Chapter 4 - The Financial Collapse
At 8:00 AM the following morning, Grant Miller woke up on the couch of a cheap airport motel on the outskirts of the city.
He hadn't slept a wink. After Arthur Vance’s men had stripped his home of every electronic device and document, Grant and Vanessa had been unceremoniously thrown out of the Lake Forest mansion by private security officers enforcing an emergency eviction order issued by a judge who owed his entire career to Arthur Vance.
Vanessa sat in the corner of the motel room, her makeup ruined, her eyes swollen from crying, furiously scrolling through her phone.
"This is insane, Grant!" she yelled, throwing her pillow at him. "My credit cards are declined! Every single one! The hotel boutique wouldn't even let me buy a toothbrush!"
Grant sat up, his neck stiff, his head throbbing with a violent headache. He grabbed his own phone and dialed his chief financial officer at Miller Capital.
The call went straight to voicemail.
Panicking, Grant opened his mobile banking application. The screen loaded for a agonizing five seconds before displaying a red, bold alert:
ACCOUNTS FROZEN BY FEDERAL ORDER / LIQUIDATION PENDING.
"No... no, no, no!" Grant screamed, jumping off the couch. He dialed his primary investor, a wealthy real estate tycoon named Richard Sterling.
Richard answered on the second ring, his tone ice-cold.
"Grant," Richard said flatly before Grant could even speak. "Don't ever call this number again."
"Richard, wait! Please!" Grant pleaded, pacing the small motel room. "There's been a mistake! My accounts are locked! I need a temporary bridge loan of fifty thousand to handle an emergency—"
"You idiot," Richard cut him off, his voice laced with venomous disgust. "Do you have any idea who you crossed?"
Grant froze. "What... what are you talking about?"
"Two hours ago, Vance Global Maritime canceled every shipping and logistics contract with my firm," Richard revealed, his voice shaking with anger. "The state gaming commission opened a tax audit into my casinos. My bank calls me and says if I maintain any financial relationship with you or Miller Capital, my credit lines will be terminated by noon."
Richard took a sharp breath. "You married Arthur Vance’s daughter, Grant. The single most protected woman in this city. And you threw her out in the rain for a bimbo? You didn't just ruin yourself, Grant. You are radioactive. Nobody in this city will give you a cup of water if you were on fire."
Click.
The line went dead.
Grant dropped the phone onto the cheap carpet, his knees trembling as the full, crushing scope of his mistake finally hit him.
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He had thought Claire was an orphan with a modest trust fund. He had treated her like a quiet, convenient doorstep to wipe his feet on while he built his social standing. He had believed he was the powerful one in their marriage.
Now he realized he had been living in a golden house built on land owned by a dragon—and he had just set fire to the dragon's egg.
