Chapter 2 - The House of Cards
Marcus looked completely unbothered as he leaned against the doorframe.
“Ethan,” Marcus said, a slow, predatory smile spreading across his face.
“You’re a little late for the party.”
Ethan felt his stomach drop into a bottomless pit.
“What are you doing here?” Ethan demanded, his voice trembling with a mixture of rage and confusion.
Marcus chuckled softly and adjusted his cuffs.
“Madison and I go way back.”
Ethan tried to push past him, but Marcus planted a heavy hand on his chest.
“She isn't just your mistress, Ethan.”
“She’s my leverage.”
Madison appeared in the hallway behind Marcus, tying a silk robe around her waist.
She did not look at Ethan with the adoration she always feigned at dinner.
She looked at him with cold, calculating indifference.
“I told you he would come running the moment his wife actually grew a spine,” Madison said to Marcus.
Ethan felt like the floor had vanished beneath his feet.
“You set me up?” Ethan whispered.
“You made it incredibly easy,” Marcus replied.
“You were so desperate to feel important that you handed over the company’s internal financial codes just to impress her.”
Ethan’s breath hitched as he remembered the laptop he had carelessly left open in Madison’s bed.
“The board is voting you out tomorrow morning,” Marcus stated simply.
“You have nothing left, Ethan.”
The door slammed shut in Ethan’s face.
Across town, Norah was sitting on the edge of her bed in the quiet Concord cottage.
She was rubbing her swollen belly, trying to soothe the baby's restless kicks.
Lily was asleep in the next room, finally exhausted from crying.
Norah closed her eyes, willing herself to find a few hours of peace.
Then, a sharp, heavy knock echoed from the front door.
It was 3:00 in the morning.
Norah hesitated, her heart hammering against her ribs.
She slowly walked to the door and peered through the peephole.
May you like
She expected to see Ethan, begging for a second chance.
Instead, she saw the flashing red and blue lights of a police cruiser parked in the driveway.
