Chapter 4 - The Reckoning in the Drawing Room
The temperature in the grand hall seemed to drop ten degrees the moment Victor crossed the threshold. He didn’t look like a man past his prime. His eyes were sharp, cold, and possessed an unyielding intensity that immediately made Celeste shrink back against the sofa.
Nathan tried to pull himself together, forcing a tight, nervous smile as he extended a hand. “V-Victor. I didn't realize... this is a misunderstanding. A simple domestic dispute over asset distribution. Surely we can—ing?”
Victor didn't even look at Nathan’s outstretched hand. He walked straight past him as if Nathan were nothing more than a minor piece of furniture, stopping only when he stood directly in front of his daughter.
Victor reached out, his calloused fingers gently touching the sapphire pendant resting against Evelyn’s collarbone. A faint, proud smile touched his lips.
“You held your ground, just like we practiced,” Victor said, his deep voice rich with absolute authority.
“I let them reveal their hand first, exactly as you advised,” Evelyn replied softly.
Victor finally turned his gaze toward Nathan, who stood frozen with his hand still awkwardly suspended in the air. The older man’s eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
“Nathan Ashford,” Victor said, his voice dangerously calm. “You spent the last three years systematically embezzling from my daughter’s trust, forging signatures on corporate transfers, and executing a hostile takeover under the assumption that I was permanently out of the picture.”
“That’s a lie!” Nathan shouted, his voice cracking with rising panic. “Show me proof! Where is your documentation? The federal audit cleared this firm six months ago!”
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Victor snapped his fingers. A junior federal investigator stepped forward from the doorway, carrying a heavy steel briefcase. He popped the latches and laid thick folders across the mahogany table, right on top of Celeste’s spilled champagne.
“Federal audit?” Victor murmured coldly. “You bribed a regional compliance officer, Nathan. But you forgot to check who actually holds the master debt ledger of your corporate parent company.”
