Chapter 4 - The Vengeance Protocol
The next morning, the financial district of Manhattan was buzzing with rumors.
Marcus Vance sat at his glass desk on the thirty-fifth floor of Montgomery & Hayes Law, scrolling through his laptop with trembling fingers. The stock portfolio of his firm’s primary real estate client had just plummeted twenty points overnight following an unexpected supply chain audit.
The auditor listed on the corporate filing? Moretti Global Logistics.
"It’s a coincidence," Marcus muttered to himself, rubbing his temples. "Moretti doesn't care about my civil litigation cases. He’s a syndicate boss, not a family law attorney."
The heavy oak door of his office swung open without a knock.
His senior partner, Arthur Sterling, marched in, holding a stack of red-flagged legal notices, his face pale with panic.
"Vance! What in God’s name did you do?!" Arthur yelled, slamming the papers onto Marcus’s desk.
"I didn't do anything!" Marcus defended himself, standing up quickly. "What is this?"
"Every single municipal zoning permit our firm has pending with the city council has just been frozen indefinitely," Arthur breathed, his voice shaking. "And our primary operating credit line at First Manhattan Bank was just recalled in full by the majority shareholder."
Marcus’s blood ran cold. "Who... who is the majority shareholder?"
"Vanguard Capital," Arthur hissed. "A shell corporation fully owned by Salvatore Moretti."
The room spun. Marcus gripped the edge of his desk. "Moretti... why would Moretti target our firm over a routine divorce settlement?"
Suddenly, the office television—tuned to a financial news channel—flashed with a breaking news banner:
*BREAKING: RENOWNED UNDERWORLD BILLIONAIRE SALVATORE MORETTI ANNOUNCES SURPRISE MARRIAGE TO CLARA VANCE, HEIR TO THE VANCE ENGINEERING PATENTS.*
Marcus stared at the screen in absolute horror. Clara Vance. His ex-wife. The woman he had ridiculed and discarded three weeks ago was now legally married to the most powerful, ruthless billionaire in the tri-state area.
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And her first executive act as a Moretti? Dismantling Marcus’s entire career brick by brick.
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