Chapter 217 How Much Have You Hidden

One Hour Earlier

The Winthrop Estate

After dinner, Alpha Victor took a slow walk through the mansion’s grand hall. Rain tapped against the tall windows, and the warm chandelier light reflected off the polished marble floor.

As he passed the front hall, he heard the housekeeper muttering under her breath.

"Miss Serena’s envelope has been sitting here for a week. She still hasn’t come by. She used to visit every other day."

Alpha Victor had noticed Serena’s absence as well. She had been unusually quiet lately, which was completely out of character for her.

"What envelope?" he asked.

The housekeeper turned. "A legal envelope, Alpha. I don’t know what’s inside."

Alpha Victor held out his hand. "Bring it to me."

She hurried over and placed the envelope in his palm.

It was plain and unmarked. Alpha Victor tore it open and pulled out three neatly printed pages.

The words at the top stopped him cold.

LEGAL NOTICE

The notice had been sent by Eira Crawford through Boreal & Vance, Attorneys at Law. It demanded the full return of the marital assets Serena had received from Eira and Sebastian Hale.

The amount exceeded one hundred million dollars.

Alpha Victor’s vision blurred. He swayed, and the housekeeper quickly caught his arm. Her face drained of color when she saw the letterhead.

"Alpha, please sit down. I’ll call your doctor."

"No doctor." Alpha Victor steadied himself against the back of a chair. His hand trembled around the papers. "Call the driver. Bring Serena here. Now."

"Alpha, your blood pressure..."

"Now."

His voice echoed through the mansion.

Marcus and Olivia stepped out of the adjoining sitting room. Alpha Victor pressed the legal notice against his chest and walked toward his study.

"When Serena gets here, send her straight in."

"Yes, Alpha," the housekeeper said.

Alpha Victor disappeared behind the study doors.

Marcus watched him go. "One of these days, Serena is going to bring this whole family down with her."

Olivia folded her arms. "And whose fault is that? If our son had half her common sense, your father wouldn’t have put all his faith in Serena."

"So this is my fault now?"

"Who else’s would it be?" Olivia shot back. "All that family prestige doesn’t pay the bills. We built half of what we have ourselves."

"Father has money."

"Money he keeps locked away as if he plans to take it with him."

Marcus gave her a tired look. "He doesn’t spend it."

Olivia fell silent.

They both knew Alpha Victor would rather watch the family struggle than touch the fortune he had spent a lifetime building.

Twenty minutes later, Serena stepped through the front door and brushed the rain from her coat. She gave Marcus and Olivia a polite nod.

Olivia pointed toward the hallway.

"He’s in the study."

Serena’s stomach tightened. The housekeeper had warned her over the phone, and the driver had said Alpha Victor looked worse than he had the last time she had seen him.

She glanced at the closed study doors, took a breath, and went inside.

Alpha Victor stood behind his desk with the legal notice in his hand. Before Serena could speak, he threw the papers across the room.

She caught them against her chest.

"Read it," he said. "Then tell me what the hell this is."

Serena looked down at the first page. Her face went pale.

"Grandfather, I’m sorry, but I swear I didn’t know." She looked up quickly. "When I came home, I didn’t know Sebastian was married. He told me the marriage was temporary and that the divorce was already being handled."

Alpha Victor’s eyes narrowed. "And the three hundred thousand dollars he sent you every month?"

"He called it a private investment."

"It wasn’t."

Serena said nothing.

"Eira’s attorneys traced the money back to joint accounts and assets held jointly by Sebastian and Eira. The monthly payments were only part of it. The penthouse, the cars, the jewelry, and the investment accounts are all listed here."

His voice rose.

"The total is over one hundred million dollars."

"I never asked him for any of that."

"But you accepted it."

"I thought he was giving it to me."

"You thought a married man was giving you over a hundred million dollars out of love?"

Serena’s face tightened. "I didn’t know he was married when I first came home. He told me Eira was only his wife on paper. He said he was going to end it."

The truth was less flattering. Serena had chosen to believe Alpha Sebastian because believing him was easier than admitting she had become involved with a married Alpha.

Alpha Victor stared at her.

"You told me Sebastian married Eira to lure you back."

"I found that out later," Serena said quickly. "Grandfather, this is Eira’s doing. She has always resented me. She has always hated you too. She is trying to punish me by dragging the whole family into this."

"Serena!"

Alpha Victor’s roar shook the windows.

"How much have you kept from me? Do you have any idea what this notice means? If Eira files suit, every transfer will be examined. The accounts, the property records, the purchase contracts. Everything."

Serena’s lips parted, but no answer came.

"If Sebastian loved you," Alpha Victor continued, "why didn’t he make you his mate? Why didn’t he mark you? Why didn’t he claim you in front of the Pack?"

Serena’s face burned. Angry tears filled her eyes.

"That’s his problem. Yelling at me won’t fix it."

For once, Alpha Victor did not soften.

"How many times did I tell you to walk away from Sebastian Hale? I told you to build a future with Vincent Crawford and form an alliance with the Crawford Pack. Did you hear a word I said?"

Serena looked away.

Alpha Victor knew how the research world worked. Talent could get someone through the door, but talent alone would not keep them there. A successful career required timing, funding, connections, and the nerve to take an opportunity before someone else did.

He had spent years clearing a path for Serena. With Vincent Crawford at her side, the Crawford Pack would have supported her work and strengthened the Winthrop family’s position.

Marcus was Alpha Victor’s son, but Alpha Victor had never trusted him with the family’s research empire.

Serena was the grandchild he had groomed as his successor.

She had returned from four quiet years abroad and immediately dragged the Winthrop name into scandal.

Alpha Victor had been willing to give her everything she needed: money, contacts, influence, and a place in the family business.

She had traded all of it for Alpha Sebastian.

"If this becomes public, what happens to my reputation?" Alpha Victor demanded. "If Eira takes this to court, what kind of future do you think you’ll have left?"

Serena had heard enough.

The fear and guilt disappeared from her face. So did the innocent act.

"If I stay with Sebastian and Eira forces us to repay everything, he won’t let us end up with nothing."

Alpha Victor went still.

"Us?"

The word hung between them.