Chapter 24
CHAPTER 24 — THE GENTLEMAN DEVIL
The front iron gates of the Whitmore mansion were surrounded by federal marshals and local police cruisers. Standing in front of the flashing red and blue lights was a man who looked to be in his late fifties, dressed in a bespoke charcoal overcoat. He carried a silver-tipped walking cane and wore a massive gold signet ring on his right hand.
He wasn't Arthur. He wasn't Julian Vance.
Eleanor, Alexander, and Claire walked down the grand stone steps to meet him, flanked by the few loyal security guards who hadn't abandoned their posts.
"Hello, Eleanor," the man said, lifting his hat with an elegant, practiced grace. "You haven't aged a day since we buried my brother."
Eleanor froze, her breath catching in her throat. "Thomas...?"
Thomas Whitmore. The eldest brother. The one who was supposed to have died in a boarding school fire in Switzerland when he was only fourteen years old. The tragic loss that had shaped the entire family history.
"You look like you’ve seen a ghost," Thomas smiled, his teeth perfectly white, his eyes devoid of any human warmth. "But as you can see, the fire didn't take me. It just allowed our father to hide me where the world couldn't see the ugly truth of what this family actually does."
Alexander stepped forward, his hand instinctively moving to shield Claire. "You're the head of the Vanguard Group. You’re the one who funded Arthur."
"Arthur was a vulgar, short-sighted thug," Thomas said dismissively, tapping his cane against the iron gate. "He wanted money and power. I want what is legally mine. The child, Lily, is the designated beneficiary of my father’s original shadow trust. By law, until she turns eighteen, her legal guardian controls the voting shares of Whitmore Enterprises. And since her mother is... shall we say, mentally unstable according to eight years of medical records, custody reverts to the eldest living male relative. Me."
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"I will kill you before you touch her," Claire hissed.
Thomas looked at her, his smile widening into something truly predatory. "You can try, my dear. But the police behind me aren't here to protect you. They’re here to enforce a federal custody order. Bring me the girl, or watch your family name get dragged through the dirt of a treason trial by nightfall."
