Chapter 7 - The Confrontation
The atmosphere in the library went dead quiet. The news crew paused, their cameras hovering in suspense.
Claire’s face went pale, but Miles remained entirely calm. The old Miles would have panicked or ordered security to forcibly block the gate. The new Miles simply adjusted his cuffs and looked at Marcus.
"Let her in," Miles said smoothly. "Just her and her legal counsel. Leave the police at the gate."
"Miles, are you sure?" Claire asked, stepping closer to him. "She will try to ruin this broadcast."
"She can try," Miles said, kissing Claire’s forehead gently. "Arthur, take the children upstairs to the playroom with the nanny. Claire, stay by my side."
Two minutes later, the double doors of the library burst open. Victoria Harrington stepped into the room, draped in an immaculate mink coat, her silver hair pulled back into a flawless chignon. Behind her stepped two high-powered corporate attorneys.
"Miles!" Victoria demanded, her voice sharp as glass. "What is the meaning of this madness? You abandon your company on New Year's Eve, turn off your phones, and hide away in the country with... with her?" She cast a venomous look at Claire.
"Mother," Miles said softly, standing tall beside Claire. "Welcome. You're just in time for my broadcast."
"Cancel the broadcast immediately!" Victoria snapped, turning to the news crew. "Turn those cameras off! My son is experiencing a temporary mental strain and is not authorized to speak on behalf of the company!"
"The cameras haven't started rolling yet, Victoria," Sarah Jenkins, the journalist, chimed in with a cool smirk. "But as the owner of Harrington Urban Design, Mr. Harrington has every right to speak."
Victoria turned back to Miles, her eyes narrowing. "You are ruining everything your father built! Carter Sterling is prepared to buy out our debt and elevate our brand globally. And you are throwing it all away for a cheap scandal!"
"A scandal?" Miles took a step toward his mother, his voice dropping into a register of terrifying intensity. "You call my children a scandal?"
Victoria froze. "What?"
Claire stepped forward, holding a legal folder. "Your son didn't run away because he was unstable, Victoria. He discovered that eighteen months ago, your co-conspirator, Carter Sterling, paid two hundred thousand dollars to his executive assistant to intercept my calls when I was pregnant with Miles's twins."
Victoria’s jaw tightened, a flash of genuine shock appearing in her eyes before she quickly masked it. "That... that is absurd conspiracy nonsense."
"We have the wire transfer records, Victoria," Marcus said, laying a printed financial audit on the table. "And we have a signed affidavit from Rebecca herself, obtained two hours ago in London. She confessed that Carter Sterling arranged the entire operation to isolate Miles and break his control over the firm."
Victoria looked down at the documents, her face losing all its color. For the first time in her life, the formidable matriarch looked defeated. She hadn't known about Sterling's illegal methods; she had simply been blinded by her own desire to control her son's life.
"Miles..." Victoria whispered, her voice faltering. "I... I didn't know he went that far. I only wanted what was best for the family legacy..."
"You wanted control, Mother," Miles said, his tone laced with tragic finality. "And in chasing control, you almost destroyed your own grandchildren."
The red light on the lead camera suddenly blinked to life.
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"Thirty seconds to air, Mr. Harrington," the director announced.
Miles didn't look back at his mother. He sat down in the leather armchair, looked directly into the camera lens, and reached out his hand. Claire took it, standing proudly right beside his chair as the broadcast went live to ten million viewers around the world.
