Chapter 6 - Reclaiming My Crown
While Aaron was wandering the rain-drenched streets searching for a public shelter, I was standing forty stories above Manhattan in the penthouse lounge of the Vance International Tower. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the sparkling city skyline, a vast empire of light and steel that my family had helped build over the course of a century.
Beside me stood Julian Vance, my elder brother and the global CEO of our family’s banking syndicate. He handed me a glass of sparkling apple cider, a warm, protective smile playing on his rugged features.
""You let him play billionaire for far too long, little sister,"" Julian remarked, looking out at the city below. ""Five years of enduring that arrogant boy and his wretched mother. You should have crushed him after the first year.""
""I needed to let him build the foundation with his own hands, Julian,"" I replied, taking a slow sip. ""If I had taken control early, people would have claimed I rode his coattails. Now, the entire world knows: the patents were mine, the capital was mine, and the moment I stepped off his plane, his entire universe collapsed like a house of cards.""
Julian laughed softly, clapping a hand on my shoulder. ""Well, the markets have already adjusted. The moment our corporate PR revealed that you were the actual architect behind the AI algorithms, our stock soared forty-two percent in pre-market trading. The board of the Global Technology Consortium just voted unanimously to award the multi-billion-dollar Geneva defense contract directly to Vance Dynamic Innovations.""
A knock sounded at the double mahogany doors. Frank stepped inside, holding a digital tablet. ""Madam Chairwoman, the federal prosecutors have officially processed Mr. Prescott’s arrest warrant. He turned himself in twenty minutes ago alongside his mother, who was detained for attempting to pawn stolen corporate artwork at a private dealer.""
""Did he try to make bail?"" I asked calmly.
""He tried to list the Hamptons property as collateral, unaware that the county sheriff had already padlocked the gates on your foreclosure order,"" Frank answered with a faint smirk. ""The judge set bail at ten million dollars cash, citing him as an extreme flight risk. Since his accounts are completely frozen, he has been remanded directly to the metropolitan detention center.""
""Good,"" I said simply. ""Let him spend some time contemplating his true value in a six-by-eight cell. Did Jasmine attempt to contact our office?""
""She waited in the lobby for four hours with a handwritten apology letter, claiming she was a victim of Mr. Prescott’s coercion,"" Frank replied. ""She offered to testify against him in exchange for a position in your social media department.""
I couldn't help but chuckle at the sheer, unadulterated shamelessness of it all. ""Have building security permanently bar her from every Vance-owned property in the state. Forward her resume and Aaron's embezzlement receipts to the state bar and corporate licensing board. She wanted fame; let her enjoy being universally unemployable.""
""Right away, Madam Chairwoman."" Frank bowed respectfully and retreated from the room.
Julian turned to me, his eyes gleaming with quiet pride. ""So, what is your next move, Alyssa? You are now the undisputed queen of Silicon Alley and Wall Street. You have your freedom, your fortune, and total control over your future.""
I looked down at the glittering sea of lights below, feeling lighter than I had in half a decade. For five agonizing years, I had shrunk myself to make an insecure man feel tall. I had swallowed insults from a bitter mother-in-law to maintain an illusion of marital peace. I had endured the sickening humiliation of being kicked out of my own seat on my own plane just to keep a fragile male ego intact.
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Never again.
""Tomorrow morning, I'm flying to Geneva to sign the sovereign cloud contract,"" I said, my voice ringing with resolute power. ""Captain Miller has already prepped the flagship. And this time, Julian... nobody is taking my seat.""
