Chapter 4 - The Boardroom War
The next morning, Manhattan woke up to a media firestorm.
I stood in the massive marble kitchen of the penthouse, wearing a silk robe Sebastian had left for me, sipping espresso while watching the morning news on the wall-mounted flat screen.
Page Six had dedicated its entire cover to the wedding. The headline read: FROM THE CHEATING ALLEY TO THE PLAZA: HOW VICTORIA VANCE BECAME THE QUEEN OF STERLING CAPITAL.
Meanwhile, my phone had completely exploded.
I had over four hundred missed calls, eighty text messages, and dozens of emails. My mother had left twelve frantic voicemails begging me to talk to her. Ryan had sent sixteen texts claiming he made a "terrible mistake" and that Danielle was "manipulating him." Danielle had posted a tearful video on Instagram claiming she was the victim of a "family misunderstanding," which had backfired spectacularly—the comment section was filled with thousands of people dragging her for stealing my dress.
At nine o'clock, a sleek black town car dropped me off at my law firm’s office on Park Avenue.
When I stepped out of the elevator onto the forty-second floor, the entire office went completely silent. Paralegals, senior associates, and partners stood up from their cubicles, staring at me as if I were royalty.
My managing partner, Arthur Vance (no relation to my maiden name, thankfully), rushed out of his corner office, a massive smile on his face.
“Victoria!” Arthur beamed, pumping my hand enthusiastically. “My goodness! The news! The entire board of Sterling Capital called me at seven this morning! They want our firm to handle all their real estate acquisitions for the next fiscal year!”
I smiled calmly, adjusting my designer suit jacket. “Is that so, Arthur?”
“Yes! And they specifically requested you as lead counsel!” Arthur’s eyes were practically flashing with dollar signs. “You’ve brought in a fifty-million-dollar account in a single day! We’re promoting you to Senior Partner immediately!”
For four years, I had worked eighty-hour weeks, winning massive corporate trials, begging for a senior partnership that Arthur had repeatedly delayed, claiming I needed "more seasoning."
Now, simply by marrying Sebastian Sterling, the door was thrown wide open.
“I’ll take the promotion, Arthur,” I said smoothly, stepping past him toward my new corner office. “And I want a twenty percent increase on my equity share.”
Arthur blinked, caught off guard by my sudden assertiveness, but quickly nodded. “Done! Absolutely done!”
As I sat down behind my desk, my assistant, Sarah, walked in carrying a massive bouquet of three dozen long-stemmed red roses.
“These just arrived for you, Victoria,” Sarah gushed, setting the heavy glass vase on my desk. “From your husband.”
I pulled the small ivory card from the flowers. Sebastian’s neat, masculine handwriting read:
To my Senior Partner. Crush them today. — S.
A warm fluttering feeling blossomed in my chest.
Before I could enjoy the moment, my desk phone rang. I picked it up. “Victoria Sterling.”
“Vicki...” a trembling, desperate voice came through the speaker.
It was Ryan.
I leaned back in my leather chair, my tone turning instantly cold. “How did you get this number, Ryan?”
“I called your assistant pretending to be a client,” Ryan stammered, his voice sounding hollow and exhausted. “Vicki, please... don't hang up. You have to help me. Everything is falling apart.”
“I’m busy, Ryan.”
“No, listen to me!” Ryan pleaded, his voice rising in panic. “Sterling wasn't joking yesterday! His venture capital firm pulled their funding from my tech startup this morning! My investors are pulling out! I’m going to be bankrupt by the end of the week!”
“Actions have consequences, Ryan,” I said flatly. “You spent eight months planning a betrayal with my sister. Did you really think you could ruin my life and walk away completely untouched?”
“It was Danielle!” Ryan cried out, throwing my sister under the bus without a second thought. “She told me she was on the pill! She trapped me, Vicki! She showed up at my apartment three months ago saying she was pregnant and threatened to tell you everything if I didn't marry her! I never stopped loving you!”
I let out a harsh, bitter laugh.
“You four years of absolute spinelessness are truly astounding, Ryan,” I said, my voice dripping with disdain. “You cheated on me, you lied to me, and now you’re blaming a pregnant woman to save your bank account. You deserve every single thing that is happening to you.”
“Vicki, please! Talk to Sterling! Tell him to give me back the funding! We can work something out—!”
“Do not ever call this line again, Ryan,” I interrupted coldly. “If you do, I will have my firm file a formal restraining order against you.”
May you like
I slammed the receiver down onto the cradle.
My hands were shaking slightly, but not from fear. From anger. Ryan and Danielle had thought they could play with my life as if I were a pawn on their board. They had no idea that I had just become the Queen.
