I'll fix it
975 Words
The internet moved faster than Ares Knight could calculate, and that was saying something. Within an hour of posting his video, it had spread across every platform—headlines blazed, analysts speculated, and opinion pieces swarmed.
And Lena? She wanted to throw her phone into the Hudson.
She paced the suite like a caged animal, her nerves raw, her head spinning. Liam was still asleep, thank God. He didn’t need to know the world had just discovered his existence.
Ares stood calmly by the window, watching chaos unfold with the same expression he might wear while reviewing quarterly reports.
“You look disturbingly calm for someone whose life just exploded,” Lena said.
“I’ve lived under a microscope for years. This was inevitable.”
“You planned it. You didn’t even warn me.”
“I had to move fast. Control the narrative. Spin it before anyone else did.”
She glared at him. “That’s what Liam is to you now? A narrative?”
He turned, finally facing her. “No. He’s my son. That’s why I did it.”
Lena folded her arms. “You should have included me. I’m his mother.”
“You’re right. I should have.”
That stopped her. She wasn’t used to Ares Knight admitting fault.
“I’ll fix this,” he said. “No press. No paparazzi. I’ll move you somewhere safe. New identity if you want it. You name it.”
“I don’t need protection. I need partnership. We do this together, or not at all.”
He nodded slowly. “Then we do it together.”
---
But the world didn’t care about partnership. It wanted blood.
Within days, Lena was ambushed at a coffee shop by photographers. A strange man approached Liam at the park. Her inbox filled with job offers and death threats in equal measure.
She pulled Liam out of school. Shut down her freelance work. Disconnected from the life she had built from the ground up.
And she blamed Ares for all of it.
They moved into a townhouse owned by Knight Industries—secure, private, monitored. But no matter how thick the walls, the noise still seeped in.
---
One evening, after a particularly long day of dodging reporters and calming Liam’s questions about why people took pictures of him, Lena stood in the kitchen, chopping vegetables like they’d insulted her.
Ares walked in, loosened his tie, and watched her for a moment.
“You know,” he said, “that cutting board didn’t leak your location.”
Lena didn’t smile.
“I didn’t ask for any of this,” she said quietly.
“I know.”
“I liked my life.”
“I know.”
“And now it’s all gone.”
Ares stepped forward. “It’s not gone. It’s different. And temporary. I’m working on it.”
“You don’t get it. I don’t want to hide in another of your fortresses. I want to live. Take Liam to school. Get groceries without being photographed.”
“I’ll fix it.”
She dropped the knife. “Stop saying that. You can’t fix everything.”
He looked at her—really looked. And in that moment, he didn’t have an answer.
---
Days turned into weeks. The press eventually moved on. A new scandal stole their attention, as scandals always did. The frenzy dulled, replaced by curiosity and the occasional headline.
The Billionaire Dad: How Ares Knight Balances Power and Parenthood
Lena rolled her eyes every time one popped up.
But behind closed doors, things had shifted.
Ares was trying. He read bedtime stories, even the ones with dragons and singing animals. He attended parent-teacher meetings—quietly, anonymously. He let Liam paint his suits with washable markers.
And he asked Lena questions. About parenting. About Liam’s favorite things. About her.
One night, they sat on the back patio with mugs of cocoa, Liam already asleep.
“Why did you never tell anyone else?” he asked.
She shrugged. “It wasn’t anyone’s business.”
“You could’ve asked for help.”
“I’ve never been good at that.”
He looked at her. “You’re not alone anymore.”
“I know. But I don’t know what to do with that.”
“Then let’s figure it out together.”
And for once, Lena let herself believe it might be possible.
---
But peace never lasted long.
One morning, Ares received a call.
Camilla.
“Don’t hang up,” she said quickly. “You need to hear this.”
“What now?”
“There’s a leak. Internal. Someone’s selling private family files. Photos. Background checks. Liam’s school info.”
Ares’s blood turned to ice. “How?”
“Don’t know yet. But it’s coming from inside your circle.”
He hung up and stormed into the kitchen.
“Lena, we have a problem.”
---
They spent the next forty-eight hours combing through employees, locking down systems, hiring private investigators. Ares fired three people. Lena had to explain to Liam why he couldn’t go to the park.
“I thought we were safe,” he said.
“We are,” Lena said. “We’re just… adjusting.”
But she was lying. Again.
Ares watched her from across the room. He saw the fear in her eyes, the exhaustion.
And he realized something had to give.
---
That night, he made a decision.
The next morning, he resigned from the Knight Industries board.
The world flipped.
“Are you insane?” Mason roared. “You’re the face of this company.”
“I’m a father first,” Ares said. “And if I can’t protect my family from inside, I’ll do it from outside.”
He transferred power to a trusted partner. Kept his shares. But stepped back.
When Lena found out, she was speechless
- Writer
