In a room shrouded by heavy curtains, Caspian lay as still as the grave,the hospital bed's quiet beeping monitors attesting to his fragile condition.Even the overhead fluorescent light, on its dimmest setting, felt harsh against the pallor of his cheeks. Celeste hovered at the bedside,watching the faint rise and fall of his chest. The fleeting memory of him collapsing at the board meeting still echoed through her mind, reminding her how close she had come to losing him entirely.

She draped a blanket over his arms, heart pounding. Each breath he took seemed precious, a whispered testament to resilience. The tension in her chest swelled, recalling how weeks of intense battles-Soren's legal strikes,near-foreclosures, and relentless rumours-had eroded Caspian's once-formidable composure. Now he looked so vulnerable, eyelids flickering with some unspoken dream. Celeste's gaze wandered to a tray of medical tools and the lineup of medication bottles, each labelled an unsaid vow that she would help him recover, physically and spiritually.

A faint groan slipped from Caspian's lips. His eyes fluttered open,dazed.Celeste grasped his hand at once, warmth tracing from her fingers to his clammy skin. “I'm here,” she whispered, trying to calm the quakein her voice. He offered a tired smile, the ghost of his old confidence.“Didn't expect... to see you staring at me like I'm on my deathbed," he murmured.The attempt at humour sounded hollow, laced with the exhaustion that dogged him.

She forced a light laugh though tears welled in her eyes. “If that's what it takes to keep you breathing, I'll do it," she said softly, thumb brushing his knuckles in a gentle caress. In that fragile moment, the conflict around them felt distant, overshadowed by the raw intimacy of survival. Her anger at Soren for pushing Caspian this far only cemented her resolve: she

wouldn't abandon him, not for any corporate gain or threat of scandal.

When at last he drifted back into fitful rest, Celeste moved to tidy the items on his bedside. That's when she saw it: a folded letter hidden in his drawer, starkly labelled Resignation. Her heart constricted reading the brief lines describing how Caspian intended to cede his position at Hayes Enterprises if the board or Soren's rumours escalated further, effectively sacrificing himself to spare Celeste from more attacks. Tears stung her eyes,realizing just how near he was to giving up on his birthright and their shared future. With trembling hands, she tucked the letter away,quietly vowing that she would never let him face that despair alone again.

Night draped the estate in silence, the corridorsilluminated only by faint wall sconces. Talia glided along the hallway, ears keen for any sign of movement. She had overheard a disturbing exchange between Sterling Price and Soren moments earlier-snippets of conversation from behind a locked door describing the final phase of a plan to publicly obliterate Caspian's reputation. The memory of their voices sent cold dread trickling down her spine: “...expose every skeleton... Celeste's smear was just the start...”

Clutching a phone loaded with clandestinely recorded evidence, Talia found Roman in a secluded nook near the back stairs. His expression,drawn with worry, brightened at her approach. “I have to show you this,”she whispered. She played back the recording-Sterling's baritone laced with scorn, Soren's clipped replies-and each word hammered home how lethal their alliance truly was. Roman's lips parted in outrage, though he quickly stifled it to avoid echoing sound.

He raked a hand through his hair. "They're planning an all-out media blitz to frame Caspian as emotionally unhinged, claiming Celeste manipulated him," he said, voice hushed. “Between Sterling's cunning and

Soren's resources, they might actually drown out the truth." Talia tightened her grip on the phone, disgust knotting her stomach. She recalled how Sterling raised her with grand talk of family legacy,only to exploit her loyalty. "I won't let them do this," she hissed. “Caspian's in no shape for another onslaught."

Roman nodded, face set. "We can leak this record of them plotting.Maybe it'll discredit them first." But Talia faltered, recalling Sterling's menacing glare whenever she tried to defy him. The threat of losing her share in the family name, or worse, weighed heavily. Still, the image of Caspian,bedridden and pale, steeled her resolve. “If we wait,” she said, squaring her shoulders, “they'll bury him in lies.”

Just then, footsteps sounded in the hallway. Talia's heart lurched. A silhouette of Sterling hovered at the corridor's far end,features unreadable in the low light. Though he couldn't see the phone or hear their whispers,suspicion radiated from his stance. Talia felt his glare like a brand,warming the back of her neck. With forced nonchalance, she slipped the phone into Roman's coat pocket, whispering, “Go.” Roman, wide-eyed,nodded and sidled away down a side stairwell.

Sterling stepped closer, voice a low rumble. “Why so secretive,daughter?”he inquired. Talía forced a smile, adrenaline leaping through her veins.“I was just... worried about Caspian," she said carefully. Sterling's gaze flicked past her; down the path, Roman had vanished. “I see,” he murmured,a calculating edge in his stare. Talia's insides churned, certain he suspected her treachery. As he walked away, the smouldering hostility in his eyes promised repercussions for any betrayal. Yet Talia clung to her trembling determination, hoping her covert act had bought Caspian and Celeste the time they needed to stave off Soren's looming assault.

Early morning light slanted through the windows of Caspian's office,

painting striped shadows across the polished floor. He stood behind his broad desk, shoulders still stiff from a night spent in the hospital. half dreading each beep of his phone. Soren had demanded a meeting before the board arrived, insisting on a “private conversation." Now, the door swung open, revealing the older man in an impeccable grey suit, eyes gleaming with that cold confidence Caspian had come to loathe.

Without waiting for an invitation, Soren stepped inside and shut the door softly behind him, the latch clicking ominously in the hush.“You should be lying in a hospital bed," he said dryly. “But I suppose your pride drags you here to salvage whatever illusions remain.” Caspian bit back a retort.refusing to let Soren see how fatigue weighed on him.

Soren approached, setting a slim folder on the desk. “I warned you,” he continued, voice low and measured. “Celeste is a liability, and if you don't see reason, I'll sever your funding. No more trust, no more board support if I can help it." He paused, sliding the folder toward Caspian,who tensed at the label: Revocation of Trust Fund. It was a direct weapon aimed at Caspian's financial safety net, the legacy inheritance that once ensured his stable place at Hayes Enterprises.

Caspian flicked a glance inside, glimpsing signatures and official stamps,each page threatening to strip him of any cushion should the company falter or if the next wave of scandal battered his leadership. “You can't do this," he said, voice rough with anger, though a tremor ran through his hands."Hayes Enterprises is my birthright-my inheritance stands outside your manipulations."

Soren exhnaled a humourless chuckle. “Birthright means nothing if you choose a woman who dismantles it from within." His tone turned venomous."Withdraw from Celeste. Cut ties legally. Let the board see you focusing on business, or prepare to watch your empire collapse, dragging

your name into ruin as well."

Caspian's vision blurred with fury. He recalled the sedation, the oxygen tubes, how Celeste's presence felt like the only anchor in a hospital swirling with beeping machines. She had sacrificed her peace to stand with him, and now Soren would tear them apart with a flourish of predatory legal clout? “I won't abandon her," he hissed, hands gripping the desk's edge. “I'd rather lose everything than feed your cruelty.”

Soren's lips twitched in a mocking smile. “So be it," he said softly,stepping back. “When the final piece of your trust is revoked, you'll regret that loyalty." He turned, and the faint friction of his footsteps was the only sound as he left. Caspian slumped into his chair, heart drumming with a cocktail of rage, fear, and a deep-seated resolve. He refused to surrender,but with each blow Soren struck, he wondered how many more hits his fragile world could endure before shattering beyond repair.