Part 2: The Unmasking at the Gates
A suffocating silence fell over the phone line. The sound of heavy rain pounding against his windshield was the only noise coming through the speaker.
“What… what did you just say?” David stammered, his voice cracking. “How do you know about Chloe? Elena, listen to me, that was just business! She’s an influencer for our brand! I was negotiating a marketing contract! Why did you leave the hospital with the babies? The doctor said you took a private helicopter! Whose helicopter was that, Elena?! Did you steal from my company to pay for a medical transport?!”
“I didn’t steal a dollar from you, David,” I replied, standing up from the table and walking over to the floor-to-ceiling glass windows that overlooked the grand entrance of the estate. In the distance, through the heavy fog and rain, I could see the headlights of his black sports car idling near the security booth. “In fact, if you look up at the main mansion on the hill right now, you’ll see where the helicopter landed.”
I heard his intake of breath through the receiver.
“The… the Vance Estate?” David whispered, his voice trembling so violently he could barely hold the phone. “Why are you at the Vance Estate? Elena, that’s the private residence of Vanguard Capital’s chairman! You can’t be there! They’ll have you arrested for trespassing!”
“I’m not trespassing, David,” I said, signaling to Liam at the gatehouse with a small hand gesture. “I live here. I’ve lived here my entire life.”
The massive, wrought-iron gates began to hum, slowly swinging open into the rain.
“Come up the driveway, David,” I commanded, my voice turning to pure ice. “It’s time you meet my father.”
To see David step inside the twenty-thousand-square-foot manor, continue reading below for Part 3.
