Chapter 1 – [THE THREAT BEHIND THE DIAMOND NECKLACE]

Nico stared at the document in his hands.

The signature line was blank.

But the intent was crystal clear.

Sabrina’s face had drained of all color, but she quickly recovered, her diamond necklace catching the light as she lifted her chin.

“Nico, darling, you’re misunderstanding,” she said, her voice dropping to a smooth, placating purr. “I was only trying to protect the family assets. Gabriel is… vulnerable. What if someone took advantage of him?”

Gabriel let out a bitter laugh from his wheelchair.

“You mean someone like you?”

Nico didn’t smile.

He didn’t yell.

He just slowly ripped the legal document in half.

Then in quarters.

He let the pieces fall onto the marble floor.

“The engagement is over, Sabrina.”

A collective gasp echoed from the few guests who had lingered near the doorway.

I stood frozen behind Gabriel’s wheelchair, my heart pounding against my ribs.

Sabrina’s fake smile vanished.

Her eyes turned cold.

“You can’t do this, Nico. My father’s shipping company just merged with yours. If you break this engagement, the board will panic. You’ll lose millions.”

“I’d rather lose every dollar I have than marry someone who treats my brother like a burden,” Nico said.

He turned to his security guards.

“Escort Miss Whitmore to her suite to pack. Then see her off the property.”

Sabrina didn’t move.

She looked at Nico, then at Gabriel, and finally, her eyes locked onto me.

Pure venom radiated from her stare.

“You think you’ve won?” she hissed, stepping closer to Nico. “You think you know everything about your precious little brother’s accident?”

Nico froze.

Gabriel’s hands tightened on the armrests of his wheelchair.

“What did you just say?” Nico demanded, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper.

Sabrina smirked.

She reached into her expensive evening clutch and pulled out a small, tarnished object.

She tossed it onto the floor, right on top of the shredded contract.

It was a broken silver pocket watch.

The glass face was shattered.

The hands were stopped exactly at 11:42.

Gabriel inhaled sharply.

“Where did you get that?” he whispered.

“I have my secrets, Gabriel,” Sabrina sneered. “If you throw me out tonight, Nico, I’ll make sure the police receive the rest of what I found. Including the photographs.”

She turned on her heel and walked away.

Nico knelt down and picked up the broken watch.

He looked up at his brother.

“Gabe… wasn’t this the watch you were wearing the night of your accident?”

Gabriel nodded, his face pale.

“Yes. But the police told me it was lost in the crash.”

Nico stood up.

And as he looked at the hallway where his former fiancée had just disappeared, he realized the woman he was about to marry wasn’t just a gold digger.

She was a blackmailer.

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