Rising from the Ashes The Heiress They Tried to Erase Novel

Chapter 846: With his eyes closed, he seemed to be drifting back through old memories. Yes. His instincts hadn't failed him then. Even decades ago, he had sensed there was something off about Nicola and his elder brother, Kyle. The first impression Nicola gave, aside from her beauty, was her remarkable intelligence. If a woman like that had joined forces with Kyle, they would have become an unstoppable team - and Kolton knew there would have been no place for him in the Cooper Group. That was why he had moved first. He had been ready to wipe them both out. Chris, too, was meant to vanish.

But over time, Kolton had let that intention rot. Chris had seemed harmless - meek, unremarkable, and thoroughly unimpressive. A waste of bloodline. And perhaps some shred of guilt toward Kyle had stayed his hand. Letting the boy live had been his version of atonement. But now? Now he saw clearly just how naive he had been. He should have cut the root when it was still soft. Chris might be useless, but one fact remained. He was a Cooper, Kyle's only son, Laurence's rightful grandson, and a ticking time bomb with a legitimate claim to the inheritance of the Cooper Group. And Maia...

she had already made waves and provoked them. She had stripped Aurora Apparel Company from Mariana's hands, forced her to apologize in public, and dragged the Cooper name through the dirt. It was hard for Kolton not to be suspicious. If Maia ended up with Chris, would it be just like back when Nicola was with Kyle? Were they plotting to dethrone him? The thought made Kolton's veins throb again. g⍺ν․ But in the next second, he dismissed the possibility. Impossible! It still sounded like utter nonsense. What was he even thinking? Chris was just a nobody. He wasn't half the man Kyle was.

And Maia? No matter how sharp she played her hand, she was nothing like Nicola. She likely had other motives for approaching Chris. Still... Kolton couldn't take chances. No scheming woman would be allowed to worm her way into the Cooper family, not under his watch. And no one - no one - would be permitted to drag their legacy through the mud again. He slammed his palm against the desk with renewed fury, the sound echoing off the walls. "Someone get in here - now!" Kolton shifted his gaze toward his assistant, who immediately rushed forward without needing to be called.

"Dig into everything between Chris and Maia," he said sharply. "I want to know if he's genuinely protecting her, or if this whole bodyguard act is just a front. Track every encounter. Find witnesses. I don't care how long it takes, just bring me the truth." "Right away!" the assistant responded, then quickly turned and disappeared. Beyond the walls, thunder cracked through the sky as lightning tore across the clouds. Despite it being mid-afternoon, not a single sliver of sunlight managed to break through. A heavy storm was brewing. . . .