The Thorne Heiress Unveiling Shadow novel Chapter 6

The Gulfstream G800 descended through the clouds with a barely perceptible hum, a stark contrast to the rattling journey in the pickup truck.

Through the window, Evelyn saw not a commercial runway, but a perfectly manicured landing strip cut into a sprawling coastal landscape. This was not an airport; it was a private entryway.

As the jet taxied to a halt, she could see three figures standing near a black, bespoke Rolls-Royce Phantom, waiting patiently on the tarmac.

The door opened, and Harrison, the majordomo, bowed. "They've been waiting for you, Miss Evelyn."

Evelyn stepped out into the crisp, salt-tinged air of the Hamptons. The scent of the sea, clean and vast, was the first thing that truly felt like freedom.

Her mother, Lillian Thorne, was the first to move. She was an elegant woman with kind eyes that held the ghosts of eighteen years of sorrow. She didn't run or cry out, but moved with a quiet urgency, wrapping her arms around Evelyn in an embrace that was both fierce and fragile.

"You're home," Lillian whispered, her voice thick with emotion. "You're finally home."

Her father, Arthur Thorne, a man who commanded boardrooms with an iron will, placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. His face was a stoic mask, but his eyes were glistening with unshed tears. "Welcome home, Evelyn."

Evelyn listened, understanding the unspoken lesson.

"The Suttons," Lillian continued, her voice gentle but firm, "mistake wealth for worth. They collect things—cars, jewels, social connections—to prove their value to the world. A Thorne knows their value is intrinsic. It comes from our name, our integrity, and our blood. It is something that can never be bought, and never truly be taken away."

Lillian gave her hand a squeeze. "You, my dear, are blood of Thorne. You endured, too. And now, you are home."

As the Rolls-Royce glided through the imposing iron gates and up the long, winding drive, Evelyn looked at the steadfast manor against the backdrop of the endless ocean. For the first time in eighteen years, the suffocating feeling in her chest began to ease. This wasn't a cage. This was a fortress. And for the first time, she felt safe.