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But here was the beautiful twist: Verdant understood the farm’s value depended on my face and my story. As part of the sale agreement, I retained complete operational control. Officially, I became Managing Director of the estate under an ironclad contract guaranteeing me a $185,000 annual salary plus a three-percent equity share of all net profits.
I no longer owned the dirt.
A multi-billion-dollar corporation did.
And Verdant’s corporate security division did not tolerate trespassers.
The following two days became psychological warfare at its finest. I ignored Garrett’s threatening voicemails. I ignored my father’s condescending emails telling me to “be a good sister and do the right thing.” Instead, I calmly worked in my lavender fields, watching the purple waves sway beneath the wind while a dangerous thrill built inside me.
Then the deadline arrived.
July 14, 2024.
I stood at the edge of the driveway wearing a fitted blazer over my work jeans while the morning mist lifted off the fields. Right on schedule, I heard the deep rumble of a diesel engine. A huge moving truck rolled onto my gravel road, followed closely by my mother’s Mercedes and my father’s spotless Audi.
Garrett was driving the truck.
He slammed it into park and jumped out wearing a smug grin, holding a stack of flattened cardboard boxes like he genuinely expected to throw me into the street. My parents stepped out beside him like victorious conquerors arriving to claim spoils.
They marched toward me ready to take everything I loved.
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