Chapter 10 - Whispers in the Boardroom
Z
Victoria Sterling did not walk into a room; she commanded it. When the private elevator opened into the penthouse foyer, she stepped out wearing an immaculate ivory coat and dark sunglasses that she removed with deliberate elegance. Her sharp blue eyes swept across the modern artwork, the high ceilings, and finally settled on me with the coolness of a seasoned predator.
"So this is the sanctuary," Victoria said, her voice smooth like silk wrapped around steel. She tossed an expensive leather portfolio onto the console table. "Adrian. You’re looking remarkably stressed for a man who just announced a secret family to the entire world."
"What are you doing here, Victoria?" Adrian asked, standing in the doorway between the foyer and the living room, blocking her path with cold authority. "We haven't spoken in four years."
"Your father called me," she replied casually, walking past him as if he were merely an architectural fixture. She stopped in the center of the living room, turning to face me. "And you must be Claire. The little graphic designer from Brooklyn who managed to accomplish what no high-society debutante ever could."
"Victoria," Adrian warned, his voice low and dangerous. "Watch your tongue."
"Oh, calm down, Adrian. I'm not here to throw wine in her face," Victoria said, waving a manicured hand dismissively. "I'm here because Elias Kane is currently offering twenty million dollars and a seat on the Vanguard board to anyone willing to swear under oath that Julian was not in a monogamous relationship during his time in New York."
A cold dread pooled in my stomach. "That's absurd. Julian lived with me. We shared an apartment."
"He lived with you in an un-leased loft under a fake alias while still maintaining his private townhouse in Soho," Victoria retorted, her eyes locking onto mine without an ounce of pity. "Do you think you knew everything about him, Claire? Julian was an artist, yes, but he was also a Kane. He compartmentalized his entire life. When he was with you, he was playing the bohemian rebel. When he was with his old circle, he was still the golden boy who borrowed money from my father's bank."
"You're lying," I said, stepping forward, refusing to be intimidated in the home where my daughter slept. "Julian severed ties with his past."
"Did he?" Victoria unzipped the leather portfolio and pulled out a stack of banking receipts and a handwritten ledger dated just three months before the car crash. "Then explain why he was transferring fifty thousand dollars a month into a private account under my name until the day he died."
The room seemed to spin. Adrian stepped between us, snatching the papers from Victoria's hand. His eyes scanned the figures, his jaw clenching so hard I could hear the grind of his teeth.
"What is this, Victoria?" Adrian demanded.
"It was his exit fund, Adrian," Victoria said softly, her arrogant facade cracking just enough to reveal an old, bitter grief. "Julian didn't want to run away forever. He was planning to buy out his father's stake in the European holdings so he could return to the family on his own terms. He was going to announce our formal reconciliation before that icy road took him."
"That is impossible," I gasped, feeling the ground beneath my feet turn into quicksand. "Julian loved me. We were planning a future together. He bought an engagement ring—"
"Julian was a master of making everyone feel like they were the center of his universe," Victoria said coldly. "The difference is, my claim is backed by legally binding financial contracts. Your claim is backed by a child and a seven-year silence. If Vanguard files their challenge tomorrow, this ledger will be exhibit A to prove Julian was still legally tied to my family's assets."
"Get out," Adrian said, his voice deadly quiet.
"I'll go," Victoria said, turning back toward the elevator. "But know this, Adrian: Elias isn't the only one who wants what Julian left behind. The Sterling family has a stake in this war now. You can either negotiate with us, or you can watch Blackwell & Reed get torn apart piece by piece."
The elevator doors slid shut behind her, leaving a suffocating silence in the penthouse. I looked at Adrian, my heart fracturing all over again.
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"Adrian," I whispered, terrified of the answer. "Is that Julian’s handwriting on those ledgers?"
Adrian looked down at the documents in his hands, his expression grim and unreadable. He didn't answer. And his silence was the loudest betrayal I had ever felt.
