Tesmee's tasks were far from over. Her mission to usurp the Hale empire remained incomplete.
She arrived home, her mind sharp with purpose. After a quick shower, she donned her black tracksuit — the unofficial uniform of her private wars — and headed back out, driving to the cargo area to survey her next move.
Leaning casually against her car, Tesmee narrowed her eyes, deep in thought. A sly smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth, but inside, caution tightened her chest. Tyson's retaliation would be brutal, of that she was certain. One wrong step, and she wouldn't walk away from this alive.
Still, Tesmee's mind raced with strategies. Tyson's just a man, she mused. Intimidation is his weapon. Manipulation is his weakness. I know his strengths... but if I can turn them against him, he'll doubt his own power. That's where he'll fall.
Her plan wasn't fully formed yet — but Tesmee trusted herself. Time, and a little patience, would reveal the cracks in his armor.
The next morning, the Hale family sat at their grand breakfast table, the heavy clink of silverware the only sound in the room. Outside, dark gray skies loomed, mirroring the thick, grim atmosphere indoors. Tyson, seated at the head of the table, finally broke the silence, his voice low and steady as he recounted the devastation at the warehouse.
The news ignited immediate rage. Tyson's brother slammed his fist onto the table, demanding Tesmee's blood by nightfall.
Before anyone else could speak, Ashley erupted. Her fork and knife crashed against her plate — one clattering to the floor — as she stood, her voice sharp and trembling.
"No one will lay a hand on Tesmee!" she cried, her body shaking with fury. "I don't care about your bloody organizations. Tesmee will live."
The room froze, the sudden fracture in the family exposed like a raw wound.
Tyson rose slowly from his seat. His fist smashed into the table, the sound like a gunshot through the tense air. "Enough!" he barked. Order, he demanded — and received.
He picked up his wine glass with deadly calm, fixing Ashley in his icy gaze.
"You're a Hale now," he said, his voice cutting. "Tesmee chose to challenge me — your husband. That makes her your enemy too."
Ashley's face crumpled, the fight draining from her as Tyson pressed forward, relentless.
"You need to choose where your loyalty lies. With your family... or against us. If you can't, maybe you should leave — without Tywin."
Ashley gasped as if she'd been struck. Tyson's words, cold and calculated, hung in the air, sealing the walls around her.
Tears welled in Ashley's eyes as she whispered, "Tyson... how can you ask me to choose between the people I love? Could you choose between our son and your mother?"
Tyson's face darkened, any trace of mercy obliterated.
"Don't you dare turn this around on me!" he thundered, his voice shaking the table. "Make your decision now — or I'll make it for you!"
Ashley stumbled backward, her knees giving way, and sank into her chair. The heat in the room seemed to close in on her, suffocating her.
"We're not done," Tyson said grimly. "Hales don't run from their enemies. We confront them. We make the hard choices."
Ashley's world crumbled around her. In her mind, flashes of memory overwhelmed her — Tesmee shielding her at school, Tesmee holding her hand through heartbreak, Tesmee laughing with her through every hardship. Tesmee wasn't heartless — she fought for justice, for fairness, and for those without a voice.
But Tyson was her everything: her husband, her protector, the father of her child, the future she had chosen.
The weight of the decision crushed her chest, nearly making her dizzy. No matter who she chose, the other would be destroyed. The love of one would turn into hatred — and there would be no forgiveness.
Ashley swallowed back a sob, hands trembling in her lap. The words she was about to speak would change everything forever.
"I'll make my choice," she said finally, her voice breaking, "but... does it have to be now? Does it all really depend on me?"
Tyson's eyes narrowed.
"You're the bridge between two enemies, Ashley," he said quietly. "Of course it depends on you. And remember — you're choosing not just for yourself. You're choosing for our son."
The world seemed to fall silent around her as Ashley bowed her head, drawing in a breath so deep it hurt.
The next words she spoke would seal their fates.