Chapter 4 - Stripped Bare
Tessa’s eyes widened with sudden panic as she looked at Cole. "Cole? What is he talking about? What paper trail?"
"Quiet, Tessa!" Cole hissed, his forehead breaking out in a cold sweat. He stepped toward the table, reaching for the folder, but Vance, the lawyer, slid it back out of his reach.
"As of 7:30 AM today," Vance announced calmly, "all corporate line-of-credit cards issued to Cole Marston have been canceled. The lease on his penthouse apartment—which was held under Marston Holdings—has been terminated. Furthermore, the state prosecutor’s office has issued a freeze order on all accounts associated with Tessa’s Design Group."
Tessa gasped, clutching her designer handbag to her chest. "Freeze order?! You can't freeze my accounts! That's my money!"
"It’s not your money, Tessa," I said, stepping out from behind Adrian’s chair and looking my sister dead in the eyes. "It’s the money Cole stole from my mother’s trust. The trust that was supposed to pay off the mortgage on our family home."
"You jealous bitch!" Tessa shrieked, taking an aggressive step toward me. "You ruined everything because Cole didn't want you! You couldn't handle that he loved me more!"
Before Tessa could reach me, Adrian moved. In a split second, he was standing directly in front of me, his physical presence blocking Tessa completely.
"Touch her," Adrian whispered, his dark eyes gleaming with a terrifying intensity, "and I will have the port authorities impound every vehicle, asset, and piece of property your family has ever owned before noon."
Tessa recoiled as if she had been slapped.
Cole grabbed Tessa’s arm, pulling her back, his voice trembling with desperation. "Adrian... please. We’re brothers. You can't do this to me over a girl. Emma means nothing to you!"
"Emma was your fiancée for three years," Adrian said, his voice dropping into a dark, echoing register. "You humiliated her. You stole from her. You treated her like trash in front of the entire city. And you brought shame to the Marston name."
Adrian leaned forward, pressing his hands flat against the mahogany table. "You have two hours to clear your personal belongings out of this building, Cole. If you are still on Marston property by ten o'clock, security will throw you into the street in handcuffs."
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"You can't do this!" Cole yelled, his composure completely shattering. "Where am I supposed to go?! Where are we supposed to live?!"
"I hear the cheap motels near the highway take cash," Adrian said coldly. "If you have any left."
