"She can't afford to wait any longer. Honestly, the best thing for Donna Thomas right now is to see Ryan Cox finally face justice. Who knows, maybe once she hears he's been arrested, she'll start to recover. That's why I need to get this resolved as soon as possible, give her some closure. After all, I'm the one who brought her into this mess-I should've been looking out for her."

Elizabeth Wilson nodded. "You're right. I'll go over the case files again, make sure there's nothing we've missed."

Emily Blair gave a nod.

Lately, Ryan Cox found himself caught between smug satisfaction and uneasy frustration.

The frustration stemmed from that incident in the boardroom-he'd gotten careless and had an unpleasant run-in with Emily Blair's assistant. Now, Emily Blair wouldn't leave him alone. Even though he'd already pulled some strings with the police department, he still couldn't shake his paranoia.

But there was satisfaction, too. Ryan knew full well that Emily Blair couldn't stand the sight of him, but for all her efforts, she couldn't get rid of him. That paradox amused him to no end; sometimes, just thinking about it was enough to put him in a good mood.

As Ryan stepped out of the conference room, his disappointing son approached. "Dad, I need to talk to you. Can you come with me to the meeting room for a minute?"

Ryan had never liked this son—especially the calculating look in Lucas Cox's eyes. Of all his kids, Lucas was the only one with any real ambition.

Maybe it was some primal fear that the next generation was out to push him aside, but Ryan had never bothered to get close to Lucas. It didn't help that Lucas's mother had left him early on for someone else; that only made Ryan resent his son more.

Without caring that other employees were watching, Ryan scowled and snapped, “If you've got something to say, spit it out. Don't stand there fidgeting like a child."

He watched with satisfaction as Lucas's expression froze, his face twisting into that pathetic mix of anger and helplessness.

“Dad, this is complicated. I can't talk about it here. We need to discuss it in private."

Ryan relished being begged for attention. He furrowed his brow, barking, "Either say it now or forget it. I don't have time for your games.”

Lucas's composure finally cracked; his voice dropped, darker now. "Do you have to talk to me like this, Dad?"

The more Lucas pushed back, the more Ryan despised him. Looking at his son's face only fueled his irritation.

"What's wrong with my tone? Tell me. I'm your father—I'll talk to you however I damn well please! Remember, everything in this company is here because of me.”

Ryan spat out, “If I'd known you'd turn out to be such a disappointment, I should've left you as a stain on the wall!"

Ryan's voice rang out so loud in the otherwise quiet office that every head turned in their direction.

Lucas lost all pretense of dignity.

There was evidence in the meeting room that could bring Ryan Cox down for good, and Lucas was done pretending.

His voice was cold and steady. "If you don't want to see for yourself, don't blame me when things blow up."

Ryan frowned. "What's gotten into you? As long as I'm here, nothing's coming crashing down."

Lucas let out a low, menacing laugh.

Ryan suddenly felt something was off. "What's with that look?"

"Mr. Cox."

A clear, cool woman's voice sounded from behind Lucas.

Ryan would remember that voice for a long time. His brow twitched, and he turned sharply toward the sound.

Emily Blair stood in the doorway to the meeting room, a faint smile on her lips. "Mr. Cox, it's been a few days. Did you miss me?"