Chapter 16
“Kimberly!” Ronald Jordan embraced his daughter, tears streaming down his weathered face. After she’d left for England, he’d never stopped worrying about her. He’d sent money every month, only to discover her account remained untouched. It was then he learned she’d secretly joined a medical aid program in conflict zones. He’d spent countless sleepless nights imagining the dangers she faced—bombs, disease, violence. Then word reached him that Jayden had kidnapped her back to Boston. The mansion’s security was impenetrable; his multiple attempts to breach it had failed. In desperation, he’d set the calculated fire as a diversion.
“Kim, I was wrong—so terribly wrong,” Ronald sobbed, his voice thick with remorse. “I should never have doubted you or put you through such hell.” He’d once believed she was sexually promiscuous and jealous of Agatha. Now he understood the devastating truth: his daughter had been the victim all along. Jayden and Agatha had systematically destroyed her reputation, her sense of safety, and nearly her life itself. Ronald had sworn to make them pay—to finally deliver the justice his daughter deserved.
After their emotional reunion, Kimberly’s eyes clouded with worry. “Dad, Jayden is dangerous. He won’t let this go. He’ll come after all of you for helping me…” After months of captivity, she understood the true extent of Jayden’s obsession. His cruelty and fixation went far beyond normal human behavior.
Olivia squeezed Kimberly’s shoulder reassuringly. “Your dad’s been ten steps ahead, Kim. While planning your rescue, he’s also been systematically dismantling Charlemet Industries. The whole sordid story is already trending online. Jayden’s empire is crashing down as we speak.”
That night, the twisted saga of the Charlemet and Jordan families exploded across social media.
Phoenix 15.
Chapter 16
As details emerged about what Jayden and Agatha had done to Kimberly—the orchestrated bullying, the leaked sex tape, the warehouse torture, the kidnapping—public outrage reached a fever pitch. Charlemet Industries’ stock plummeted as investors fled. Jayden, unable to handle the pressure, collapsed and was hospitalized for an existing condition that had flared up under stress. He drifted in and out of consciousness, but consistently murmured one name: “Kimberly.”
On his third day in the hospital, he opened his eyes to see a female figure standing by his bed. Half-delirious, he grabbed her hand with desperate strength. “Kim, you came. You finally came back to me…”
“Look again. I’m not Kimberly.”
Jayden’s vision cleared to reveal Agatha standing over him. She was nearly unrecognizable. Her once-perfect skin was dull and blemished, her cheeks hollow, her hair unkempt. She looked a decade older than when he’d last seen her.
“You destroyed me, Jayden,” she hissed, hatred burning in her sunken eyes. “Do you have any idea what my life became after you humiliated me?” After being expelled from the Jordan household, she and her mother had fallen victim to an international investment scam, losing what little money they’d managed to take with them. Her mother, unable to accept her dramatic fall from socialite to pariah, had turned to gambling in desperation, accumulating massive debts with loan sharks. When Agatha approached former college friends for help, they’d instead taken advantage of her vulnerability, subjecting her to days of abuse. Throughout her ordeal, they’d mocked her as “the homewrecker’s daughter”—the very insult she’d once used against Kimberly. The overnight plunge from privilege to degradation had broken something fundamental in Agatha’s psyche. For months, she’d fantasized about only one thing: taking Jayden with her into death. Today, she’d finally managed to slip past hospital security.
Phoenix Nirvana: She Pirouetted Through the Flames They Set
“Come die with me, Jayden,” she whispered, her voice eerily gentle. “Didn’t you say you loved me once? Let’s continue our love story in hell.” She pulled a knife from behind her back with frightening speed. Jayden reacted instinctively, blocking the blade. They struggled violently, stumbling toward the open window. Agatha lunged forward, trying to push Jayden through. He sidestepped at the last second, and her momentum carried her forward. Unable to stop herself, she tumbled through the opening. The sickening impact echoed through the courtyard below. Agatha Jordan was dead on impact.