Chapter 6 - Lydia’s Desperate Gamble
The formal ceremony concluded forty minutes later, transitioning into an elegant reception in the State Dining Room. Caterers in black waistcoats carried silver trays of champagne and hors d'oeuvres through the crowd, but the mood remained strictly professional.
William stood near an ornamental fireplace, his untouched glass of scotch sweating against his hand. He was completely isolated. Three separate corporate executives who had spent the last two months begging for meetings with him had walked right past him without making eye contact.
"William," a voice said coldly from behind.
William spun around with an eager smile, hoping for a lifeline. "Arthur! I was hoping we could talk about the contract timeline—"
Arthur Vance, the silver-haired defense titan, raised a single hand, cutting him off before he could finish the sentence.
"There is no timeline, Whitmore," Vance said flatly. "The merger is dead."
William felt the blood rush to his ears. "Dead? Arthur, we’ve spent eight months drafting the shareholder agreements! Whitmore Logistics has the domestic fleet you need for the Pentagon distribution chain!"
"Whitmore Logistics has an arrogant CEO whose domestic baggage just blew up in front of the Commander-in-Chief," Vance retorted, leaning in so only William could hear. "Do you have any concept of how defense contracts work? We bid on government favor, public trust, and ethical standing. Do you think the Pentagon procurement committee is going to approve a four-billion-dollar partnership with a man whose wife tries to arrest wounded veterans and whose own daughter is about to be confirmed as an Army General?"
"Katherine is my daughter!" William pleaded, his voice breaking with desperation. "I can fix this! We had a falling out years ago, but family is family. I’ll make a public statement. I’ll donate ten million dollars to her command foundation!"
"She looked right through you, William," Vance said with brutal honesty. "She didn't look like a daughter waiting for your money. She looked like an officer who forgot you existed twenty years ago. And as for your wife..." Vance shook his head in disgust. "The story about David Mercer is already circulating through the room. Abandoning an orphaned stepson to marry a billionaire? You married a viper, Whitmore. And now she's bitten you."
Vance turned on his heel and walked away, joining a circle of foreign delegates who welcomed him with open arms.
William dropped his glass onto a passing tray, his hands shaking violently.
Across the room, Lydia was cornering David near the entrance to the Red Room. General Reed had stepped away to speak with a cabinet member, leaving David alone for a brief moment as he maneuvered his chair near the corridor.
Lydia lunged forward, her mask of elegance completely stripped away.
"David, you listen to me," she hissed, bending down over his chair, her eyes wild with panic. "You are going to fix this. You are going to tell William that you were confused! Tell him you had post-traumatic stress and misremembered the will!"
David didn't flinch. He looked at her with pure disdain. "Get away from me, Lydia."
"I took care of you for three years after your father died!" she snarled, dropping all pretenses of maternal affection. "I gave you a roof over your head! You owe me! Do you know what William will do to me if this merger falls apart? He’ll divorce me with nothing! The prenuptial agreement has an infidelity and public embarrassment clause! If he invokes it, I walk away with pennies!"
"Then you should have thought about that before you stole my father's memory and threw me to the wolves," David said, his voice cold and steady. "And you should have thought about that before you called Colonel Whitmore a guard dog."
"She is a guard dog!" Lydia spat, losing all self-control. "A brainless grunt who throws her life away for thirty thousand dollars a year while people like William and me run the world! You think you're heroes because you got blown up? You're pathetic! Both of you!"
A shadow fell over Lydia.
May you like
She froze.
Standing directly behind her was Colonel Katherine Whitmore.
