Chapter 4 - The 6:00 AM Eviction
At 6:00 AM the following morning, the morning sun broke over the glass towers of downtown Los Angeles.
Inside the grand, three-story penthouse on Wilshire Boulevard where Eleanor Sterling lived, the scent of fresh espresso filled the marble kitchen.
Julian, Eleanor, and Chloe were sitting around the kitchen island, looking exhausted, furious, and disheveled after spending six hours being interrogated by hospital internal affairs and police investigators.
“It’s fine,” Julian said, downing a shot of espresso, his eyes bloodshot. “My lawyer, Richard, is meeting with the magistrate at eight. We’ll file a civil emergency injunction for temporary custody of the twins based on postpartum psychosis risk. We’ll claim Sarah bribed the nurse.”
Eleanor smoothed her silk robe, her face contorted in vicious satisfaction. “That orphan girl thinks she played a clever trick. She has no money for legal fees, Julian. Once we freeze her access to your joint checking account this morning, she won't even be able to pay for a private room.”
Chloe smirked, flipping through her phone. “I’ve already edited the video clip, Julian. I cropped out the part where she asked for the video. It just shows her screaming at your mother while wearing a torn gown. It’s going viral on our private investment board right now.”
Suddenly, the private elevator doors at the back of the foyer opened with a sharp DING.
Four men in immaculate dark charcoal suits stepped out into the foyer, led by a silver-haired woman carrying a leather document case.
Julian stood up, his brow furrowing in anger. “What the hell is this? Who authorized you to use my private elevator?”
The silver-haired woman stepped forward, pulling a gold-embossed legal card from her pocket.
“My name is Victoria Sterling—no relation to your family, thankfully,” she announced smoothly. “I am senior litigation partner at Montgomery, Vance & Hayes. I represent Sarah Montgomery-Sterling.”
Julian laughed mockingly. “Montgomery? She’s an orphan from Scranton! She doesn't have a law firm!”
Victoria didn't smile. She opened her document case, pulled out a thick, red-stamped court filing, and laid it flat on the marble island right next to Julian’s coffee cup.
“This is an Emergency Ex Parte Notice of Default, Eviction, and Asset Seizure,” Victoria declared clearly.
Eleanor scoffed. “Eviction? This is my penthouse! I bought this twenty years ago!”
“Correction, Mrs. Sterling,” Victoria replied, tracing her finger over a certified land registry document attached to the back. “Your late husband purchased the structure of this building in 2004. However, the underlying ground lease for the land upon which this sixty-story tower stands is held exclusively by The Montgomery Heritage Land Trust.”
Julian’s face went stiff. “The Montgomery Trust? That’s a hundred-billion-dollar commercial real estate fund!”
“Correct, Mr. Sterling,” Victoria said, looking him dead in the eye. “And your wife, Sarah Montgomery, is the sole living trustee and primary beneficiary of that fund.”
Victoria pulled three more red folders from her case and tossed them onto the table.
“As of 5:00 AM this morning, Sarah Montgomery has declared Sterling Global Capital in default of its ground lease at 500 Grand Avenue due to moral turpitude and corporate fraud. Your offices are currently being locked out by federal marshals.”
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Julian gasped, dropping his coffee cup. It shattered on the marble floor, dark liquid splashing across his expensive leather shoes.
“Furthermore,” Victoria added with a lethal, calm smile, “this penthouse sits on land with an expired thirty-year lease renewal option that Sarah has personally declined to extend. You have precisely sixty minutes to pack one suitcase each and vacate these premises.”
