Chapter 4: The House of Cards
"Security," Beatrice commanded. The men in black didn't hesitate. They moved toward Veronica’s parents, who were now trying to slip out the side exit.
"The Federal authorities have been waiting outside," Beatrice announced. "They have the bank records of the embezzlement, the bribes paid to the hospital staff, and the proof of the baby swap. You aren't just being disinherited, Veronica. You are being arrested for conspiracy and fraud."
Veronica fell to her knees, looking at the spilled wine on the floor—the very wine she had used to humiliate the person she thought was beneath her. The irony was suffocating. She looked up at Elara, whose face remained calm and compassionate.
"I didn't know," Veronica stammered, her voice thin. "I just did what they told me..."
May you like
"That is the tragedy," Beatrice said, looking down at the girl she had raised. "You had every advantage, every luxury, and every opportunity to be kind. You chose to be a bully. And that, more than the DNA, is why you have no place in this family."
As the police led Veronica and her "parents" out of the ballroom, the silence was replaced by the low hum of cameras and the frantic whispering of the press. The Sterling legacy had been dismantled and rebuilt in the span of an hour.
