The Heiress of Shadows

ones, sharp jawline, and eyes the color of stormy skies demanded attention. Her dark, lustrous hair, always seemingly caught in a gentle breeze, framed a face

. It was woven into her very being. She moved through the world with the effortless grace of someone born to it-not in

childhood was spent amidst silk-covered walls and marble halls, her lullabies the soft murmurs of Milanese summers and the rustle of tulle backstage at runway shows. She had once

liance, had raised her to see past glitter and excess. "True beauty," he had often said, sketching with one hand while holding h

Moretti's storied history. While her peers were still stumbling through internships or relying on family connections to land magazine features, Val

d power do not shield

re to the story-everything shifted. The world that had once felt solid beneath her feet began to crack. Grief, s

hidden behind oversized sunglasses, she had played the grieving widow with Oscar-worthy finesse. To the world, she was the grieving second wife, too fragil

harm. In public, she had been gracious, even warm. In private, she had kept a polite distance, always careful never to overstep-but also never to bond. Their r

e-attending meetings uninvited, voicing opinions on branding decisions, offering to "help" Valeria manage the transition. But soon, it turned into o

there w

serpent in silk. Envious, cunning, and cold. Gianna had grown up alongside Valeria, but never quite in step with her. While Valeria was in the spotl

friendship had been met with condescension or veiled jabs. Gianna had always wanted what Va

lture circling a wounded prey-waiting, calcul

endas. The board was growing restless, some members whispering that perhaps Valeria wasn't experienced enough to lead the company a

And Valeria had no idea just h

e mist-covered water. The view had always brought her peace, but today it felt like a painted illusion-too perfect, too still. B

other message from the legal team. Another board m

gnore

o the past, but to the future. To the growing sense that she was being ma

opposition. It was the betrayal by those closest to her. Ivana, who had shared her father's bed. Giann

ress leaks designed to humiliate her. Most damning of all, she remembered the moment she realized someone had altere

ry to herself. Trust w

ing. A coup, perhaps. A scandal. A hostile takeover. Whatever it was, it was being carefully orchestrated. And

Moretti did

ce, and with fire in her veins. If they thought sh

tate echoed with silence and memory, even Valeria sometimes allowed herself to feel the weight of it all. The l

through her father's old study now hers pausing only briefly to glance at the framed photo on the wall: a candid shot of the tw

ightly, as if it could

spered. "And I won't let t

assistant appeared in the doorway, table

ou need to see," she

e tablet and re

ti? CEO Valeria Moretti Faces B

w tigh

r had