Chapter 4 - The Escape Attempt
Graham sprinted past the shocked guests, his polished shoes sliding slightly on the smooth floor. He didn't care about Victoria, he didn't care about Savannah, and he certainly didn't care about his ruined reputation. All he cared about was reaching his car in the VIP parking garage and fleeing the country before his bank accounts were totally sealed.
"Stop him!" Katherine shouted, but the crowded tables blocked the agents' path.
Graham burst through the heavy brass side doors, ducking into the quiet, carpeted hallway that led to the private executive elevator. He pulled out his phone with trembling fingers, trying to open his private offshore banking app to initiate an emergency transfer.
ACCESS DENIED, the red text on his screen read. ACCOUNT TERMINATED BY VANGUARD SYSTEM.
"Dammit! Dammit!" Graham screamed, hitting the elevator button repeatedly.
Ding.
The brass elevator doors slid open smoothly.
Graham prepared to jump inside, but his feet froze.
Standing inside the elevator was not a hotel guest or a staff member. It was Marcus—a six-foot-four wall of a man wearing a immaculate charcoal suit, holding a simple tablet in his left hand.
"Going down, Mr. Vance?" Marcus asked quietly, his voice dangerously smooth.
"Get out of my way!" Graham yelled, trying to push past him.
Marcus didn't move an inch. He raised one arm and casually shoved Graham back into the hallway. Graham hit the wall hard, knocking the wind out of his chest, dropping his phone onto the carpet.
Before Graham could get up, a soft, motorized hum echoed down the hallway.
Graham looked up, his chest heaving.
Eleanor was rolling slowly down the corridor in her electric wheelchair. Katherine Vance walked beside her, along with two federal agents. Eleanor’s face was clean now—the gravy had been wiped away, and a soft velvet blanket was draped neatly over her lap.
"Eleanor..." Graham whimpered, crawling backward against the wall until he hit a marble pillar. "Please... Eleanor, listen to me. She made me do it! Victoria forced me! She threatened to ruin my company if I didn't go along with her plan! I loved you, Eleanor! I still love you!"
Eleanor stopped her wheelchair three feet away from him.
She looked down at the man she had once trusted with her life, the man for whom she had compromised her own ambitions. There was no anger left in her eyes—only a vast, hollow emptiness.
For the first time in eighteen months, Eleanor opened her mouth. Her left side was still weak, making her voice raspy and slow, but every single word cut like a diamond blade.
"You... didn't... build... Vance Capital," Eleanor said softly, leaning forward slightly. "I... built... it."
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Graham stared at her in utter terror. "You... you can talk?"
"I never lost my speech, Graham," Eleanor said, her articulation growing stronger with every breath. "I only waited for you to show the world exactly who you were."
