Chapter 2: The Price of an Heir
The police separated Isabella from Marcus and questioned her in a conference room at the end of the hospital corridor.
For nearly an hour, she refused to speak.
Then an officer placed a still image from the security footage in front of her.
Isabella stared at Victor’s assistant.
Her arrogance slowly vanished.
“I want an attorney,” she said.
“You can have one,” the detective replied. “But first, you should know that Victor Thorne’s assistant has already been identified. We’re looking for her now.”
That was a lie.
They had identified her, but they had not found her.
The detective wanted Isabella to believe someone else might speak first.
It worked.
“I never agreed to tamper with Khloe’s drink,” Isabella said.
The detective leaned forward.
“What did you agree to?”
Isabella looked toward the mirrored wall.
On the other side, Marcus watched with the hospital’s attorney and the head detective.
“To make Khloe leave him.”
“How?”
“Victor said the marriage was weakening Marcus. He said Khloe had turned him against the family and threatened everything they had built.”
“What did Victor ask you to do?”
“Remind Marcus of the life he was supposed to have.”
The detective’s expression remained neutral.
“And when that failed?”
Isabella swallowed.
“He told me Khloe would receive controlling voting rights in the family trust once the baby was born.”
Marcus looked toward the attorney.
“What is she talking about?”
The attorney hesitated.
“Your father’s amended trust.”
“I was told the amendment only protected my child’s inheritance.”
“It does more than that,” the attorney admitted. “Upon the birth of your first child, your spouse becomes co-trustee of the Thorne family voting shares.”
Marcus stared at him.
“Victor knew?”
“He witnessed the amendment.”
The meaning became clear.
Once Khloe’s baby was born, Victor would no longer control the board through Marcus. Khloe would have equal authority over the family’s most powerful assets.
Victor had not objected to Khloe because she was ordinary.
He feared her because she could not be bought.
Inside the interview room, Isabella continued.
“Victor said the marriage had to end before the baby arrived. If Khloe filed for divorce or was declared incapable of serving as trustee, control would remain with him.”
The detective placed another photograph in front of her.
It showed Khloe on the floor.
“Did Victor tell you to attack her?”
“No.”
“But you did.”
Isabella’s eyes filled with shame, though her voice remained defensive.
“She laughed at me.”
Khloe had not laughed.
Marcus knew that immediately.
Isabella had needed to believe Khloe provoked her because the truth was unbearable: she had lost control simply because Khloe refused to be intimidated.
“I wanted her to admit Marcus had made a mistake,” Isabella whispered. “I wanted her to understand that she didn’t belong in our world.”
“And when she told you to leave?”
“I became angry.”
The detective turned off the recorder.
“You may have just endangered two lives because someone refused to surrender her marriage to you.”
Isabella lowered her head.
On the other side of the glass, Marcus walked away.
He returned to Khloe’s room shortly after midnight.
She was awake, watching the city lights through the window.
“They questioned Isabella,” he said.
Khloe did not turn around.
“And?”
Marcus told her everything.
The trust.
Victor’s plan.
Isabella’s confession.
The woman who had entered the hospital room.
When he finished, Khloe remained silent.
Marcus sat in the chair beside her bed.
“I should have known what Victor was capable of.”
“You should have known what your own trust said.”
“I trusted the family attorneys.”
“That’s the problem,” Khloe said, finally looking at him. “You trusted everyone except me.”
Her words landed without anger.
That made them harder to hear.
“You knew Isabella believed she had a future with you,” Khloe continued. “You knew Victor was trying to push me out. You let me attend these events, smile for cameras, and stand beside people who were quietly planning my removal.”
“I thought I was protecting you from unnecessary conflict.”
“You were protecting yourself from an uncomfortable conversation.”
Marcus looked down.
Khloe was right.
He had confused silence with protection because silence required nothing from him.
“I can’t undo that,” he said. “But I can stop hiding.”
He removed his phone from his pocket and placed it on the table.
“I’m calling an emergency board meeting tomorrow morning. I’m removing Victor from every position he holds.”
“He’ll fight you.”
“I know.”
“He may destroy the company.”
Marcus looked at her steadily.
“Then the company can be rebuilt.”
Khloe studied his face.
For the first time since their marriage began to fracture, she saw no calculation in him. No concern for appearances. No attempt to manage her reaction.
Only truth.
A police detective entered the room before Khloe could respond.
“We found Victor’s assistant.”
Marcus stood.
“Where?”
“At a private airfield outside the city. She was preparing to leave the country.”
“Did she confess?”
“She had several items in her luggage, including financial records, disposable phones, and copies of Mrs. Thorne’s medical information.”
Khloe’s hand moved instinctively to her stomach.
The detective continued.
“She claims Victor instructed her to place a mild sedative in Mrs. Thorne’s tea. The plan was to make her appear confused and emotionally unstable during the gala.”
Marcus’s face darkened.
“He wanted witnesses.”
“Yes. If Mrs. Thorne caused a public scene, Victor intended to use the incident as evidence that she was incapable of serving as co-trustee.”
Khloe felt sick.
The attack had not been a spontaneous act of jealousy.
Every detail had been prepared.
The private suite.
The tea.
The charity gala filled with cameras and influential guests.
Victor had intended to turn her vulnerability into proof against her.
The detective looked at Marcus.
“We have enough to question him. But Victor Thorne has already left his residence.”
Marcus reached for his phone.
Before he could call anyone, the television mounted on the wall suddenly changed from the hospital information channel to a live financial news broadcast.
Victor Thorne appeared on the screen, standing behind a podium at Thorne International headquarters.
A headline moved across the bottom:
VICTOR THORNE CALLS EMERGENCY PRESS CONFERENCE
Victor adjusted his glasses and looked directly into the cameras.
“My nephew has suffered a severe emotional breakdown,” he announced. “Until he receives appropriate care, I will assume full executive authority over Thorne International.”
Marcus stared at the screen.
Victor continued.
“For the protection of our company and our family, I have also petitioned the court for temporary control of the Thorne family trust.”
Khloe slowly looked at her husband.
May you like
Victor had not run.
He had declared war.
