Riley’s POV
The mont I step fully into the boardroom, everything explodes.
Chairs scrape loudly against the floor. Papers scatter. A few people actually jump up so fast their chairs fall backward.
So of them look like they want to bolt straight through the windows. One man stumbles into another. A woman gasps so loudly it echoes.
They stare at like I am not supposed to exist.
Like I am a mistake.
Like I crawled out of the grave and walked straight into their eting.
Before anyone can recover enough to run, I turn sharply and slam the door shut with all the strength I have left in .
The sound is loud. Final.
I twist the key in the lock.
Click.
I pull the key out slowly, deliberately, and drop it into my bag.
The room goes dead silent.
You could hear a pin drop.
I turn around and face them.
They start backing away anyway.
n in suits. Won with tablets. Board mbers who once smiled at and called brilliant. They push back from the long table, panic written all over their faces. A few of them move toward the walls. One man actually presses his back against it like I’m about to attack.
I almost laugh. Almost.
I walk forward slowly.
Each step is calm and calculated. My heels hit the floor in steady beats, and with every step, they move back more, bumping into chairs, tripping over each other, whispering my na like it’s a curse.
"Riley—"
"Is it really—"
"She’s—"
I raise my hand.
"I think all of you need to calm down," I say evenly.
My voice cuts through the noise imdiately.
They freeze.
My eyes scan the room sharply, looking for the one person my mind is stuck on. Searching.
And then I found him, my gaze drops on him instantly.
Ethan. He is still sitting quiet.
Not panicking. Not scrambling. Not even standing.
Just sitting there, hands folded, face tight, eyes locked on like he’s watching sothing he didn’t expect to see but prepared for anyway.
That’s when I smile. A slow smile.
"Everyone relax," I say calmly. "And let my sweet husband, Ethan Forlorn Vaelkor, explain my death."
The room shifts. The panic drops just a little.
Eyes turn to Ethan but he doesn’t speak.
I tilt my head. "Go on," I say lightly. "You were doing such a good job earlier, weren’t you?"
Still nothing. I turn away from him and face the rest of the board.
"I’m not dead," I say clearly.
Anna steps up imdiately and grabs my arms, my shoulders, my waist, touching like she needs to prove it to them.
"She’s alive," Anna says firmly. "She’s real. She’s here."
Murmurs break out.
One man raises a shaking hand. "Are you... are you really not dead?"
I look straight at him and smile.
"No," I say. "Well, yes, there was an accident, but I think my husband exaggerated things just a little too much. I survived. I’m alive."
The room exhales. Slowly, fear starts turning into confusion.
"So," I add calmly, "can we all sit down now?"
So hesitate. So still stare at like I might disappear if they blink.
I slam both my palms down on the table hard enough to make everything shake.
"Sit," I say sharply.
Imdiately, everyone scrambles back into their seats.
Every single one of them.
I straighten and walk around the table slowly until I reach where Ethan is sitting. That is my seat.
I stop beside him and look down at him. He finally looks up at .
"You didn’t miss ," I say softly. "You really don’t look like a man whose wife almost died."
A few people shift uncomfortably.
I pull a chair back and sit down differently, one leg crossed, posture relaxed but commanding.
"So," I say, my tone changing completely, cold and professional, "let’s get to business."
The room stills again.
"Who here," I continue, "approved the removal of my na from company docunts?"
There’s silence as I look around.
"Who here signed off on restructuring without my authorization?"
A man clears his throat. "Ethan said—"
I lift my hand. "Wrong answer," I say.
I pull my phone out calmly and dial a number.
"Anna," I say to my assistant imdiately, taking the phone to also dial the security all at once. "Terminate the contract of board mber Thomas Ridge for breach of contract. Effective imdiately."
The man goes pale."Wait—"
I glance at him. "Security" I call and they rush in at once "Send him out."
Two security guards enter almost instantly. They grab him by the arms.
"This is illegal!" he shouts. "No," I reply calmly. "It’s policy."
They drag him out. The door slams shut.
The room is frozen in terror now.
I look around again."Anyone else?"
A woman raises her hand slowly, trembling. "I... I signed because Ethan told us you were—"
"Dead?" I finished for her.
She nods. I dial again.
"Terminate board mber Cynthia Hale. Breach of contract."
Her face collapses. Security takes her too.
One by one, hands drop. No one speaks. No one dares.
I finally turn back to Ethan.
"And now," I say quietly, "we get to you."
He exhales slowly and finally stands.
"You’re overreacting," he says. "I did what was necessary."
I laugh once.
"You declared dead," I say. "You showed fake a footage. You tried to erase didn’t you?"
"I was protecting the company," he snaps.
I stand up and the room tenses instantly.
"You don’t get to speak for my company," I say coldly.
I turn to the board.
"And henceforth," I announce clearly, "I remove Ethan Forlorn Vaelkor as a participant in anything that involves this executive."
Gasps ripple through the room."He is stripped of all authority."
Silence.
"All access revoked."
Shock.
"All shares frozen pending investigation."
Fear.
"And effective imdiately, he is no longer my husband, divorce will be effective today."
I turn back to him.
"Please leave the board, Ethan."
He stares at , stunned, humiliated. Security steps forward to grab him.
The room trembles and I sit back down.
Of course, the mad Riley Grayson CEO of crescent hollow has returned.
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