Chap 2
Ethan stared at the screen of his phone as if reality itself had shattered.
The number of live viewers climbed so quickly he could barely process it.
32,000...
58,000...
107,000...
Every second, another notification appeared.
Financial Times Live
National Business News
Global Network Media
Every major news outlet was picking up the broadcast.
His face turned pale.
"No..."
"This isn't possible..."
Victoria stood motionless beneath the crystal chandelier.
She had imagined this moment hundreds of times during the sleepless nights after discovering her husband's betrayal.
Every insult.
Every threat.
Every lie.
Tonight...
The truth would speak for itself.
Eleanor snatched Ethan's phone from his hand.
She looked at the screen.
Then at Victoria.
Her elegant smile disappeared instantly.
"You..."
"You planned this."
Victoria nodded calmly.
"For six months."
Silence filled the room.
Downstairs...
The ballroom had become completely still.
Hundreds of influential guests watched the giant screens in disbelief.
Several board members of Harrington Group stood frozen near the stage.
One elderly investor whispered,
"My God..."
"They're blackmailing her."
Another executive quietly removed the company pin from his jacket.
"I knew something felt wrong after her father's funeral."
Nearby, television reporters immediately began interviewing shocked guests.
Every microphone in the room was now pointed toward the giant screens.
Back upstairs...
Ethan suddenly exploded with rage.
"You think this changes anything?"
He lunged toward Victoria.
Before he could reach her, she took one step backward.
Her hand instinctively protected her unborn child.
"You should stop."
She spoke almost gently.
"It'll only make things worse."
Ethan ignored her.
He grabbed her wrist.
"Turn it off!"
"NOW!"
Victoria looked down at his hand.
Then into his eyes.
"No."
His breathing became heavier.
"You have no idea what you've done!"
Victoria answered quietly.
"I know exactly what I've done."
"I've told the truth."
Eleanor rushed toward the necklace lying on the floor.
She raised her heel.
CRACK!
The diamond shattered beneath her shoe.
Tiny crystals scattered across the marble.
She laughed triumphantly.
"There!"
"No camera!"
"No evidence!"
Victoria smiled.
"You really believe that?"
Eleanor frowned.
Victoria slowly reached into the pocket of her gown.
She removed a small wireless transmitter.
"The camera doesn't store recordings."
"It uploads everything instantly."
She looked toward the ceiling.
"The entire world already has copies."
Downstairs...
A giant headline suddenly appeared across multiple news broadcasts.
LIVE CORPORATE EXTORTION CAUGHT ON CAMERA
Phones rang nonstop throughout the ballroom.
Board members began receiving emergency calls.
Investors opened their laptops.
Stock analysts watched in disbelief.
Within minutes...
The Harrington Group's share price began falling.
Five percent.
Eight percent.
Twelve percent.
Ethan's own phone vibrated continuously.
He looked at the screen.
His Chief Financial Officer.
His legal advisor.
His public relations director.
None of them were calling to help.
They were resigning.
One text message appeared after another.
I quit.
We're pulling our investment.
The Board has called an emergency meeting.
Your accounts have been frozen pending investigation.
His knees nearly gave out.
Everything...
Everything he'd spent years manipulating...
Was collapsing in real time.
Victoria quietly walked toward the scattered legal documents.
She picked up the first page.
Across the top was written:
TRANSFER OF CORPORATE OWNERSHIP
She looked directly at Ethan.
"You wanted me to sign these."
He couldn't answer.
His lips trembled.
Victoria slowly tore the first page in half.
Then another.
And another.
The sound of ripping paper echoed through the enormous bedroom.
Each tear felt like the breaking of another chain.
Eleanor screamed.
"Stop!"
"Those papers are worth billions!"
Victoria never looked at her.
She continued tearing every page into tiny pieces.
The shredded documents floated through the air like snow beneath the crystal chandelier.
"They're worth nothing."
"They were built on fraud."
Suddenly...
A loud knock echoed through the bedroom doors.
BANG!
"Open the door!"
"Corporate Crime Division!"
"Open immediately!"
Ethan's eyes widened in terror.
"No..."
"No..."
He looked desperately toward the balcony.
Three stories above the ground.
Too high.
No escape.
The bedroom doors burst open.
Detectives.
Financial investigators.
Uniformed police officers.
They flooded into the room.
The lead investigator held up an arrest warrant.
"Ethan Harrington."
"Eleanor Harrington."
"You are both under investigation for conspiracy, fraud, attempted corporate theft, coercion, and criminal intimidation."
Eleanor pointed furiously at Victoria.
"She's lying!"
Victoria calmly folded her hands.
"Really?"
She nodded toward the investigators.
"Ask them to play the recording."
One detective connected a tablet to the bedroom television.
The footage replayed in crystal-clear quality.
Ethan's own voice filled the room.
"The game is over, Victoria. You're signing the company over tonight."
Then Eleanor's voice.
"Power belongs to those willing to take it."
Neither of them spoke another word.
Their own voices had convicted them.
The detective slowly stepped forward.
"I don't think we'll be needing any more evidence."
He nodded to the officers.
"Take them into custody."
As handcuffs clicked around Ethan's wrists, he stared at Victoria with desperate hatred.
"You've ruined my life."
Victoria met his gaze without blinking.
"No."
"You ruined it the moment you confused love with control... and power with ownership."
The officers escorted Ethan and Eleanor toward the door as camera flashes from reporters outside the mansion lit up the hallway.
May you like
For the first time that night...
The people who believed they owned everything realized they were leaving with nothing.
