Chapter 2 - The Domino Effect
By midnight, the news had spread through the city's elite like wildfire. The image of Victoria Vance pale, trembling, and surrounded by security guards while Claire Vane stood calmly in a ruin of champagne and diamond dust was trending across every social media platform.
Down in the VIP lounge of the Grand Obsidian Hotel, Victoria’s father, Richard Vance, was frantically pacing across the plush Persian rug. His phone had been ringing off the hook for two hours straight.
"What do you mean the loan approval is revoked?!" Richard roared into his phone, his sweat staining his Egyptian cotton collar. "We signed the preliminary contracts yesterday! Hello? Hello?!"
The line went dead.
The heavy double doors of the private room swung open. Victoria walked in, her white designer suit stained with stray droplets of champagne, her hair disheveled, tears streaking her expensive makeup.
"Dad..." she sobbed, rushing toward him. "You have to help me! That waitress... she tricked me! She pretended to be a servant!"
SLAP!
The force of the strike spun Victoria around, sending her falling onto the leather sofa. She gasped, holding her reddened cheek in utter shock. Her father had never raised a finger against her in her entire life.
"You absolute fool!" Richard screamed, his face purple with rage. "Do you have any idea what you've done?! That 'waitress' is Claire Vane! Her father called me ten minutes ago. He didn't even yell. He just said one sentence: 'Your family’s legacy ends at sunrise.'"
"Dad, we're powerful too! We have connections!" Victoria cried out defensively.
"We had connections!" Richard yelled back, dropping into a chair, burying his face in his trembling hands. "Every bank that backed our new shipping harbor project just pulled out. Our stock plummeted forty percent in off-hours trading! And to make matters worse..."
Richard looked up, his eyes hollow with dread. "...Julian canceled the engagement."
Victoria froze. "What? No... Julian wouldn't do that. He loves me!"
Julian Sterling was the heir to Sterling Financial, the premier investment firm in the country. Their impending marriage was supposed to merge two massive fortunes and save Vance Logistics from its underlying debt.
Before Victoria could process the news, the lounge door opened again.
Julian Sterling walked in. He was impeccably dressed in a charcoal three-piece suit, his posture rigid and his expression unreadable. Behind him were two corporate lawyers carrying thick leather briefcases.
"Julian!" Victoria leaped off the sofa and ran toward him, reaching for his hands. "Julian, please! It was a setup! She humiliated me!"
Julian stepped back, avoiding her touch as if she carried a contagious disease.
"It wasn't a setup, Victoria," Julian said, his voice flat and devoid of emotion. "It was a mirror. You've always been cruel, but I turned a blind eye because our families needed this alliance. But tonight, you showed the world exactly who you are."
May you like
He signaled his lawyer, who placed a document on the table.
"That is the formal termination of our engagement contract," Julian said coldly. "And effective immediately, Sterling Financial is shorting all Vance Logistics stock. Goodbye, Victoria."
