AUCTIONED AS A LIVE-IN SON-IN-LAW, THE GENIUS BILLIONAIRE RECLAIMS HIS EMPIRE

The day Nathan Eastwood lost everything began with a phone call.

By noon, he would lose his empire.

By evening, he would lose the last piece of himself.

And before the night was over, the people who once bowed before the Eastwood name would be laughing at his downfall.

“Nathan, we’re out of time.”

The voice of his chief financial officer trembled through the speakerphone.

Nathan stood at the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Eastwood Holdings boardroom, looking down at the city his family had helped build. Towering skyscrapers reflected the afternoon sunlight. Luxury cars crawled through the streets. Far below, people hurried through their ordinary lives, unaware that one of the country’s most powerful business empires was bleeding to death.

He adjusted the cuff of his black suit.

“How much?”

“Every account has been frozen. The banks have withdrawn their credit facilities, three major investors have pulled out, and our creditors are demanding immediate repayment. We’re looking at losses exceeding two billion dollars.”

Silence descended upon the boardroom.

Two billion dollars.

It was enough money to ruin thousands of ordinary people. But for Eastwood Holdings, a company that had survived economic recessions, hostile takeovers, and decades of ruthless competition, it should not have been fatal.

Unless someone had deliberately made sure it would be.

“Show me the revised financial report,” Nathan ordered.

At twenty-eight, Nathan was the youngest chairman in Eastwood Holdings’ history. Handsome, calculating, and notoriously difficult to deceive, he had earned a reputation as a business prodigy long before inheriting his father’s position.

He could identify a company’s weakness by studying a single page of its financial statements. He could turn failing investments into profitable ventures and predict market movements that left seasoned executives scrambling to catch up.

For years, the business world had called him untouchable.

Today, those same people were preparing to watch him fall.

His chief financial officer pushed a thick file across the table.

Nathan scanned the figures.

Once.

Twice.

Then his eyes narrowed.

“This is impossible.”

“What is it?” one director asked.

Nathan dropped the report onto the table.

“Someone transferred the funds allocated to our overseas subsidiaries three months ago. The transactions were disguised as emergency acquisitions, but the companies that received the money don’t exist.”

The directors exchanged nervous glances.

“Are you suggesting fraud?” another demanded.

“I’m saying someone has been systematically bleeding this company dry while making the losses look like legitimate business decisions.”

Nathan turned toward the chief financial officer.

“Who authorized these transactions?”

The man swallowed.

“The approvals came from the executive office.”

“Whose signature?”

The answer came reluctantly.

“Your uncle’s.”

For the first time that afternoon, Nathan’s expression changed.

Victor Eastwood.

His father’s younger brother.

The man who had attended every family gathering, offered advice during every crisis, and called Nathan his own son after his brother’s death.

Nathan stared at the signature on the report.

It looked genuine.

Too genuine.

“Where is Victor?” he asked.

“He’s on his way.”

Nathan closed the file.

“Then nobody leaves this room until he gets here.”

Unfortunately, the man they were waiting for was already preparing to celebrate.

Twenty minutes later, the boardroom doors swung open.

Victor Eastwood entered wearing a charcoal suit and a satisfied smile that disappeared the moment he noticed Nathan watching him.

“Uncle,” Nathan greeted him. “How convenient of you to arrive.”

Victor glanced around the room.

“What is this? I was told there was an emergency meeting.”

“There is.”

Nathan pushed the financial report toward him.

“Would you care to explain why billions of dollars have disappeared from our accounts under your authorization?”

Victor’s face hardened.

“Watch your tone, boy.”

“Answer the question.”

“I won’t be interrogated by someone who has clearly lost control of his company.”

A few directors shifted uncomfortably.

Nathan leaned forward.

“My company?”

Victor laughed without humor.

“You may be chairman, Nathan, but don’t forget who helped your father build this empire. You inherited your position. You didn’t earn it.”

“Then you should have no problem explaining those transactions.”

For a fleeting second, something ugly flickered in Victor’s eyes.

Then he smiled.

“Perhaps you should spend less time pretending to be a genius and more time learning how the real world works.”

Nathan rose slowly.

“Get out.”

Victor blinked.

“What?”

“You’re suspended from all executive duties pending a full investigation. Security will escort you out, and the authorities will receive copies of these documents before the end of the day.”

The room fell silent.

Victor stared at him, his face slowly turning red.

“You arrogant little—”

“Security!”

Two guards appeared at the door.

Victor straightened his jacket and looked at Nathan with an expression that made the hairs on the back of Nathan’s neck rise.

“You think you’ve won something today?”

Nathan said nothing.

Victor leaned closer.

“Enjoy your throne while you still have it.”

Then he walked out.

Nathan watched him leave, his instincts screaming that something was terribly wrong.

He should have trusted those instincts.

Because within minutes, the company’s remaining investors began withdrawing their support. The stock price collapsed. Creditors issued final demands, and news channels started broadcasting reports about the spectacular failure of Eastwood Holdings.

Someone had anticipated every move Nathan could make.

Someone had prepared for this day long before he discovered the first fraudulent transaction.

And that someone knew exactly where to strike next.

His phone vibrated.

MOTHER CALLING.

Nathan answered immediately.

“Mom?”

There was no response at first.

Then he heard the television playing in the background.

“Nathan, darling, is it true?”

He closed his eyes briefly.

“What did you hear?”

“That the company is bankrupt. They’re saying your father’s company is finished. They’re saying you’ve lost everything.”

Her voice trembled.

“Tell me it’s a lie, Nathan.”

He looked through the glass walls at the employees gathering their belongings, at the directors avoiding his gaze, and at the financial report that had just revealed the betrayal festering inside his family.

He wanted to tell her everything would be fine.

He wanted to promise that he would fix it before sunset, just as he had fixed every other crisis that had threatened their family.

But for the first time in his life, he couldn’t see a way out.

“Mom, listen to me. I’m handling it. Don’t believe everything you hear on television. I’ll come and see you tonight, all right?”

“Your father worked his entire life for that company.”

“I know.”

“He always said you would take it further than he ever could.”

Nathan gripped the phone tighter.

“I will, Mom. I promise you.”

There was a strange silence on the other end.

Then she whispered, “I’m proud of you, son.”

The call disconnected.

Nathan stared at his phone.

Something about her voice troubled him, but before he could call back, his assistant rushed into the room.

“Mr. Eastwood! The banks have issued a formal declaration of default. The company’s assets are being seized, and the creditors are demanding that the family mansion be surrendered.”

Nathan’s blood ran cold.

The family mansion.

His mother’s home.

The place where his father had raised him, where every corner held memories of a life that now seemed to be disappearing before his eyes.

“Get my car ready.”

“Sir, where are you going?”

“To my mother.”

He snatched his jacket from the chair and headed for the elevators.

Behind him, the television mounted on the boardroom wall continued broadcasting the news.

EASTWOOD DYNASTY COLLAPSES: BILLIONAIRE HEIR FACES FINANCIAL RUIN.

Nathan didn’t look back.

He had no idea that while he was racing toward his mother, the woman he loved most in the world was about to collapse.

And when he reached her, nothing would ever be the same again.