Chapter 6 - The Unraveling
Wendy Vance finally found her voice, though it cracked with hysterical indignation. "This is outrageous! You can't just break into a private residence and threaten my family! Do you know who we are?"
Noah turned his cold gray eyes onto her.
"You are Wendy Vance," Noah said coldly. "Born Wendy Miller in Queens. Your father ran a fraudulent insurance firm that went bankrupt in 1994, leaving eighty families without pensions. You married Arthur because he had stolen enough Sterling money to buy this estate."
Wendy gasped, stepping back into the shadow of the fireplace.
"Flora," Noah said, extending his hand to me. "Pack your things."
"She isn't going anywhere!" Isaac shouted, trying to muster his remaining courage as he stepped between Noah and me. "She’s my wife! We have a marriage contract!"
Leo Sterling moved so fast Isaac didn't even have time to raise his hands.
Leo caught Isaac by the front of his custom tuxedo jacket, lifting him off his feet and slamming him against the mahogany dining table. The birthday cake overturned, smearing gold icing across Isaac’s expensive shirt.
"Touch her again," Leo growled into Isaac’s face, "and I will personally disassemble every bone in your hands."
"Leo, stop," I said, stepping forward.
Leo didn't let go immediately. He stared into Isaac’s terrified eyes for three long seconds before dropping him onto the floor like a sack of trash.
Isaac lay on his back, gasping for air, his custom suit ruined with cake icing and dirt from the floor.
Clover Bennett, who was still standing near the archway leading to the foyer, tried to slip out quietly toward the front doors.
"Miss Bennett," Marcus called out, his voice cutting through the quiet room.
Clover froze, her hand hovering over the door handle.
"Your father’s firm, Bennett Development," Marcus continued, flipping through a page in his ledger. "They rely entirely on sub-contracts issued by Vance Global. Effective at midnight, those sub-contracts are voided under federal asset seizure warrants."
Clover turned around, her face pale, her hands shaking. "What? No... my father has nothing to do with this!"
"Your father should have taught you not to sleep with married men whose brothers own the bank holding his mortgage," Marcus said flatly.
Julian picked up the legal folder from the table and tossed it onto Arthur Vance’s lap.
"You have twelve hours to hand over the controlling shares of Vance Construction to Flora," Julian said. "If you refuse, the Department of Justice receives the structural concrete reports at eight o'clock tomorrow morning."
May you like
Arthur collapsed into a heavy leather chair beside the hearth, holding the folder with trembling hands. "You... you planned this."
"No, Arthur," Noah said, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me against his side. "We came here to protect our sister. You provided the ammunition yourself."
