Liv felt her heart slam against her ribs.
But Isabel wasn't done.
"And since you invested so much of your fortune into the Erickson family business… they also planned to seize control of the Marquis family after the downfall."
Silence.
Only Liv's breath, sharp and uneven, filled the space between them.
For the first time in a long time… Liv realized that her past wasn't just pain.
It was a war.
"Where did you hear all of this?" Liv finally asked, her voice controlled yet trembling beneath the surface. Her fingers curled slightly over the table as she studied Isabel, the fragility, the certainty, the quiet desperation.
Isabel didn't hesitate.
"I heard everything," she replied. "They believed I was too wrapped up in Andrey, too blinded by love and jealousy to care about anything else. To them, I was just a foolish woman, someone harmless."
A bitter smile tugged weakly at her lips.
"But I listened. Every whisper. Every plan. Every intention."
