Christian’s shoes clicked with an unbearable confidence as he sauntered toward the massive mahogany table.

Roxanne felt her stomach churn with sharp irritation. The sheer arrogance rolling off him was suffocating.

He stopped just short of the table, his eyes locking instantly onto Richard. "You are sitting in my seat," Christian said, his voice flat and demanding. "Get up so I can take my rightful place beside my wife."

Richard didn’t flinch. His jaw hardened, the muscle ticking under his skin, but he kept his composure. Roxanne remained entirely still beside him, her fingers still tightly intertwined with Richard’s beneath the edge of the table.

Together, they simply stared up at Christian, their expressions completely blank, treating him like nothing more than a petulant child screaming for attention.

Henry pressed the heels of his palms to his temples, letting out a sharp, irritated breath. "I think you have been an exhausting nuisance enough for one day, Mr. Westbrook," he muttered, his voice dripping with fatigue. "Why don’t we skip the drama and focus on why you were brought here?"

Margaret’s lip curled in pure disgust as she glared across the room. "Instead of spewing nonsense, why don’t you start by telling this board exactly where you obtained that leaked video?"

"Yes, Christian," Pamela interjected, her voice trembling slightly with urgency. "Tell them. Tell them right now so they finally know I had absolutely nothing to do with it."

Christian looked lazily at Henry, then at Margaret, before his gaze finally drifted down to Pamela, whose knuckles were white as she gripped the edge of the table.

"I didn’t walk into this room to save anyone," he said smoothly, completely turning his shoulder away from her. He looked around at the rest of the board members. "The only question you all should be asking me is what my terms are so you can finally put an end to this PR disaster."

Roxanne let out a quiet scoff under her breath, her nostrils flaring as she watched his smirking face.

"What are you saying, Christian? Everyone in this family thinks I handed that footage over to you!" Pamela said, fear flickering wildly in her eyes.

"That sounds like a personal problem, not mine," Christian shot back, his tone entirely nonchalant. He checked his watch. "If you are not ready to negotiate a settlement with me, I will gladly walk right back out those doors."

Nicholas slammed a fist onto the table, scoffing loudly. "You should be grateful that we even allowed you into this villa," he snapped, his face reddening with anger. "You used to be an executive here; you know exactly how the Vance family handles blackmailers. We do not hold diplomatic discussions with pests."

Christian slowly turned his head to look at Nicholas, his brows furrowing in mock concentration as if trying to place a vague memory. "I’m sorry, who are you again? Please refresh my memory."

Nicholas frowned deeply, visibly insulted. "What kind of pathetic question is that? I am Nicholas Vance. Richard’s brother."

Christian nodded slowly, a cruel, mocking smile spreading across his face. "Ah. Now I understand why your face didn’t ring a bell. You aren’t the president of this company, Nicholas, which means in this room, you are entirely insignificant. You should keep your mouth shut and let the people who actually matter do the talking."

Nicholas swallowed hard, his neck flushing crimson as he glared at Christian.

Roxanne shook her head. As much as she despised Nicholas and secretly enjoyed seeing him humbled, looking at Christian’s smug face was far more irritating. She tore her eyes away from the bickering and scanned the faces around the table, searching for a crack.

That was when she caught it. Amidst all the shouting, one face was completely drained of life.

Roxanne looked directly at Cara, tilting her head. "You’re shaking, Cara," she said, her voice cutting through the chaos like a knife.

The bickering instantly stopped. Every eye at the table swung around to pin Cara to her seat. Even Margaret looked at her, her brow furrowing deeply as doubt began to resurface.

Cara swallowed hard, her eyebrows knitting together in a defensive frown. "Shaking? Me? You must have a problem with your eyes, Roxanne," she snapped, aggressively shifting her weight in the chair. "Why on earth would I be shaking?"

Roxanne’s eyes narrowed into slits, tracking the slight tremor in Cara’s shoulders. Without breaking eye contact, she raised her voice slightly to address Christian. "Did she give you the video? Is she the secret ally you were warning me about last night?"

Christian turned, and his eyes found Cara. But neither of them spoke.

For one long second, the room seemed to stop breathing.

Roxanne noticed. Cara looked petrified, the color entirely gone from her lips. For a split second, Roxanne could have sworn she saw a desperate, pleading look pass through Cara’s eyes, silently begging Christian to stay silent.

Then, Christian ripped his gaze away from Cara and snapped his attention back to Roxanne. "And why would I give you that piece of information, Roxanne, especially considering whose hand you’re holding right now?"

"Because you will be helping me clear my name!" Pamela yelled before Roxanne could even formulate a response. "Don’t even try to deny it, Christian. I saw you two together last night, and you even told me—"

"Quiet, Pamela!" Christian barked, cutting her off instantly. "I am speaking to my wife. You don’t get to interrupt me anymore."

"Do not use that tone with my daughter. You will treat her with proper respect in this house," Henry intervened, his voice ringing with authority as his forehead creased into a deep scowl.

Christian shifted his gaze to the patriarch, entirely unimpressed. "You are in no position to be throwing empty threats around, Henry. Especially not when it comes to defending her."

Henry’s eyes flashed dangerously. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

Christian slowly turned his gaze back to Pamela, tilting his head with a slow, wicked grin. "Should I tell them, Pamela? Should I share our little secret?"

"We already know exactly what happened between the two of you. She already confessed," Richard cut in, his sharp voice slicing through the tension and instantly shutting Christian down.

He leaned forward, his demeanor radiating impatience. "Your leverage over her is completely gone, Christian, so stop wasting everyone’s time and answer the damn question. Did Cara hand you that video or not?"