Chapter 2 - The Morning After
Christmas morning arrived not with the joy of holidays, but with the cold, calculated precision of an execution.
At 7:00 AM, a fleet of three black Mercedes SUVs pulled up to the gates of the luxury estate where Ryan and his mother, Margaret, were pouring champagne for Vanessa, the mistress.
Ryan opened the front door, wearing a silk robe, expecting a delivery. Instead, he was greeted by four sheriff's deputies and Arthur Sterling, who stood holding a stack of legal documents. Behind them, two massive moving trucks were already blocking the driveway.
"What is the meaning of this?" Ryan demanded, his face reddening. "Do you know who I am? I'm the Senior Vice President of Mercer Financial! Get off my property!"
"It's not your property, Mr. Mercer," Arthur Sterling said, stepping inside without asking. "As of midnight, your lease has been terminated due to a material breach of the residency covenant. Furthermore, a temporary restraining order has been issued against you, your mother Margaret, and your guest, Vanessa Miller, on behalf of Emily Vance-Mercer and her child."
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Margaret rushed down the grand staircase, her face contorted in rage. "This is absurd! My family bought this house! Emily is an unstable, broke girl who walked out on her husband last night! We have our own attorneys preparing custody papers!"
"Your attorneys work for a firm that Northstar Logistics pays twenty million dollars a year to retain, Mrs. Mercer," Arthur said with a razor-thin smile. "I suggest you check your emails. Your legal representation dropped you ten minutes ago. You have exactly thirty minutes to pack what you can carry. Everything else will be seized to satisfy the emergency child support lien filed this morning."
