CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 13
Protecting The Heir
The world believed the Thorne family war was about money.
It was not.
Money had always been the easiest part.
Money could be earned.
Lost.
Rebuilt.
The real battle was over something far more dangerous.
Legacy.
The things people left behind.
The names their children carried.
The truths they buried.
And now, after weeks of betrayal, Marcus Thorne finally understood something.
The greatest responsibility of his life was not protecting his empire.
It was protecting his child.
The abandoned Parker estate stood at the edge of the city.
A place forgotten by time.
The old mansion had once represented success.
A symbol of the Parker family's influence.
Now it stood empty.
Silent.
Broken.
Just like the secrets hidden inside it.
Marcus arrived alone.
He expected anger.
Accusations.
Maybe even another betrayal.
Instead, he found Khloe standing inside the old living room.
She looked different.
Not weaker.
Stronger.
Like someone who had finally stopped running from the truth.
"You're here."
Marcus nodded.
"You asked me to come."
A long silence followed.
Neither of them moved.
Finally, Khloe spoke.
"I found my father's journal."
Marcus looked at the notebook in her hands.
"And?"
She looked down.
"He wrote everything."
Khloe opened the journal.
The pages were old.
The handwriting faded.
But every word carried the weight of years of pain.
"My father knew about the agreement."
Marcus remained silent.
"He knew our families were connected."
She turned another page.
"But he never wanted me involved."
A pause.
"He tried to stop it."
Marcus frowned.
"Stop what?"
Khloe looked at him.
"The marriage arrangement."
The words shocked him.
"But the contract..."
"Was not his idea."
She handed him the journal.
Marcus read.
And slowly, the truth began to appear.
Twenty years earlier...
Edward Parker and Alexander Thorne, Marcus's father, were close friends.
They built companies together.
Trusted each other.
Shared everything.
Until one business deal changed their lives.
A major investment failed.
Millions were lost.
Everyone blamed Alexander.
But the truth was different.
The deal had been sabotaged.
By someone close to both families.
Someone who wanted them destroyed.
Someone who benefited from their conflict.
Marcus looked up.
"Who?"
Khloe shook her head.
"My father didn't write the name."
"Why?"
"Because he was afraid."
A pause.
"He said the person was powerful enough to destroy anyone who exposed them."
Marcus felt a familiar coldness.
The same fear he had seen in everyone connected to this secret.
Then Khloe showed him another page.
The final entry.
The one written shortly before Edward died.
Marcus read slowly.
If my daughter ever discovers the truth, tell her this:
She was never a tool.
She was never part of a deal.
She was the only good thing that came from all of this.
Marcus stopped.
His eyes moved to Khloe.
For the first time in days, she looked vulnerable.
Not because she was weak.
Because she finally understood.
Her father had loved her.
He had been trying to protect her.
"I thought everyone used me."
Her voice broke slightly.
Marcus stepped closer.
"Khloe..."
"I thought I was just another piece on a board."
She looked at him.
"But my father was trying to remove me from the game."
Marcus nodded.
"And I should have helped him."
She looked away.
"You didn't know."
"But I knew enough."
The honesty surprised her.
"I knew there were things I hadn't told you."
He swallowed.
"And I convinced myself that hiding them was love."
A pause.
"It wasn't."
For the first time in weeks, they stood without secrets between them.
Not all wounds were healed.
Not all questions were answered.
But something changed.
The wall between them became smaller.
Khloe looked at him.
"There's one more thing."
Marcus waited.
"The baby."
His expression softened immediately.
"What about the baby?"
Khloe looked at the journal.
"My father mentioned the heir."
Marcus frowned.
"What heir?"
She handed him another page.
The words were clear.
The child of Marcus Thorne and Khloe Parker must be protected at all costs.
Marcus felt a chill.
"How did he know?"
Khloe shook her head.
"He didn't."
Silence.
"Unless..."
Marcus finished the sentence.
"Someone else knew."
They returned to the city immediately.
Because one thing was clear.
The attack on Khloe had never been random.
Isabella had wanted revenge.
Richard had wanted power.
Emily had wanted justice.
But someone else had been watching.
Someone who knew about the baby.
Someone who knew the child represented something bigger.
At the Thorne security headquarters, Daniel was waiting.
"I found something."
Marcus looked at him.
"Please tell me it is not another secret."
Daniel gave a tired smile.
"I wish it was."
He opened the file.
"Someone has been monitoring Khloe's pregnancy records."
Marcus's expression darkened.
"Who?"
Daniel pointed to the screen.
"A private organization."
"Name?"
Daniel hesitated.
"The Aurelius Foundation."
Khloe frowned.
"I've heard that name."
Marcus looked at her.
"Where?"
"My father mentioned it."
Everyone became silent.
The Aurelius Foundation appeared to be a charitable organization.
Publicly, it supported medical research and family programs.
Privately...
it had connections to some of the most powerful people in the world.
And according to Daniel's investigation...
someone inside the foundation had accessed information about Khloe's unborn child.
Marcus immediately increased security.
Not because he feared losing his company.
Not because he feared the media.
Because now there was something more important.
His child.
His family.
The future they had almost lost.
That night, Marcus sat beside Khloe.
Neither spoke for a while.
Finally, she asked:
"Are you afraid?"
He looked at her.
"Yes."
She seemed surprised.
Marcus Thorne admitting fear was rare.
"I am afraid every day."
He touched her stomach gently.
"Because I have something worth losing."
Khloe looked at him.
"Before me, you never had that?"
"No."
A pause.
"I had success."
He looked at her.
"But not a home."
The next morning, the Aurelius Foundation released a statement.
They denied any involvement.
They called the accusations "unfounded."
But Daniel found something else.
A hidden payment.
A secret transfer.
A connection between the foundation and...
Emily Parker.
Marcus stared at the evidence.
"Emily?"
Daniel nodded.
"She wasn't just seeking revenge."
Khloe's face changed.
"Then what was she doing?"
Daniel looked at the documents.
"Protecting something."
"Something?"
A pause.
"Or someone."
That evening, Emily appeared unexpectedly.
Not as an enemy.
Not as a mastermind.
As someone desperate.
"I know who is coming."
Marcus stepped forward.
"Who?"
Emily looked at Khloe.
Then at her unborn child.
"The people who started all of this."
Everyone became silent.
"Your families were only fighting the war they created."
Marcus narrowed his eyes.
"Who are they?"
Emily's voice dropped.
"The people who wanted the Thorne and Parker bloodlines connected."
A pause.
"The people who believe your child belongs to them."
Khloe instinctively protected her stomach.
Marcus moved in front of her.
"No one touches my family."
Emily looked at him.
For the first time, she believed him.
Because she saw something she had not seen before.
Not a billionaire.
Not an heir.
A father.
Later that night, Marcus received a final warning.
A message appeared on his phone.
A single image.
A photograph of Khloe leaving the Parker estate.
Taken from a distance.
Someone had been watching.
Below the photograph were words:
THE HEIR WILL BE CLAIMED.
Marcus stared at the message.
Then he looked at Khloe.
The woman he loved.
The child they were waiting for.
And he made a promise.
Not as a businessman.
Not as the head of the Thorne family.
As a father.
"No one will take my child."
Because the first battle had been about a marriage.
The second had been about revenge.
But the final battle...
May you like
was about protecting the heir.
END OF CHAPTER 13
