Chapter 14 - The Public Stage
Gabriel activated the wall monitor. The screen flickered to life, showing Tanya Vance sitting before a forest of microphones inside the Grand Ballroom of a premier Manhattan hotel. Her shoulder was heavily bandaged beneath an expensive tailored blazer, her makeup meticulously applied to make her appear pale, fragile, and utterly sympathetic.
""My sister, Maya, was abducted tonight by Arthur Sterling,"" Tanya spoke into the microphones, a single, perfectly timed tear rolling down her cheek. ""He is an unhinged corporate executive who used our family’s trust fund to stage an armed assault on my wedding. Federal authorities have already issued an international Red Notice for his arrest.""
Marcus sat beside her, silent, his arm in a sling, nodding solemnly to validate every word of her calculated fabrication.
""Arthur has weaponized the media,"" Gabriel muttered, watching the ticker run across the bottom of the screen. ""Dorian is using Tanya to force the federal government to hunt Arthur down, cutting off all our legal escape routes. If Arthur wakes up, he cannot step foot in the United States without being arrested or assassinated in custody.""
Maya stared at the screen. She looked at Tanya’s fabricated sorrow, at the smug arrogance hiding behind Marcus’s bruised face, and at the syndicate crest subtly pinned to the lapel of the federal agent standing behind them.
""They think I am a scared, fragile girl running away in a ruined wedding dress,"" Maya said, her voice dropping into a register of icy, absolute calm.
""Maya, you cannot go to New York,"" Gabriel warned, stepping between her and the door. ""It is a kill zone designed specifically to draw Arthur out.""
""Arthur isn't going to New York,"" Maya replied, turning her dark, resolute eyes on Gabriel. ""I am.""
""You have no leverage against them without Arthur’s private army,"" Gabriel insisted.
""I have something better,"" Maya said, pointing to the encrypted dossier on the table. ""I have the master biometric key. Dorian doesn't want Arthur dead in secret; he needs me alive in public to sign the transfer documents under the guise of an inheritance settlement. If I walk into that press conference, Tanya cannot shoot me without exposing the entire syndicate to the world.""
From the recovery room behind them, a weak, hoarse voice broke the silence.
""Maya... no...""
Arthur stood in the doorway, clutching the doorframe, his hospital gown stained with fresh antiseptic, his dark eyes filled with desperate, furious protest. ""I... I forbid it.""
May you like
Maya walked over to him, stepping close. She reached up, cupping his pale face in her hands, her touch firm and tender.
""You spent three years protecting me, Arthur,"" she whispered against his lips. ""Now, stay alive and watch me tear down their empire.""
