Chapter 5 - The Devil’s Bargain
“Arthur,” Victoria said, her voice dangerously low. She stepped in front of Elena. “Call them off. Right now. Or I swear to God I will dismantle your life piece by piece.”
Arthur took a slow puff of his cigar, blowing the blue smoke into the damp garage air. “You don't have the power to dismantle anything anymore, Vicky. Look at you. Your legacy is in ruins upstairs. A scandalous adopted son trying to marry your bastard daughter? The board of directors will have you removed for sheer incompetence by Monday morning.”
“She’s not a bastard, she’s your niece!” Julian yelled, his fists clenched. “You kidnapped a child!”
“Oh, I didn't kidnap anyone,” Arthur said smoothly, waving his hand dismissively. “I simply... outsourced. A nanny with gambling debts, a quiet drive to a firehouse in the next state. I didn't want the girl dead. I just needed her out of the way.”
Arthur’s eyes shifted to Elena, dragging up and down her ruined wedding dress. “I have to admit, when Julian brought you home two years ago, I almost had a heart attack. The resemblance to your father is uncanny. I tried to talk Julian out of it. I tried to offer you money to run away. But you two were just so... in love.”
He spat the word like poison.
“You planted a bloody coat to make me think she was dead,” Victoria whispered, the absolute betrayal breaking through her tough exterior. “I mourned her every single day. I couldn't look at another child without crying. And you sat next to me at her memorial service and held my hand.”
“Business is business, sister,” Arthur sighed, tossing his cigar to the ground and crushing it with his polished leather shoe. “You were weak. You let your emotions cloud your judgment. The Sterling empire needed a strong hand. It still does.”
He snapped his fingers. The three men stepped forward, pulling their weapons.
“Here is how this plays out,” Arthur said coldly. “The tragic bride, overwhelmed by the public humiliation of her torn dress, steals a car and drives it off a cliff. Julian and Victoria, heartbroken, step away from the company to grieve. I take over as CEO.”
“Over my dead body,” Julian growled.
“That’s the idea, kid,” Arthur smirked.
Suddenly, a blinding pair of headlights flipped on at the far end of the garage. An engine roared to life with the ferocious, deafening sound of a V8 muscle car. Before Arthur’s men could even aim, a beat-up vintage Mustang came tearing across the concrete, barreling directly toward Arthur’s goons.
The men dove out of the way as the car screeched to a halt between Elena’s group and Arthur. The passenger door swung open.
“Get in!” a gruff voice yelled from the driver’s seat.
Elena didn't hesitate. She grabbed Victoria’s arm, shoving the older woman into the backseat before diving in after her. Julian threw himself into the front passenger seat, slamming the door shut just as bullets began to ping against the reinforced metal of the Mustang’s trunk.
The driver slammed it into reverse, spun the wheel, and floored the accelerator. The tires shrieked, smoking against the concrete as they launched toward the exit ramp, leaving Arthur screaming in fury in the rearview mirror.
Elena, breathless and shaking, looked at the driver. He was in his late twenties, wearing a leather jacket over a cheap t-shirt, with a jagged scar running down the side of his jaw.
“Who the hell are you?” Julian demanded, checking himself for bullet holes.
May you like
The driver glanced at the rearview mirror, his eyes locking onto Elena’s.
“My name is Cole,” he said, slamming through the parking gate and bursting out into the busy city streets. “And twenty-three years ago, my mother was the nanny who kidnapped you.”
