Chapter 13 - The Uncle’s Ultimatum
Arthur stepped into the harsh fluorescent light of the cell block, shedding his polite hotel manager persona like a cheap coat. Without the uniform, his posture was that of an apex predator—tall, imposing, and exuding absolute, unyielding power. He stopped directly in front of Julian’s cell, looking down at the disgraced groom with a gaze colder than winter ice.
“Mr. Vance,” Arthur said, his voice smooth, deep, and carrying an unmistakable edge of authority. “I trust the accommodations are meeting your high standards.”
Julian gripped the vertical steel bars, his chest heaving with suppressed rage. “You set us up. The whole hotel job... it was a trap.”
“It wasn't a trap, Julian. It was an inevitability,” Arthur corrected calmly, resting his leather briefcase on a small metal table nearby and popping the brass latches open. He pulled out a single sheet of paper covered in dense legal text. “When you married my niece for her grandfather’s trust fund, you made a catastrophic miscalculation. You assumed Clara had no family left to protect her.”
“She’s my wife,” Julian snarled, though the words sounded hollow even to his own ears.
“She was your wife, until an hour ago when the annulment papers were signed, sealed, and executed under grounds of systemic fraud and attempted murder,” Arthur replied smoothly, sliding the paper through the lower slot of the cell door. “Read it.”
Julian looked down at the document, his eyes scanning the dense paragraphs. It wasn't just a standard divorce filing. It was a comprehensive asset-stripping agreement that transferred every single stock option, real estate holding, and corporate share Julian owned directly into Clara’s sole custody, leaving him with millions in federal debt and zero legal defense.
“If I sign this, I spend the rest of my life in a federal penitentiary with nothing,” Julian whispered, his voice cracking.
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“If you don’t sign this,” Arthur countered, leaning in close so only Julian could hear, “the prosecutor adds federal racketeering charges that guarantee you never see the outside of a maximum-security wall. Sign on the dotted line, Julian. It’s the only mercy you’re going to get today.”
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