The moment Isabella Vicks finished reading the message, a heavy silence fell over Damien Hayes’s office.
She had never seen him react like that before.
Damien Hayes was a man known for control. In the two years Isabella had worked for him at Hayes Company, she had seen him handle angry investors, company crises, and aggressive competitors without even raising his voice.
But now…
He looked completely still.
Too still.
His eyes were fixed on her phone as if the message had dragged him somewhere far away.
“Damien?” Isabella said softly.
No response.
Her heart began to beat faster.
“Who is Emily Carter?”
Damien slowly stood from behind his desk.
For a moment, he didn’t speak.
Then he walked toward the window, his back facing her.
“That name,” he said quietly, “shouldn’t be connec
