Chapter 5 - Eleanor’s Desperate Call
By three o’clock that afternoon, Manhattan high society was in an absolute frenzy. The financial tabloids and mainstream press had caught wind of the catastrophic collapse of Sterling Enterprises. Headlines were screaming across every screen: STERLING DYNASTY CRUMBLES OVERNIGHT: ANONYMOUS CREDITOR CALLS $250M DEFAULT. Photos of Derek looking wild-eyed outside the Madison Avenue office were already circulating on social media, turning him into a laughingstock among the very elite circles he had spent his entire life trying to impress.
I was sitting in my private office on the top floor of the Thorne Tower, sipping a cup of hot Earl Grey tea while reviewing the foreclosure schedules with my risk team. The view of Central Park was serene and quiet, completely insulated from the chaos detonating across town.
My private administrative line flashed red. My executive assistant, Clara, spoke through the intercom. ""Ms. Thorne, Eleanor Sterling has been calling every ten minutes from a burner phone. She’s currently in tears, begging to speak with you directly. Should I continue routing her to the automated legal disclaimer?""
I set my teacup down on its saucer with a delicate clink. ""Put her through, Clara.""
The line clicked open, and Eleanor’s frantic, ragged breathing instantly filled the room. All of her condescending elegance, her polished society manners, and her haughty snobbery had vanished entirely.
""Maya? Maya, darling, is that you?"" Eleanor wept into the receiver, her voice trembling with hysteria. ""Thank God you picked up! You have to stop this madness right now! The bank just repossessed Richard’s town car outside the Union Club! My country club membership in the Hamptons was just revoked! The club president had security escort me off the tennis courts in front of the entire auxiliary board!""
""Good afternoon, Eleanor,"" I said pleasantly, leaning back in my leather chair. ""I hope the weather in the Hamptons is pleasant today.""
""How can you be so cruel?"" Eleanor shrieked, her voice cracking. ""We welcomed you into our family! We gave you our son! We gave you our ancient name! So what if Derek has a temper? Men of stature have passions! He flipped a table! That’s all it was—a silly little marital squabble! You broke a family legacy over a set of dinner plates!""
""A silly squabble?"" I replied, my tone hardening like ice. ""Your son threw furniture at me, cornered me with threats of violence, and attempted to rob me of my life's work. And you sat there, Eleanor, adjusting your pearls, encouraging him to treat me like an animal. You thought I was weak. You thought because I didn't boast about my family tree at your cocktail parties that I was an easy target for your family’s parasites.""
""We didn't know!"" Eleanor cried out desperately. ""If you had told us you had that kind of money, we never would have treated you that way! Derek would have treated you like a queen! We would have given you whatever you wanted!""
A cold laugh escaped my lips. ""And that, Eleanor, is the exact reason why you deserve everything that is happening to you right now. You only respect power. You only respect wealth. You treat human beings with decency only when you realize they have the power to destroy you. That is not dignity. That is cowardice.""
""Please, Maya, I am begging you on my knees!"" Eleanor was sobbing openly now, completely unraveled. ""Richard is in the emergency room! His blood pressure spiked off the charts after the board voted to strip him of his chairmanship! If the loan accelerates tomorrow, they will seize our estate in Greenwich! We will lose our home! Everything we own is mortgaged to your fund! We will be on the street!""
""Greenwich has lovely public shelters, Eleanor,"" I said without an ounce of sympathy. ""I'm sure you can wear your pearls while you stand in line.""
""You monster! You cold-hearted, calculated monster!"" she screamed, the venom returning to her voice as she realized her begging was useless. ""Derek will divorce you! He will take you for every dime in court! You'll spend decades fighting us!""
""Derek can file whatever he wants,"" I answered calmly. ""My legal team filed for an expedited annulment based on felony fraud and coercion at one o'clock today. Along with it, we filed an emergency lifetime restraining order supported by the four-K footage from the dining room. If Derek comes within five hundred yards of me or any building I own, he goes straight to Rikers Island without bail.""
""No... no, please...""
May you like
""Seventy-two hours, Eleanor. Tell your husband to find two hundred and fifty million dollars, or start packing boxes. Have a wonderful afternoon.""
I pressed the red disconnect button, cutting her off mid-sob. I took another slow sip of my tea, feeling the warmth spread through my chest. The game was moving faster than I anticipated, and checkmate was already within sight.
