Chapter 2 - The Sterling Vanguard
Vanessa rushed to Adrian's side, screeching as she tried to pull him up. "Arthur Sterling?! The trillionaire oil and tech magnate? The man who controls the global shipping lanes? Elena, you're lying! You're a nobody!"
But Adrian knew. He remembered the anonymous, god-like entity that had cleared his company’s toxic debts three years ago right after our wedding. He remembered the doors that had opened to him, doors that only the Sterling name could unlock. He had thought it was his own genius. He had truly believed he was a god.
Before anyone could say another word, the massive oak doors of the estate were brutally kicked open.
A dozen men in tailored black tactical suits marched into the hall, led by a tall, silver-haired man in a bespoke charcoal coat. Arthur Sterling walked in, his cane clicking rhythmically against the floor. Behind him were six of the city’s top paramedics.
"Elena!" my father called out, his stoic face breaking into pure agony as he saw me on the floor.
"Dad," I breathed.
The paramedics rushed forward, pushing Vanessa out of the way so violently she fell into a decorative vase, shattering it into a million pieces. They gently lifted me onto a stretcher, applying immediate medical treatment to my back.
My father walked over to Adrian, who was still staring blankly at the floor. Arthur raised his heavy cane and slammed it down right between Adrian’s legs, missing his groin by mere millimeters. Adrian flinched, looking up in sheer terror.
"You like using weapons on women, boy?" Arthur asked, his voice dripping with lethal venom.
"Mr. Sterling... I... I didn't know," Adrian stammered, tears of terror finally flowing down his face. "She... Elena never told me! It was a misunderstanding! She provoked me! Vanessa told me—"
"Shut your mouth," Arthur growled. "You married my daughter for three years, and you never bother to look past her face. You thought she was weak because she loved you. You thought she was helpless because she chose to be humble."
Arthur turned to his head of security. "Seal this house. Everything in it belongs to the Sterling estate now. The land this mansion is built on? I bought the bank that owns the mortgage three minutes ago. Call the police. Have Mr. Vale arrested for felony domestic assault."
"You can't do this!" Vanessa screamed, pulling herself up from the broken glass. "I’m pregnant with his child! I have rights! This house belongs to Adrian!"
Arthur didn't even look at her. "As for the mistress, check her family’s businesses. Her father runs a logistics company, correct? Bankrupt them by dawn. Let’s see how much she enjoys her champagne silk dress when she’s sleeping on the street."
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As the paramedics wheeled me out of the mansion, I looked back one last time. Adrian was being slapped into handcuffs by the police who had just arrived, while Vanessa was being dragged out by security, screaming like a lunatic.
The nightmare was over. The awakening had begun.
