“Gavin, do not entertain this nonsense,” Priscilla whispered, trying to pull him back. “The child is just playing a silly game.”
However, Taylor was completely serious.
“The sad lady needs you,” Taylor insisted, pulling his hand.
Gavin’s friendly expression instantly shifted.
“Which lady are you talking about?” he asked gently.
Taylor pointed her little finger straight down the corridor.
“Your mommy.”
An abrupt silence washed over the room, and Priscilla slammed her champagne glass onto a nearby marble table with far too much force.
“Your mother is not even here!” Priscilla snapped, her voice trembling slightly.
Just then, Owen stepped out from the hallway, his face pale as he held a thick black binder under his arm.
“She is in the study, Gavin,” Owen announced firmly. “And this time, you really need to listen to what she has to say.”
PART 3
Gavin stood motionless for a moment, staring at Owen as if his trusted assistant had suddenly transformed into a stranger.
The entire ballroom fell completely quiet, leaving thirty high-profile guests, politicians, and business partners standing in an uncomfortable silence as they realized they were witnessing a private disaster unravel.
Priscilla was the first to break the tension, stepping forward with a forced, elegant smile.
“This is completely inappropriate,” Priscilla declared loudly. “Gavin, your mother is creating an embarrassing scene on our special night, and are you honestly going to fall for this?”
Gavin turned his gaze toward her, remembering how that smooth voice had guided his decisions for months, convincing him to cut ties with his family and distrust his long-time staff.
Yet little Taylor was still holding onto his hand, looking up at him with remarkable clarity.
“Please come on,” Taylor urged gently. “She stopped crying, but she is still very sad.”
Something broke inside Gavin’s guarded demeanor.
He completely ignored Priscilla and her father, who was beginning to mutter quiet threats about reputation and political influence, and simply allowed the little girl to lead him down the hallway.
Nora felt an overwhelming sense of panic, feeling the intense glare of every wealthy guest burning into her back as she followed them. She worried that she would lose her job and her home by morning, but she could not leave her daughter alone in the middle of the storm.
When they entered the private office, Evelyn was standing beside the desk, clutching her hands to hide their violent shaking.
“Mom,” Gavin said quietly, carrying six months of guilt and regret in that single word.
Evelyn did not rush to hug him, nor did she shed any more tears, but simply handed him the thick yellow envelope.
“Please read this before you judge me again,” she said softly.
Gavin opened the folder and began scanning the documents, initial hesitation turning into sharp focus as he turned page after page. Owen stepped forward, placing his black binder on the desk beside him.
“We have full digital backups, Gavin,” Owen explained carefully. “These are outgoing transfers to a shell consulting firm in Oregon and private strategy leaks sent directly to the executive board of Northwest Developments before every major bidding cycle.”
Gavin’s jaw clenched tightly, his fingers crushing the corners of the paper he held.
“How long has this been going on?” Gavin asked, his voice chillingly calm.
“Since before you two even met at the charity gala,” Owen replied quietly.
Evelyn took a deep breath before speaking up.
“I started noticing strange discrepancies in our quarterly reports, but when I tried to warn you, she convinced you I was just being an overbearing mother.”
“I banned you from my life,” Gavin admitted softly, looking at his mother with deep shame.
“Yes, you did,” Evelyn acknowledged gently.
Taylor climbed onto the leather armchair, watching the adults with total confusion as to why they took so long to fix simple problems.
“Are you still sad now?” Taylor asked Evelyn directly.
Evelyn looked at the little girl, a small, genuine smile finally breaking through her distress.
“A little less now, my sweet child,” Evelyn answered softly.
Gavin turned his attention to Nora, who was standing nervously near the door.
“Did you see these documents too?” Gavin asked.
“I did not mean to look at anything, sir,” Nora answered honestly. “Your mother opened the envelope, and I only stayed because my daughter refused to leave the room.”
“You should have taken her back to the kitchen,” Gavin noted, his eyes narrowing slightly.
“I know,” Nora replied, holding her head high. “But sometimes children understand that someone needs help long before adults do.”
Before Gavin could respond, the office door flew open without a knock, and Priscilla marched inside with her face flushed red, closely followed by her father.
“This farce ends right now,” Priscilla demanded loudly. “I will not allow a maid, a noisy toddler, and a bitter old woman to ruin my life.”
Nora immediately stepped forward to protect her child, while Evelyn held her ground firmly.
Gavin set the papers onto the desk and looked directly at his fiancée.
“Priscilla, how do you explain these bank records?” Gavin asked coldly.
Priscilla glanced at the papers for a split second before sneering.
“They are obvious fakes created to frame me,” she replied hastily.
“We have the original server logs and hotel meeting recordings from downtown,” Owen interjected calmly.
