My first wedding anniversary was supposed to celebrate the happiest decision of my life. Instead, I woke up chained in front of dozens of guests while my husband stood over me with a hammer, his mistress held scissors beside my face, and the people drinking champagne in my home watched as if my suffering were entertainment. / Chapter 26 / 60

Chapter 26 - The Shadow Backer

Arthur Vance didn't try to run. He knew the exits were guarded by men who would put a bullet in his spine before he reached the hallway.

"Is this true, Arthur?" my father asked, stepping out from the shadows near the back wall, his silver revolver already drawn.

Arthur let out a long sigh, taking off his gold-rimmed glasses and wiping them with a silk handkerchief. "Marcus Kane offered terms that were highly beneficial to the Syndicate's long-term growth, Abraham. You were clinging to old territory, refusing to expand into narcotics. Kane has the supply lines. It was a logical corporate merger."

"A logical merger that involved breaking my daughter's knees?" Dad snarled, stepping forward.

"That was Brandon's foolish impatience," Arthur said coolly, looking at my husband with disdain. "He was supposed to persuade her quietly. He panicked when he realized Emily was far smarter than he was."

"I didn't panic!" Brandon shrieked from the floor. "Arthur told me if I didn't get her signature by midnight, Kane was going to kill my entire family!"

I raised my hand, silencing the chaos in the room instantly. The five Capos watched me intently, waiting to see how their new Sovereign would handle absolute betrayal.

"Arthur," I said, leaning back in my leather throne. "You have served my family for twenty years. You know our laws."

"I do," Arthur replied quietly.

"Under Syndicate law, treason against the bloodline is punished by absolute liquidation," I said. "Every asset you own—your law firm, your brownstones, your offshore accounts in the Caymans—is now the property of the Yates Estate. Your brother Marcus will take over Vance Legal Holdings."

Marcus Vance nodded immediately, bowing his head to me. "Thank you, Sovereign."

Arthur’s cool demeanor finally shattered. "Emily... please. I built this empire with your father!"

"And you tried to destroy it with my husband," I replied cold-bloodedly. "Viktor, take Arthur and Brandon back to the cellar. They share a cell now."

"No! No! Not with him! Emily, please!" Brandon screamed as the guards seized them both, dragging the lawyer and my former husband out of the room.

I looked at the five remaining Capos around the table. "Marcus Kane thinks he can take our territory because he thinks a woman is in charge. Tomorrow morning, we launch a full financial war against his cartel."