Chapter 4 - The Final Reckoning
Nathan’s eyes darted frantically around the room, desperate for a way out, a loophole, a sign of hope. But there was none. Every piece of his life—his wealth, his status, his freedom—was crumbling around him like dry dust.
"You set me up," Nathan whispered, his eyes wide with horror as he stared up at me. "You stayed... you let me beat you... just to pull this off?!"
"I gave you four years, Nathan," I replied, my voice steady. "I gave you four years to prove my father wrong. Every single time I offered you kindness, you chose arrogance. Every time I gave you mercy, you mistook it for weakness. You thought I was trapped because I was quiet."
I reached up and gently pulled off my wedding ring—a heavy, custom diamond band that Nathan had bragged about to the press for months. I dropped it onto the floor. It hit the polished black stone with a sharp clink and rolled right up against his nose.
"You can keep the ring," I said. "It's the only thing left in this house that actually belongs to you."
The federal agents stepped forward, pulling Nathan up by his arms and forcing his wrists behind his back. The cold steel of the handcuffs clicked loudly in the silence of the room. Celeste was dragged up right behind him, her luxury dress torn and filthy as she wept uncontrollably.
"Take them to the transport vehicles," the federal officer commanded.
As they dragged Nathan toward the shattered front entrance, he twisted his head back, screaming hysterically. "Victoria! Please! Don't leave me like this! Victoria! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
I didn't turn around. I didn't even blink. His desperate screams drifted out into the cold night air, quickly swallowed up by the thrumming helicopter engines and the wailing sirens of approaching federal escorts.
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My father gently patted my shoulder. "It's over, my child. The car is waiting outside. Let's get you to a doctor."
"Not yet, Dad," I said, looking around the grand hall of Blackthorn Manor—at the towering chandeliers, the hand-carved pillars, and the dark bloodstains on the floor. "There is still one final detail to settle."
