Chapter 3 - The Broken Trust
Nathan brought the children straight to the master wing of the mansion—his sanctuary, a place Victoria rarely entered without his permission. He immediately ordered the night butler, the old man who had tried to warn him, to bring hot soup, thick blankets, and the family’s trusted private pediatrician, Dr. Aris.
"Thomas," Nathan said quietly to the butler while the children were being wrapped in blankets by the fire. "How long?"
Thomas lowered his head, tears forming in his aged eyes. "Nearly two years, Mr. Harrington. Ever since you began spending three weeks a month expanding the European division. Madam Victoria... she threatened us. She said if any staff member spoke a word, she would use the Harrington legal team to ruin our lives, sue us for defamation, and ensure our families starved. We were terrified, sir. She intercepts all the security footage."
Nathan closed his eyes, a sickening wave of guilt washing over him. Two years. While he was flying across the globe, building a multi-billion-dollar empire, his children were living a horror movie inside their own home. He had provided them with everything money could buy, yet failed to provide the one thing that mattered: protection.
Dr. Aris arrived within thirty minutes through a private entrance. The examination was quiet and agonizing. While there were no broken bones, the children showed signs of severe psychological trauma, minor nutritional deficiencies, and faint, fading marks on their arms from past punishments.
"They are physically resilient, Nathan," Dr. Aris said outside the room, his face grim. "But emotionally... they are shattered. They’ve been conditioned to believe that their mother’s cruelty is their own fault. If they didn't get perfect grades, if they spoke too loudly, if they didn't perfectly behave at her foundation galas... she punished them here. And she used your absence as a weapon, telling them you were away because they weren't good enough."
Nathan slammed his fist against the mahogany wall, the wood cracking under the force. "She used me to torture my own kids."
"What are you going to do, Nathan?" the doctor asked. "She is the co-chairwoman of your foundation. A public divorce will create a media circus that could further traumatize these children."
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Nathan looked through the glass door at his three children, who were finally drifting off to sleep, holding onto each other’s hands even in their dreams.
"I don't care about the foundation," Nathan whispered. "And I don't care about a media circus. I am going to destroy her."
