Chapter 11 - The Empire Crumbles
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The wedding reception had officially devolved into a warzone.
Daniel ripped the white boutonnière from his tuxedo lapel, throwing it onto Claire’s lap. He turned his back on his weeping bride and stormed down the center aisle of the ballroom, his groomsmen following closely behind him.
“The wedding is over!” Daniel shouted to the crowd. “Get out! All of you!”
“Daniel, please! We can fix this!” my mother cried, running after him, her diamond heels slipping on the spilled wine. She grabbed his arm. “Think of the family’s reputation!”
Daniel shoved her away with a look of pure revulsion.
“Your family has no reputation, Mrs. Harrington,” Daniel spat. “Your husband is bankrupt, and your daughter is a whore. Have a nice life.”
He stormed out the main doors, taking half the wealthy guests with him. The remaining guests were whispering furiously, pulling out their phones to text everyone they knew about the scandal of the decade. The Harrington name, which my parents worshipped above all else, was being burned to ash in real-time.
Claire collapsed onto the floor in her heavy designer wedding dress, sobbing hysterically. My father was still frozen at the head table, clutching the Vale Capital contract like a lifeline, his chest heaving with panic.
He looked at Adrian, his eyes wild and desperate.
“Please, Mr. Vale,” my father begged, his voice cracking. “The wedding is ruined. My daughter’s life is ruined. Let me sign the bailout. We can salvage the business. I’ll give you fifty percent of the company!”
Adrian didn't smile. He didn't blink. He just stared at my father with the cold, unyielding gaze of an apex predator watching its prey bleed out.
“Nobody is leaving this room just yet,” Adrian announced.
May you like
He nodded to his security team. The four men in black stepped backward, grabbed the heavy brass handles of the ballroom doors, and pulled them shut.
With a loud, terrifying click, the doors locked from the inside.
