Chapter 17 - The Ultimatum
|
Evelyn stopped ten feet away from Vanessa, keeping a safe distance. Her heart hammered against her ribs, but she refused to show a single ounce of fear.
"You are violating the terms of your parole by being on this property," Evelyn stated coldly. "I have security on the way, and I will have you arrested for trespassing in exactly three minutes."
Vanessa laughed, a dry, humorless sound that sent a shiver down Evelyn’s spine.
"Go ahead and call them. By the time they arrive, I'll be gone. I just wanted to see the ridiculous monument you built for that weak, pathetic man," Vanessa said, gesturing dismissively toward Daniel’s statue. "He ruined my life. He and his wretched mother took away my prime years."
"You ruined your own life with your greed," Evelyn shot back. "You tried to steal an empire, and you ended up in a cell. Now you are funding Arthur Sterling to steal this land. Why? The foundation’s trust is untouchable."
"It's not about the money anymore, Evelyn," Vanessa hissed, taking a step forward, her eyes blazing with absolute hatred. "It is about erasing the Whitmore name from the face of this earth. I sat in a concrete box for six years while you and that crippled boy lived in luxury, playing the saintly philanthropists."
Evelyn’s expression turned lethal at the insult toward Noah.
"Do not ever speak of my son," Evelyn warned, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
"Your son?" Vanessa mocked cruelly. "Let's make a deal, Evelyn. You convince the board to sell the thirty acres to Sterling's consortium for pennies on the dollar. You walk away, change your name, and disappear."
"And if I refuse?"
Vanessa reached into her designer handbag and pulled out a thick manila envelope, tossing it onto the stone pavement between them.
May you like
"If you refuse, I will release fabricated, highly convincing documents to the federal authorities claiming that Noah was deeply involved in the wire fraud schemes before the fire," Vanessa threatened with a wicked smile. "I will tie him up in federal court for a decade. The press will devour him. The foundation will be frozen, and the children will be thrown out on the street. Choose, Evelyn. Your pride, or your precious son's future."
Vanessa put her sunglasses back on, turned on her heel, and walked away toward a waiting black SUV, leaving the envelope lying on the ground like a toxic bomb.
