Chapter 4 - A Sting in the Shadows
With six days remaining before the grand christening, Gavin made his first catastrophic mistake.
Thinking I was completely broken and cowering in defeat, he showed up unannounced at my restaurant, L'Étoile, during the lunch rush. He walked in wearing a tailored suit bought with my money, radiating smug confidence as he demanded to speak with me in my private office.
I allowed him in. I sat behind my mahogany desk, looking calm and unbothered.
"Eleanor," Gavin began, throwing himself into the armchair across from me. "We have a small administrative issue."
"Oh? What kind of issue, Gavin?" I asked, casually signing a stack of supplier invoices.
"The bank flagged the latest transfer for the Cumberland house mortgage," he said, frowning slightly. "They said the account you normally use has been frozen due to 'restructuring.' You need to call them and fix it immediately. Brooke is planning a $50,000 renovation for the master suite, and we need the credit line open."
I set my pen down and looked at him. The sheer audacity of this man—demanding I fix a frozen bank account so his mistress could renovate the home they stole from me—was almost breathtaking.
"The account was frozen because I closed it, Gavin," I said smoothly.
Gavin’s face darkened instantly. He slammed his hand on the desk, stepping out of his charming persona. "What the hell do you mean you closed it? We had an agreement! You said you wouldn't cause trouble!"
"I said I wanted peace, Gavin. I never promised to keep paying your bills," I replied, leaning back. "You have a high-paying job as a financial director, don't you? Surely you and Brooke can afford your own mortgage."
Gavin sneered, stepping closer to the desk. "Listen to me, you petty bitch. If you think playing financial games is going to bring me back to you, you're delusional. Brooke is ten times the woman you'll ever be. If you don't unfreeze those funds by tomorrow morning, I will make sure your parents publicly ruin your reputation. I'll tell everyone in this city that you tried to poison Brooke while she was pregnant!"
I didn't flinch. Instead, I quietly tapped the screen of my phone on the desk, ending a live recording that had been broadcasting directly to Marcus Vance’s legal team.
"Is that a threat, Gavin?" I asked softly.
"It's a promise," he snapped. "Unfreeze the money. Or you won't have a restaurant left by the end of the week."
He turned on his heel and stormed out of the office, slamming the door so hard the glass rattled.
As soon as he was gone, Victor stepped out from the adjoining breakroom, holding a tablet.
"We got it all," Victor said, smiling grimly. "Extortion, verbal abuse, and an explicit admission of financial coercion. Marcus is adding this to the emergency injunction file."
"How are Gavin's finances looking for his tech company?" I asked, standing up and walking to the window.
May you like
"Desperate," Victor replied. "He spent $800,000 of the loan from Apex Capital on the christening event, high-end cars, and jewelry for Brooke. The remaining $1.6 million was funneled into a failing crypto-hedge fund that just plummeted 80% yesterday. He is completely broke, Eleanor. He’s running on fumes and stolen credit."
"Then let him keep spending," I said, a cold fire burning in my chest. "Let him book the most expensive catering, the finest champagne, the grandest venue. The higher he builds his castle of lies, the harder he’ll hit the ground when it falls."
