The Heiress' Revenge

Ariana’s POV

The car pulled up to Dante’s company’s building.

Ares sat beside me. He was calm, too calm. I envied him; he was scrolling through his phone like we were going to a coffee shop, not a war.

"You okay?" he asked, not looking up.

"No," I said, my voice shaking. "I’m not okay, I’m about to maybe run into the man that I have out of his company to a sick bitch, or should I say a man who has zero memory of me, and I have to sit there and pretend I don’t care."

Ares put his phone down and looked at me. His eyes were soft. "You don’t have to pretend you don’t care. You just have to pretend you’re not falling apart. There’s a difference."

I laughed. It was a bitter sound. "That’s not comforting."

"It’s not supposed to be comforting. It’s supposed to be honest. You’re going to see him. It’s going to hurt, you’re going to want to run to him and ask him why, but you can’t, at least not yet. Not until we have what we need."

I took a deep breath. "I know, I know. I just... I don’t know if I’m ready."

Ares squeezed my hand. "You’re ready. You’ve been ready. You’re stronger than you think, so chill out, we’re going to win this."

We got out of the car with the building so tall. We walked through the busy lobby, but somehow all the workers that I used to know here aren’t the ones now.

Of course

Melissa did make a lot of changes

I heard the whispers before I saw the faces.

"Is that Ariana? Dante’s ex-wife?"

"I thought she left town. What is she doing here?"

"She looks different."

Well! There you have it.

People would always talk, never seeming to mind their business.

I kept my head high and kept walking. Ares was beside me with his hand on my lower back.

The elevator doors opened. We stepped inside. Ares pressed the button for the top floor, and the doors closed.

The whispers stopped.

I looked at my reflection in the metal doors.

My face was pale.

Gosh!

I look like someone who is going to pass out.

"You look fine to me," Ares said.

I almost smiled. "You’re just saying that because you’re my brother."

"I’m saying that because it’s true. Now chin up. We’re about to walk into a room full of sharks. And you’re the biggest one in the ocean."

The doors opened.

We walked out with some workers guiding us through the boardroom.

We reached the boardroom, and as the door slipped open, we walked in, and then I saw him.

Dante.

He was sitting in a wheelchair with his face pale.

His eyes were tired, but they were his eyes.

Those eyes that used to look at me like I was the only woman in the world. Now it felt like I was a stranger.

Like he didn’t know me.

Of course, he didn’t know.

I felt Ares’s hand on my waist, gentle. He pulled me closer to him. He smiled at the board members. "Apologies for the delay," he said. His voice was smooth and confident. "My wife and I had something to take care of before the meeting. You know how it is."

My wife.

The words hit me like a slap.

I felt Dante’s eyes on me. I could swear I saw a frown on his face just for a second, like a flicker. Then it was gone.

I played along and smiled at the board members leaning into Ares. I let him guide me to our seats, acting as if I belonged with him.

Melissa sat across the table.

Her eyes were on me.

Cold.

Hard.

Deadly.

She looked at me like she wanted to kill me. Like she couldn’t believe I was here. Like she couldn’t believe I dared to show my face.

I looked back at her. I didn’t smile or frown either; I just looked and let her wonder. Let her worry.

Let her be scared.

Oh, she should be.

The meeting started, and people talked. I let Ares do most of the talking; I only affirmed things when the need arose.

Most of the time, I could feel Dante’s eyes on me and Melissa’s eyes on me, biting and hating.

I was burning inside, falling apart. Inside, I was screaming because he was right there, so close to me yet so far away.

Because he didn’t remember me, and I had to sit there and pretend I didn’t care.

Fuck!

I hated the position I found myself in.

The meeting ended, and I couldn’t be happier. I just wanted to get away before I broke down.

Ares was talking to someone. Melissa was talking to someone else.

I looked at Dante, and he was looking at me. Our eyes met for a second, and I saw something in his eyes.

Something familiar.

Something that made my heart stop.

Then Melissa walked over to him, putting her hand on his shoulder. She leaned down and whispered something in his ear. He looked away from me and nodded.

Ares came up beside me, putting his hand on my back. "You did well," he said quietly.

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t answer. The words were stuck in my throat.

"Let’s go," he said. "We have what we came for."

I nodded.

We sure did.