Chapter 15 - THE MERCY OF A QUEEN
Marcus lay coughing on the wet stone, clutching his broken nose with his left hand.
His eyes burned with pure malice as he looked up at his sister.
"Go ahead... finish it," Marcus spat, blood staining his white teeth.
"Kill your own brother."
"Show the board you're just as much of a monster as I am."
Behind them, the balcony glass door slid open.
Sofia stepped out onto the rainy terrace.
Her tactical suit was wet, her hair plastered to her forehead.
In her right hand, she dragged Arthur Sterling by his collar.
Arthur was screaming in agony, his broken leg dragging along the floor like a useless rag.
"I brought the trash out, Elena," Sofia said coldly, tossing Arthur down onto the wet tiles next to Marcus.
Arthur curled into a ball, weeping frantically.
"Sofia! Please! I raised you!" Arthur begged, grabbing at her boots.
"I gave you everything! The clothes! The cars! The life!"
Sofia looked down at him, her eyes completely dead.
"You gave me a life built on murder and lies," Sofia said quietly.
"You tried to burn me alive three hours ago."
"I am not your daughter."
"And you are nothing to me."
Sofia looked at Elena, raising her pistol.
"Do we end them both now?" Sofia asked.
The board members, who had slowly crept toward the balcony doors, watched in absolute silence.
The twelve billionaires were completely terrified.
They waited to see if Elena Vance would execute her own blood in front of them.
Elena looked down at Marcus.
Then she looked at Arthur.
She slowly sheathed her titanium blade back into her tactical vest.
"No," Elena said smoothly.
"Death is too easy for men like them."
The board members gasped.
Marcus narrowed his eyes, confused.
"What?" Marcus growled.
"I am stripping you of every asset, every account, and every title," Elena announced, her voice echoing over the balcony.
"As of this moment, Marcus Vance and Arthur Sterling do not exist in the financial world."
"Their passports are revoked."
"Their bank accounts are frozen."
"Their identities are completely erased."
Elena turned to face the terrified board members standing in the doorway.
"If any of you give these two men a single dollar, a single piece of bread, or a dry place to sleep..."
"...I will consider it a declaration of war against the Vance Syndicate."
"And you know how I handle war."
The board members nodded frantically, eager to save their own skin.
"Understood, Lady Vance!" one old director stammered.
"They are dead to us!" another shouted.
Elena walked over to Arthur and Marcus.
She reached down and ripped Arthur’s expensive diamond watch from his wrist.
She took Marcus’s signet ring from his hand.
"Now get out of my penthouse," Elena commanded softly.
"Crawl down the stairs."
"Walk into the rain."
"And live the rest of your lives as the nobodies you truly are."
Arthur began to weep hysterically, dragging his broken body toward the balcony exit.
Marcus glared at Elena with burning hatred, but he knew he was completely defeated.
He had no money. No power. No allies.
He slowly pulled himself up using the wall and limped away into the dark hallway, a broken man.
Sofia stood beside Elena, watching them crawl away.
"Is it really over?" Sofia asked softly.
Elena turned to look at her niece.
May you like
"No," Elena said, a subtle smile touching her lips.
"Now we have an empire to clean up."
