Chapter 7 - The UnveilingThe chaos in the ballroom was absolute. The high-society guests stared at the screen in horror, their whispers rising to a deafening roar as several prominent investors immediately walked out, dialing their lawyers.
Marcus ran onto the stage, his face distorted with manic rage. "You ruined us! You sold us out to an old man who’s going to die in a year anyway!"
"I’m not dying anytime soon, Marcus," a deep, powerful voice spoke from the center of the stage.
Adrian stood tall. He reached up, his gloved fingers grabbing the wrinkled skin beneath his jaw, and peeled away the Alden Vale mask in front of the entire assembly. The crowd gasped, several women letting out sharp screams of shock, as the handsome, chiseled face of Adrian Cross was revealed.
"Adrian Cross?" my father whispered, his face turning a pasty, terrified white as he stumbled backward. "No... it can't be. Your father is dead."
"He is," Adrian said, his voice cold as ice. "But his legacy is very much alive. And tonight, I have reclaimed the waterfront project, the company, and the estate you stole from him ten years ago. You built your entire lives on a lie, Arthur. Now, you get to experience the ruins."
"This is illegal!" Marcus shrieked, looking at the security guards who were now locking the exit doors of the ballroom. "You framed us!"
"Actually, the forensic evidence was prepared by your sister, Evelyn," Adrian said, putting his arm around my waist. "And the federal authorities are already waiting for you in the lobby."
The heavy double doors of the ballroom swung open, and six FBI agents walked in, their badges reflecting the bright lights of the chandeliers as they marched straight toward Arthur and Marcus.
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"Arthur Vance, Marcus Vance," the lead agent announced, pulling out steel handcuffs. "You are under arrest for corporate fraud, bribery, and embezzlement of public funds."
As my brother and father were led out of the ballroom in chains, their screaming voices fading down the hallway, I looked up at Adrian. The long, dark night of my family’s tyranny was finally over, and the dawn of our new kingdom had arrived.
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