Bailey knew exactly how much Marie had sacrificed for Ramos Corporation, and there was no way he could just watch it fall apart. Still, the thought of stepping in to save Reese... well, that left a bitter taste in his mouth. He thought about how Reese had treated him before, and resentment simmered beneath the surface. For a while, he just didn''t know what to do.


    "Dad, Bailey?" Sofia''s voice floated in as she walked in with a bowl of fruit. "What''s got you two so tense?"


    Bailey''s face lit up when he saw her. "You''re just in time. Come help us figure out what to do."


    He trusted Sofia''s instincts, so he quickly exined what had gone down at the conference.


    Sofia''s eyes sparkled with mischief as she listened, then she smiled. "I might have an idea. Not sure if it''ll work, though."


    She looked at her dad and said, "You don''t want to watch Ramos Corporation go down the drain, but you also don''t want to bail Reese out and let her think she can always rely on us. She''ll just get even more out of hand.


    "So why not just buy out Ramos Corporation while we still can?”


    Bailey stopped in his tracks and looked at her. "You mean, acquire it?"


    Sofia nodded, her voice steady. "Zach already cut off their funding, so Ramos Corporation is basically running on fumes. If we offer enough money and promise the shareholders their interests are protected, they''re not going to say no."


    “Better that Ramos Corporation stays in our family than gets swallowed up by outsiders."


    Bailey''s eyes brightened. "That''s a solid n."


    When she saw Bailey agree, Sofia''s lips curled into a sly smile.


    This way, Reese would lose everything except her empty title as de''s project manager.


    Bailey thought for a moment, then turned to Hank. "Reese is in way over her head now. She''s got nowhere left to turn."


    "Go talk to her about selling thepany. Tell her if she agrees not to divorce Sebastian and to have another kid, the children can each inherit the Ratcliff family''s legacy and Marie''s. If she does that, I''ll let her keep a share of Ramos Corporation.


    “But if she refuses, she gets nothing. Not a single thing."


    Hank''s eyes lit up. "Got it. I''ll reach out to her right away."


    With Ramos Corporation at stake, Reese would never risk divorcing Sebastian,


    and she might even agree to another child.


    That would tie the Meyer and Ratcliff families together for good.


    Hank shot Sofia a grateful smile.


    "I''ll leave you and Dad to it, then." Sofia was more than satisfied with herself for making Reese''s life harder, and she turned to leave the office.


    She was just about to close the door when Bailey spoke up again. "Hank, reach out to Mr. Marsh. See when we carfmeet with de''s project lead. We need to lock in that deal before anyone else does."


    Sofia froze, her heart racing.


    If Dad and Bailey met de''s project lead, they''d realize it was Reese behind everything. If that happened, not only would the buyout fall


    through, but if Reese brought up the suspicious car ident from years ago, they would definitely start digging.


    She hurried out of the office and called Grace.


    "Mom, Dad and Bailey are about tox find out Reese is de''s project


    lead.


    O worried she get them to


    what happened back


    How are things on your side?"


    On the other end, Grace sounded calm and unbothered, cards shuffling in the background. "Sofia, you''re not a kid anymore. Why are you panicking?"


    "Rx. Alex left Greenville a long time ago. Someone''s keeping an eye on him. Nothing''s going to happen."


    "Even if Reese tries, she''ll never find him."


    Meanwhile, Reese got a call from George.


    "Ms. Meyer, Alex left Greenville with Grace''s people helping him. He''s at Bridger Lake now. Our team is watching him. Do you want us to arrange a meeting?"