Chapter 3 - THE CRUMBLING EMPIRE
The next morning,
the news was everywhere.
"Socialite Scandal,"
the headlines screamed.
"Military Heroine Exposes Cheating Husband."
I sat in a coffee shop,
wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses.
I watched the world tear them apart.
Social media was a wildfire.
Madison’s Instagram was flooded with hate.
Ethan’s company stock was plummeting.
Investors don't like instability.
They certainly don't like CEOs who sleep with their sister-in-law.
My phone buzzed.
It was a message from Ethan.
"Victoria,
please."
"We need to talk."
"It’s not what it looks like."
I deleted the message.
Then came a call from my mother.
I let it go to voicemail.
"Victoria,"
"how could you humiliate your sister like that?"
"She’s in the hospital with stress."
"Think of the baby!"
I felt a pang of disgust.
The baby was an innocent bystander,
yes.
But it was being used as a shield.
I wouldn't fall for it.
I met my lawyer,
Sarah Jenkins,
at noon.
Sarah was a shark in a silk suit.
She laid out the paperwork.
"He’s toast,"
she said.
"The infidelity clause in your prenup is ironclad."
"Especially with the public admission."
I looked over the documents.
"I want the firm,"
I said.
Sarah paused.
"The whole thing?"
"Ethan built that from the ground up."
I looked at her.
"With my inheritance,"
"and my connections."
"He didn't build it."
"He managed it while I gave him the tools."
Sarah smiled.
"I like the way you think."
"We’ll file for an emergency injunction."
"We freeze everything."
As I left the office,
I saw Marcus Thorne waiting by my car.
He looked like he hadn't slept.
His suit was wrinkled.
"Victoria,"
he said,
his voice trembling.
"I didn't know."
"She told me it was over between you and Ethan."
I leaned against the car door.
"Did she tell you the baby was Ethan's,
too?"
Marcus looked down at his shoes.
"She... she said it didn't matter."
"She said we would be a family."
I laughed.
It was a dry,
hollow sound.
"You’re a fool,
Marcus."
"You were his best friend."
"And she was my sister."
"You both deserve exactly what’s coming."
"What is coming?"
he asked,
fear creeping into his eyes.
"Accountability,"
I said.
"Something you’ve clearly never faced."
I got into the car and drove away.
I saw him in the rearview mirror,
a small,
broken man.
The pieces were moving.
May you like
The board was set.
It was time for the mid-game.
