Chapter 2 - The CCTV Footage and the $50 Million SubpoenaBy 8:00 AM the next morning, the high-rise offices of Sterling, Vance & Cross were buzzing with nervous tension. Nathan Sterling paced behind his mahogany desk, his tailored Italian suit wrinkled from a sleepless night. His phone had rung thirty times in the last hour.
The door burst open without a knock.
Uncle Victor strode in, his face purple with fury, holding a thick sheaf of legal papers.
“You absolute fool, Nathan!” Victor slammed the papers onto the desk. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Emma’s legal team just filed an emergency injunction freezing all corporate assets, seizing the flagship store, and demanding an immediate audit of every subsidiary tied to Aegis Holdings!”
Nathan stopped pacing, his face draining of color. “Freeze assets? On what grounds? She signed the transfer! We have the document!”
“The document that was pulled from an unsecured cloud server with a forged IP signature?” Victor snarled, leaning close. “She didn't just walk into a trap, you arrogant idiot. She lured you into one. She wanted you to hit her on camera so the court would grant an immediate restraining order and strip you of your executive powers before the board meeting on Friday!”
Before Nathan could answer, the frosted glass doors of the executive suite parted.
Emma walked in, flanked by two armed security guards and Marcus Vance—Victor’s estranged son and the top corporate litigator in the city, whom Emma had retained at midnight. She wore a sharp, midnight-blue Chanel suit, her posture immaculate, her eyes ice-cold.
“Good morning, gentlemen,” Emma said, her voice cutting through the silence like a scalpel. “I trust you received the first subpoena. You have until noon to hand over the original corporate seals, or the marshals will escort you both out in handcuffs.”
Nathan lunged forward, his face twisted in desperation. “Emma, listen to me—Celeste meant nothing! It was a setup, she manipulated me—!”
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Emma didn't even flinch. She raised one hand, stopping him dead in his tracks.
“Save your breath for the judge, Nathan,” she said softly. “You wanted my empire. Let’s see how you survive without a dime.”
