His enemy's daughter

Chapter 3

Serena callahan

The late afternoon sun was soft against the city streets as I stepped out of the coffee shop, Lucian’s words still ringing in my mind — a cold warning I couldn’t ignore

"Ask Vivienne. I’m sure she has a… version of the truth.”.

The weight of it sat heavy on my chest, but I pushed it down. For now, I needed normal, I wonder what my stepmother is hiding now.

Isis’s apartment was a quiet refuge from the storm. She greeted me with a smile and a cup of tea, the kind of simple gesture I craved.

“How are things?” she asked, settling beside me on the couch.

I smiled, careful not to let the tension seep through. “Busy. Work’s been nonstop, but I’m managing.”

We talked about everything — her new job, a frustrating client, the silly things that made her laugh. For a few hours, the world felt lighter. I laughed more than I had in days, even if my mind kept drifting.

When I left, the fading light was already turning shadows long. The silence at home felt thick, and as I stepped inside, voices floated from the study.

I paused, my heart quickening.

Vanessa’s voice, quiet but strained. “Caleb, we need to move forward. You said this would happen soon.”

His tone was firm, deliberate. “Not yet. I have to marry Serena first. Her name is tied to the company. It’s the only way.”

There was a pause, then Vanessa’s voice dropped to almost a whisper. “And after that?”

“After six months, I’ll divorce her,” Caleb said, cold and sure. “Once control is mine, she’s out. Then it’s you.”

Vanessa hesitated. “What if she resists? Or runs?”

Caleb’s laugh was low and bitter. “She won’t. No one will take her in — not with the Blackwoods watching. And if she tries, her father’s empire will fall.”

"After all she knows I'm the one you truly love" Vanessa said, venom lacing in her voice

I stepped back silently, heart pounding but face unreadable. They thought I was a pawn, but I was far from defeated

I stepped back silently, heart pounding but my face was unreadable. They thought I was a pawn, but I was far from defeated.

My hands trembled as I pulled out my phone. I needed to hear a steady voice — someone who could help me think clearly.

“Kylie,” I whispered the moment she answered. “I don’t know what to do. Caleb and Vanessa… they’re planning to use me. To control the company.”

There was a brief pause on the other end before Kylie’s calm voice came through. “Okay, Serena. First, breathe. I know this feels overwhelming, but you’re not alone.”

“I feel… lost. Like everything could slip away if I’m not careful.”

“No panic, not yet,” Kylie said firmly. “Right now, you don’t make any moves. We’ll meet soon, lay out everything you know, and come up with a plan. You’re stronger than you think.”

I let out a shaky breath, trying to steady myself. “Thank you, Kylie. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“You won’t have to find out. I’ve got your back.”

I hung up the call and sat there for a moment, staring at the dark screen of my phone. My reflection blinked back at me — tired eyes, a tight jaw, a woman holding herself together by will alone.

I rose slowly and walked to my bedroom. The apartment was still and quiet, but I could feel the echoes of Caleb’s words rattling inside me like a storm.

“She won’t. No one will take her in — not with the Blackwoods watching. And if she tries, her father’s empire will fall.”

On my dresser sat the velvet ring box. It was still open from the morning, the diamond catching a faint sliver of dying sunlight through the window. I picked it up — it felt heavier than it should. Cold. Fake.

I turned the ring between my fingers, watching how easily it gleamed. How beautiful something hollow could pretend to be.

I wanted to throw it.

Instead, I placed it back into the box, closed it with a soft click, and slid it into the drawer.

Then I pulled out a stack of papers from my bag — contracts, legal agreements, the merger paperwork tied to my family’s name. The very documents Caleb was banking on.

I sat cross-legged on the floor, laptop open, pages spread around me like a battlefield. I didn’t understand everything yet, but I would. I had to.

Because if they thought I was going to sit back and let them orchestrate my downfall, they didn’t know me at all.

My fingers hovered over the trackpad before I clicked open a folder labeled "Callahan Holdings – Confidential." My father’s life work was in there. And now, so was mine.

Somewhere in the hallway, I thought I heard footsteps.

I froze.

But then—silence.

Still, something inside me shifted. A tension, a warning. Like I was being watched.

I turned toward the door slowly… and found it slightly ajar. Even though I remembered shutting it tight when I came in.

The ring box was closed.

But the war had just begun.

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