Elena Avalor... or maybe Elena Stone.
I didn't start with confidence.
I started with a cracked laptop, a kitchen table, and Richard's voice in my head saying:
"Learn the rules. Then bend them until they break."
So I Googled. I read. I stayed up all night watching videos on pitch decks, tech start-ups, investor psychology, and market strategy.
I didn't sleep much.
Didn't eat much.
Because for the first time… I wanted something that wasn't love.
I wanted power.
The company Richard gave me was more skeleton than structure.
One office. Three developers. No clear product.
The staff didn't trust me. Why would they? I was "that girl he gave everything to" right before he died.
They thought I was a soft story.
They didn't know I was a war story.
I didn't introduce myself as Elena Avalor anymore.
I became Elena Stone.
Clean. Sharp. Untraceable.
And every time I walked into that office, I reminded myself:
"You are not here to be liked. You are here to rebuild yourself."
First win?
A small app we launched — nothing flashy. Just a simple AI tool for small business analytics.
It flopped… at first.
Then, three weeks later, a little furniture brand in New Jersey bought the license.
Then two more.
And suddenly, we were making just enough to keep the lights on.
I celebrated alone that night with cheap wine and peanut butter toast.
It wasn't glamour.
But it was mine.
Dominic showed up two months later.
He was tall. Quiet. Deadly smart.
He used to work security for Richard, but after his death, no one renewed his contract.
I hired him out of instinct — not just to protect me but to believe in me.
"You sure you're ready for this?" he asked on his first day.
"No," I said. "But I'm too angry to quit."
He didn't smile; he just nodded. "Then we'll build. One brick at a time."
The office began to feel alive again.
We rebranded the company: SableTech — after the black, strong-furred animal that survives in harsh weather.
It fit.
Because I was no longer trying to be soft; I was trying to survive winter.
Logan?
He was still nowhere.
But I heard whispers — his company was struggling to land younger tech clients; investors were pulling back.
They were rebranding, hiring new faces — shiny, polished replacements.
Including Sierra Blake.
The woman Madeline approved of.
The woman they called "his perfect match."
And the woman now flaunting a three-year-old son who bore Logan's last name.
I didn't care.
Or at least, I tried not to.
Until I saw a photo of the child by accident… and my hand trembled.
He had green eyes.
Logan's eyes were brown.
"Stop it," I told myself. "It doesn't matter. Nothing about them matters anymore."
But a crack had formed — one I couldn't ignore forever.
One night, months later,
I stood in the middle of my tiny apartment, surrounded by open documents and cold takeout.
Dominic leaned in my doorway, watching me drown in spreadsheets.
"You okay?"
I didn't answer.
He stepped in and placed a hand gently on the back of my chair.
"You've done more in eight months than most do in eight years."
I shook my head. "Not enough. It's never enough."
He knelt beside me.
"Elena. Look at me."
I did.
"You've already become the kind of woman they tried to erase."
My eyes burned.
He stood up and handed me a folder.
"Investor meeting. Three days. You're pitching."
I swallowed. "I'm not ready."
"You were never supposed to be ready; that's why they never saw you coming."
Present Day — Elena Stone
I stare at my calendar: meeting with CrossBridge board members; final stage of the takeover. HunterTech won't recover from this one.
Dominic walks in and slides a coffee toward me. "You good?"
I smile faintly. "Remember the first time I pitched?"
He grins. "You said your knees were shaking."
"They were."
"But your voice wasn't."
We both laugh quietly.
Because now…
I pitch without flinching.
I lead without apology.
I rise without permission.
And they?
They have no idea what's coming.
But they'll feel it.