The next day, Nadia sat in the grand sitting room, her back straight, every muscle taut with restraint. The air was thick, oppressive, heavy with unspoken words.
Her mother sat beside her, a quiet pillar of support, fingers lightly tracing soothing circles on Nadia's knee. Ayla, younger but fierce, perched on the armrest like a soldier ready to pounce, her glare directed at their father.
And their father…
Baba stood near the grand fireplace, his face unreadable, hands clasped behind his back. When he finally spoke, his voice was steady but laced with something deeper.
"Living in the penthouse is no longer safe."
Nadia's fingers curled into her lap. "So you're ordering me back home?"
"Not an order. A necessity." His dark eyes settled on her. "The threats against you are escalating. The rumors are growing. If you stay there alone, you're making yourself an easy target."
"I can handle it."
"You shouldn't have to."
She hated the way his words made her chest tighten.
Ayla scoffed. "So that's it? You drag her back here like a child and—what? Pretend nothing happened?"
"Ayla," their mother said softly.
"No, Mama," Ayla snapped. "This is ridiculous! Nadia is being attacked, and instead of backing her up, we're just running? Letting them do this to her? Sure we told her to come back, but we can't just hide, what of her honour"
Baba's gaze flickered to Ayla before returning to Nadia. "I am backing her up. But the board—" He exhaled. "They are growing restless. Investors are pulling back. If something isn't done, the company itself will suffer."
Nadia's pulse pounded in her ears. "What are you saying?"
A long, heavy silence.
Then—
"I'm stepping in as CEO."
The words hit harder than any blow.
Ayla shot to her feet. "You're what?"
Baba's voice remained steady. "Temporarily. Until this is resolved."
Ayla scoffed. "Oh, that's rich. You know it's a setup, Baba. You know she's innocent, and you're still taking everything away from her?"
"This is not a punishment," Baba said sharply. "It's a safeguard." His eyes softened as he looked at Nadia. "You are fighting against something larger than you realize. If I don't act now, you may not have a company left to fight for."
"I'm sorry Nadia, but untill this is rectified you're no longer the CEO if Al-Fayed group"
Nadia's throat felt tight. "And if I clear my name?"
Baba nodded. "Then the company is yours again, but you need to do it in three months."
"And if I don't?"
His silence was answer enough.
Ayla's hands curled into fists. "This isn't fair."
But Nadia barely heard her.
Three months.
She had three months to fix this.
Three months to fight back.
Three months before she lost everything.
She took a slow breath, pushing down the ache in her chest. Then she stood.
"Then I'll clear my name."
__
Sara leaned back in her chair, a smirk dancing on her lips as she swirled the wine in her glass. Across from her, Kareem sat with a matching smirk, the two of them reveling in their latest success.
"It worked," she mused.
Kareem chuckled, resting an elbow on the table. "Of course it did. She's out. Her father's taken the reins. She's scrambling."
Sara tapped a manicured nail against the glass. "Not enough. Not yet. We need something bigger. Something that won't just shake her confidence—but break her entirely."
Kareem raised a brow. "You have a plan?"
Sara leaned forward, eyes gleaming. "We plant evidence. Real evidence."
Kareem's smirk deepened. "Go on."
"A fake financial trail," Sara continued. "Leaked documents showing that Nadia has been embezzling company funds. Not just a little—millions. Enough to make it impossible for her to talk her way out of it."
Kareem let out a low whistle. "That's bold. Even for you."
Sara's smile widened. "And then, we make sure those documents reach the authorities. A full-blown investigation. Fraud. Money laundering. Something so massive that even if she screams innocence, it won't matter. The press will have a field day. The board will be forced to remove her permanently."
Kareem tapped his fingers against the table, considering. "And her father?"
Sara shrugged. "If he wants to save the company, he'll have no choice but to distance himself from her. He's ruthless when it comes to business. She won't just lose her title—she'll lose everything."
Kareem exhaled slowly, shaking his head in amusement. "You really want to ruin her, huh?"
Sara's eyes darkened. "She humiliated me. She took everything that should have been mine. This isn't about ruining her." She smiled. "It's about erasing her."
A slow smirk spread across Kareem's face.
"Then let's do it."
Their glasses clinked.
A promise of Nadia's destruction.
Kareem leaned back, stretching his arms over the back of the sofa. "You know… with her out of the way, the Al-Fayeed empire is vulnerable."
Sara tilted her head. "How so?"
"Her father is only stepping in temporarily. If he's forced to step down… the board will be scrambling for a buyer. That's where Aslan comes in."
Understanding flickered in Sara's eyes.
"Aslan's Conglomerate could buy out the shares," she murmured.
"Not just buy them out," Kareem corrected. "Absorb them. Make Al-Fayeed Holdings disappear entirely. A hostile takeover. Once we're done with Nadia, her father will have no choice but to negotiate—if not for himself, then for his shareholders."
Sara's lips curved into something dangerous. "So not only do we destroy her, we erase the Al-Fayeed name from the business world altogether?"
Kareem leaned closer, voice a low murmur. "And we get filthy rich in the process."
Sara set her glass down, shifting toward him, her eyes gleaming with something dark and knowing. "That's why I like you, Kareem. You don't just think small."
Kareem smirked. "Neither do you."
She slid onto his lap, her arms winding around his neck. "We're going to win."
His hands gripped her waist, pulling her flush against him. "We always do."
She pressed her lips to his ear, voice a slow whisper. "Then let's celebrate."
The rest of the night was lost to the sound of faux victory.