Chapter 846
The evening was thick with silence, the sky a canvas of deepening indigo. Sterling Manor stood quiet under the gathering dusk.
Lucas was carefully slicing an apple for Evelyn, who lounged on the sofa with Natalie, flipping through the latest celebrity gossip.
William was in the kitchen, preparing the fresh catch of the day.
When Evelyn saw Blackwood Industries' official announcement, her fingers stilled over the magazine page.
Natalie noticed it too. "Rumors were swirling about Blackwood Industries changing hands," she murmured. "But I never expected it to be Chairman Blackwood stepping down."
This wasn’t just a corporate shuffle—it was a seismic shift. The implications were staggering.
Evelyn’s chest tightened for Nathan.
She remembered his words after Sophia’s spectacle—how Reginald Blackwood had orchestrated it all and promised an explanation.
At the time, Evelyn had scoffed. What explanation could justify such cruelty?
But this—this was his answer.
Her pulse stuttered. The cost was unthinkable.
Lucas smirked, unbothered. "Blackwood Industries has been Nathan’s for years. I doubt the old man was ever a match for his grandson."
Natalie nodded. "True. Nathan’s influence extends far beyond Blackwood Industries. The fact that no one dares cross him speaks volumes."
Evelyn stayed silent, her thoughts a tempest.
William joined them, sinking into an armchair. Evelyn handed him a cup of tea, which he accepted with a grateful sigh. "Honestly, I’ve never liked Reginald Blackwood. What Nathan did—it’s poetic justice."
Like Evelyn, William had immediately grasped the deeper meaning.
Their eyes met, understanding passing between them. William’s brow furrowed. "I heard the board, even his own mother and sister, pressured him to step down. For Reginald to go that far—it’s ruthless."
Lucas paused mid-slice. "Exactly. Now the entire company sees Nathan as the villain. They praise him to his face but stab him in the back with whispers."
Evelyn couldn’t listen anymore. Barefoot, she crossed the room to the window, pressing her palms against the cool glass. The sunset bled crimson over the horizon.
The Blackwoods were vipers, every last one of them.
Yet whenever someone wronged Evelyn, Nathan had never hesitated to hold his own family accountable.
She had every right to despise them—but why did he?
He’d alienated his entire family. Now, when it mattered, no one stood with him.
Nathan was no coward. He refused to straddle the line between loyalty and betrayal.
Evelyn wondered—would she have had the strength to do the same?
William studied Evelyn, then shot Lucas a warning look. "Enough. However you feel about Nathan, he’s saved your sister more than once. Don’t make things worse."
Lucas opened his mouth but snapped it shut, chastened.
Natalie nodded in agreement, watching Evelyn with concern.
Evelyn leaned into the glass, letting the chill steady her.
Then she turned abruptly and snatched up her phone.
William, Lucas, and Natalie exchanged glances—surely she was calling Nathan. They braced to intervene.
Evelyn dialed, her expression unreadable.
"Alexander," she said, voice firm. "I saw there are only two Hermès Himalaya bags left in the world. You wouldn’t dare buy one for Amelia and not me, would you?"
William, Lucas, and Natalie froze.
They’d overestimated the situation entirely.