Haynes O''Brien''s words tore away thest shreds of pretense between them, leaving both Skyler and Jonathan Williams looking utterly humiliated.


    Skyler stared at Ste Cameron''s hand, his disbelief in on his face.


    "Star, your hand... Does this mean you''ll never y the violin again?"


    Ste nced down at her hand, tightly wrapped in bandages. She nodded softly.


    "That''s right."


    Skyler''s anger red. "Leonard Lerman-how could he..."


    This time, his outrage was genuine.


    He''d never had high hopes for Ste in most areas. He hadn''t even expected much from her musically.


    But discovering her remarkable talent with the violin-better even than Aurora''s— had taken him by surprise, then left him oddly satisfied. After all, Ste was Nora''s daughter. Nora had always been extraordinary. Even without the resources of a powerful family, she''d raised a daughter this gifted.


    When Aurora told him Ste was favored to win the uing violinpetition, Skyler had felt a surge of pride. Atst, the Williams family could boast a daughter who truly excelled at something.


    He''d decided that, since Ste loved the violin so much and shone so brightly in this field, he would support her wholeheartedly. Winning the championship would be a turning point for her career—a perfect prelude to formally weing her back into the Williams family. Having a violin virtuoso at the top of her game would certainly enhance the family''s reputation. The Williams children were, after all, the pride of their generation.


    And now Leonard had destroyed all of that?


    At this moment, Skyler felt a deep, unshakable loathing for Leonard. He could tolerate Leonard''sck of respect for the Williams family, and for the sake of the bigger picture, he''d even been willing to overlook Leonard''s kidnapping of Ste.


    But he could not forgive Leonard for deliberately ruining Ste''s hand.


    If one day Leonard decided the Williams family had wronged Aurora, would he just as recklessly destroy them too?


    Skyler''s voice was low and cold. "Jonathan, spread the word. Starting today, we''ll gradually reduce our dealings with the Lerman family. Find new partners to rece them immediately."


    Jonathan instinctively protested, "Dad, don''t act rashly-"


    "I''m not being rash!" Skyler cut him off sharply. "Does Leonard really think the Williams Group will copse without him? We don''t need business partners who would harm Star!"


    Jonathan sighed in frustration. “Dad,


    I''m not trying to stop you, but this kind of decision has to go through a shareholder vote. Right now, the Lerman family is one of our most important partners. We can''t dissolve the partnership on a whim."


    l.ne


    Across the room, Haynes and Abby Murphy watched the father and son with thinly veiled contempt. They''de to visit, but hadn''t even bothered to find out the true extent of Ste''s injuries. Their promises not to let Leonard off the book were empty words, the kind people say when they''re buying time.


    Sheer hypocrisy.


    At that moment, Haynes finally understood why Ste had chosen to distance herself from the Williams


    family, even at the cost of being ne


    ridiculed for not being "good enough." She''d given up the privilege of being the heiress to a powerful family, just to get away from them.


    Skyler and Jonathan Williams simply weren''t worthy.


    Just then, Ste spoke up.


    "There''s no need for you and Jonathan to trouble yourselves over Leonard," she said softly.


    Both men fell silent and turned to look at her.


    Meeting their gaze, Ste continued, "Since my career as a violinist is over, I suppose I have some free time. Maybe it''s time I joined the Williams Group-try my hand at something new."