Chapter 5 - The Trap at the Gala"A desperate rat will bite when cornered. But a patient hunter lets the rat walk straight into the trap."
The public humiliation destroyed any remaining legal cover Julian and Eleanor had left. The District Attorney, facing immense pressure from the viral uproar, formally upgraded the charges against Eleanor Miller to Attempted Aggravated Murder and Extortion, while Julian was charged with Conspiracy to Commit Murder, Extortion, and Grand Larceny.
However, because of their vast wealth and lingering connections, both were granted high-bail house arrest pending the grand jury indictment.
They were trapped in Eleanor’s Bel-Air estate, watched by court-ordered ankle monitors. But I knew Eleanor wasn't done. A woman like her doesn't accept defeat; she seeks total destruction.
Three days after the press conference, Mr. Vance received a confidential alert from our private investigator.
"Clara," Vance told me over a encrypted line. "Eleanor’s attorneys just filed an emergency motion to sell her estate and transfer all remaining corporate liquid funds into a Swiss escrow account. They're planning to jump bail."
"They can't leave the country with ankle monitors," I noted.
"They've secured private charters out of a private airfield in Mexico," Vance explained. "They have forged passports ready. But before they leave, Eleanor is hosting a 'private farewell auction' at her estate tonight—selling off her high-value art collection for cash under the table to fund their flight."
I smiled darkly. "An auction, you say?"
"Clara, do not go near that house," Vance warned. "They are desperate. Desperate people are capable of anything."
"I'm not going to break the law, Mr. Vance," I said calmly. "I'm going to buy my own justice."
That evening, the grand estate of Eleanor Miller was filled with shady art buyers, corrupt associates, and high-end fences looking to profit off Eleanor’s fire sale. Eleanor wore a dark lace dress, her expression tight and frantic as she barked orders at her staff. Julian stood in the corner, holding a glass of scotch with trembling hands, looking jumped and terrified at every sudden noise.
"We have two hours," Eleanor whispered sharply to Julian, leaning over a glass display containing $2 million worth of rare diamond jewelry. "Once the cash is secured in the van, we cut the monitors and head for the border."
"Mother, what if Clara finds out?" Julian stammered, his eyes bloodshot.
"Clara is a coward!" Eleanor hissed. "She had her little moment on TV, but she wouldn't dare step foot in this house again!"
"Are you sure about that, Eleanor?"
A quiet, commanding voice echoed across the marble foyer.
The crowd of buyers went dead silent. Eleanor froze. Julian dropped his scotch glass, shattered crystal, and amber liquid spilling across the floor.
I stepped through the front entrance.
I was wearing a striking crimson gown that draped over my right shoulder while leaving my scarred left neck fully exposed. Behind me stood Detective Lawson, six armed federal marshals, and a team of forensic auditors.
"Clara..." Eleanor gasped, her face twisting into pure malice. "How dare you set foot in my home! You are trespassing!"
"This isn't your home anymore, Eleanor," I said smoothly, stepping into the center of the room. "As of four o'clock this afternoon, the federal court granted a preliminary judgment seizing this estate and all contents within it to satisfy the $12 million in embezzlement claims against Miller Development."
Eleanor’s eyes went wide. "That's impossible! My lawyers—"
"—Are currently being arrested at their law firm for facilitating money laundering," Detective Lawson interrupted, stepping forward with his badge displayed.
Julian went pale. He suddenly lurked backward, trying to slip through the side exit into the garden.
"Don't move, Julian!" Lawson barked, drawing his sidearm.
Julian panicked. Losing his mind entirely, he snatched a heavy brass statuette from a nearby table and lunged not at the police—but at me!
"You ruined everything!" Julian screamed, his eyes wild with insane rage.
He swung the heavy brass weapon directly at my head.
I didn't even flinch.
Before Julian could reach me, Detective Lawson tackled him mid-air, slamming him face-first onto the hard marble floor. The brass statuette clattered across the room. The marshals instantly swarmed him, pinning his arms behind his back and snapping steel handcuffs over his wrists.
Julian sobbed into the floor, his nose bleeding, crying like a child. "Get her away from me! Get that monster away from me!"
I walked over, stopping right beside his face as he lay pinned to the marble. I leaned down, lowering my scar close to his eyes.
"Look at me, Julian," I whispered so only he could hear. "Look at the monster you made. And remember this face... because it’s the last face you’ll see before you spend the next thirty years behind bars."
Eleanor screamed as the marshals closed in on her, pulling her arms behind her back. Her regal silk dress was rumpled, her hair falling out of its neat bun as she shrieked obscenities at me.
"You ungrateful little witch!" Eleanor screamed, her voice cracking into a shrill screech. "I should have burned your whole head off! I should have killed you when I had the chance!"
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Every camera from every buyer who had taken out their phones recorded her confession.
I stood in the center of the grand foyer, surrounded by federal agents, as Julian and Eleanor were dragged out of the mansion in chains, screaming at the top of their lungs.
