could sink this low. Attacking a woman who would never think to attack you." I said, unable to keep myself from speaking my mind. I always tended to whenever I was angry.

"Just look at you. Look at how you speak to me because of her." she said, shaking her head as though I had hurt her, "I'm doing this for you. Everything I do is for you, but what do I get?" she asked, and got up as her chin wobbled, "insults upon insults." she said, setting her knitwork aside,

"I'm not asking you to do any of this, Mother! So just stay out of it. From here on, just stay out of my work!" I barked as she walked away. I didn't try to follow her even though I knew she was in a foul mood, because then, so was I.

Instead, I worked back into my study, collapsed into my chair, and with a sigh, brought out my phone to begin calling Ember.

With this letter, and all the backlash she was facing on the internet, she was sure to be having a hard time. I just needed to call her to assure her that I would fix the injury my mother had caused.

But then my call didn't go through, only for me to find out that I had been blacklisted.

"great. Just great." I said, and I had to resist the urge to toss my phone away.

After a while, and I had marginally calmed down, I picked up my phone and dialed my beta, Jackson.

"What's up?" he asked in a chipper voice when he answered the phone.

What I wouldn't have given at that moment to sound as chipper as he was

" A situation, Jackson, and I need your help."

"shoot."

"Okay, so my mother sent a lawyer's letter to Ember and her company. One that accused her of leaking my company's secret and simply painting her black. I need you to send a letter to both parties rendering the letters null and void. You think you can do that."

He was silent for a moment and I thought he hadn't heard me, but he finally responded, " I can. It's not a problem. What surprises me here is that you would go out of your way for her this way. I thought you were done with her." he said gently. He didn't sound like he was judging me, or making fun of me. But like he simply wanted to understand.

But I wasn't ready at that moment to explain that my life without Ember was worthless and I needed her to love me again,

" I thought I was too." was all I was able to say.

"It's alright. I'll do it."

I thanked him and ended the call, hoping the Ember didn't completely hate me at this point.

~~~~

A couple of days later, Jackson called me with some feedback,

"I sent the mail. But she hasn't said a word. Did she say anything to you?" Jackson asked

She hadn't even removed me from the blacklist, "not a word." I said grumpily and looked at my company's building.

"It's alright. I'm at the company at the moment, I think it's high time I got to the bottom of this. It turns out there were secrets that were leaked, I need to find who did it."

"That's rough, sounds like there's a rat."

"I plan on eliminating it," I said sourly

"damn. Good luck buddy."

"thanks. I need it." I ended the call and blew out a breath, "Alright little rat. The big wolf is coming for you."

I headed straight for the security department. There was a series of footage that I was going to need to go through in order to find what I was looking for, but I was going to do it. I was going to find whoever did it, and when I did, I was going to make them regret ever being born.

It took three long hours before I finally found the right footage, and when I did, I didn't feel the satisfaction I believed that I was going to feel. What I felt was absolute disbelief. Because I couldn't believe my own eyes.

"What is the meaning of this?" I questioned as I rewatched the correct footage. The person, who had taken my company's confidential files and exposed them to other people, was none other than my sister, Christina.

"What is all this about?" Christina asked with boredom when I invited her into my office moments later,

"Why did you do it?" I asked, unable to mince words, and she stared at me blankly.

"speak clearly brother. I don't understand you."

"no, it's you who is hard to understand!" I barked and got up, walked to the window, and looked back at her, "You took our confidential files. You gave them to strangers, and then you connived with Mother to let Ember take the fall.

" Just saying the words made me feel like an accomplice to it all and I was truly sorry.

And what did she do? She laughed,

"Where did you get that idea from? Did you hit your head? Or did you just get tired of looking for the culprit and now you've chosen to blame me?"

"you can still say things like that?" I asked her and shoved my phone under her face, then pressed play on the surveillance video.

"Can you still say things like that?" I asked her when the video ended, and she blew out a breath.

"I didn't think you'd ever find that. Or find out."

"but I did. And now, I ask again, why Christina?"

"Because!" she flared up, "because that was the only way I could put her in her place. You seem to think she's an angel. But she isn't. She's a damn witch who deserved to be punished!"

I looked at her and couldn't believe it was my sister who was talking,

"So this is revenge? but for what Christina?"

"for everything!" She said.

"I had hoped that somehow, in time, all of the hate you feel inside you would dissipate, or at the very least, it would decrease. But as I see , you're bent on terrorizing and hurting the innocent. And I won't sit here and watch you continue."