At my birthday party, my husband tied me to a ceiling beam and whipped me thirty times because I had stained his mistress’s dress. “Maybe now you’ll learn your place,” he laughed while everyone watched. I didn’t cry. When they finally cut me down, I picked up my phone and called my five gangster brothers. “Make his entire family beg for mercy,” I whispered. Then the front gates suddenly slammed shut.

Noah walked over to where I stood. He gently lifted my designer coat and draped it over my bleeding shoulders, wrapping it securely around me to keep out the chill night air.

"It's over, Flora," Noah said softly. "They will never touch you again."

I turned to look at my brothers. Five men who could tear down financial empires and bend governments to their will, standing around me with eyes full of fierce, unwavering love.

"Thank you," I whispered, tears finally swelling in my eyes—not from pain, but from the immense relief of being free.

"Don't thank us, little sister," Leo smiled, reaching out to ruffle my hair just as he used to when we were children. "The Sterlings don't let anyone bleed without paying the bill."

"Where do we go now?" I asked.

Marcus closed his laptop with a sharp click. "Home. To the Sterling estate in Bel-Air. We've already hired the best medical specialists in California to treat your back. Tomorrow, you take your seat as Chairwoman of the Sterling Foundation."

We walked out of the ruined Vance mansion together.

Outside, the cool ocean breeze hit my face. The black iron gates of the estate stood wide open, and the flashing police lights disappeared down the winding drive into the dark night.

As I stepped into the back of Noah’s armored SUV, I took one last look at the Vance mansion. The house that had been my prison for three long years was now completely dark.