Chapter 7 - Shattered Masks
"You fool," Victoria spat, dropping her refined facade entirely, her voice rising to a shrill, hysterical pitch. "You think you're saving them? You're destroying this family! Everything I did was to keep the Voss fortune unified! Julian was weak—he was going to let the trust dissolve! I did what was necessary to protect our legacy!"
"By stealing three innocent babies from their mother?" I demanded, standing up, my voice trembling with powerful outrage. "By letting me believe my children were buried in the ground while you used them as legal bargaining chips?"
"You were nobody!" Victoria shrieked, pointing a manicured finger at me. "A penniless waitress! You were nothing to this family!"
"She is everything to this family," Roman countered, his voice deafening as he slammed his hand onto the table, the sharp boom echoing through the acoustic glass room. "And you are finished."
Two federal agents in dark suits stepped through the boardroom doors, followed by local police officers.
"Victoria Voss," announced the lead agent, displaying a badge and a signed federal warrant. "You are under arrest for conspiracy to commit human trafficking, corporate fraud, and obstruction of justice. You have the right to remain silent."
The board members watched in stunned silence as the former queen of Chicago society was handcuffed. As she was escorted past us, Victoria turned her head, her eyes burning with pure malice as she glared at Roman and me.
"You won't last a year, Roman," she hissed under her breath. "You don't know what it takes to protect a bloodline."
"I know how to love them," Roman said simply. "Something you never understood."
As Victoria was led away, the boardroom descended into utter chaos—phones ringing, board members panicking about stock prices, legal aides frantically taking notes.
Roman turned to Eleanor Vance. "Initiate the corporate stabilization protocol. Issue a public statement clarifying that all company operations remain secure under my authority."
"And the shares?" Eleanor asked.
May you like
Roman reached down, taking my hand in his, holding it tightly in front of the entire board. "The children's shares will be placed into an irrevocable trust managed jointly by Pamela and myself. The legacy stays where it belongs."
We walked out of the corporate tower, leaving the storm of scandal behind us. For the first time in fourteen months, as the heavy glass doors opened to the autumn air, I felt the heavy iron weight lifted from my chest. The monsters of my past were finally behind bars.
