Chapter 4: The Gala Disaster
Chapter 4: The Gala Disaster
The annual Children’s Hospital Charity Gala was Adrian’s crowning glory. It was where he played the perfect philanthropist for the cameras. My father and I watched the live feed from the safety of the estate.
Adrian looked haggard. His tailored charcoal suit couldn't hide the frantic sweat glistening on his forehead. Margaret stood beside him, her smile brittle and forced. They were trying to keep up appearances, praying my father was bluffing.
He wasn't.
Halfway through Adrian’s keynote speech about "protecting the vulnerable," a ripple went through the ballroom. We watched on screen as VIPs began checking their phones. Whispers erupted. Then, a mass exodus began.
The news had just dropped. Whitmore Capital Severs Ties with Cross Holdings amid Domestic Abuse Allegations; Cross Empire Faces Imminent Insolvency.
"What is happening?" Adrian stammered into the microphone, his voice echoing in the rapidly emptying hall.
One of his major investors, a man who had backed Adrian for a decade, walked right up to the stage. The microphone picked up his voice perfectly. "You’re done, Adrian. The banks just froze your accounts. You lied to us. And you messed with Victor Whitmore's daughter."
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The camera zoomed in on Adrian’s face. The realization hit him like a physical blow. The cameras flashed aggressively, capturing the exact moment the invincible Adrian Cross realized he was ruined. Margaret tried to flee the stage, but reporters swarmed them, shouting questions about the psychiatric plot and the abuse.
It was absolute chaos. It was poetic justice.
