Chapter 13 - The Poisoned Well
By Thursday night, twenty-four hours before the appellate hearing, the Vance estate had transformed into a fortress.
Armed security teams patrolled the perimeter fences every thirty minutes. Inside the great library, legal documents, bank statements, and encrypted data drives littered the ten-foot conference table.
Elena sat beside Marcus, typing rapidly on her laptop. Her eyes burned from lack of sleep, but the adrenaline running through her veins kept her razor-sharp.
"The Chicago clinic wasn't Julian's idea," Elena said suddenly, pointing her screen toward Marcus. "Look at the offshore wire routing from five years ago. The initial three-million-dollar funding for the unlicensed surrogate lab didn't come from Julian's shell company. It originated from a private trust in Zurich under the name Helios Management."
Marcus leaned over her shoulder, his jaw tightening as he traced the digital routing numbers with his finger. "Helios Management is Madeline’s offshore holding fund. She set up the entire illegal surrogacy network before Victoria even married me."
"Why would she do that?" Elena asked, turning to him in disbelief.
"Because my grandfather's trust stipulation had a clause," Marcus whispered, the realization hitting him like cold iron. "If I died without a direct biological heir, sixty percent of the Vance estate's voting shares would automatically revert to my spouse's family. Madeline knew Victoria was infertile. She orchestrated the surrogacy using my genetic material and an unvetted donor to manufacture an heir she could manipulate."
"She didn't just want custody of Leo," Elena gasped, her stomach turning. "She wanted total control of the Vance empire. Victoria was just her pawn!"
Suddenly, the lights in the grand library flickered violently once, twice, and then plunged the entire estate into pitch-black darkness.
The heavy hum of the central heating died instantly.
Elena shot to her feet, knocking her chair backward. "Marcus—the power grid!"
Marcus instantly drew his weapon from beneath his jacket, hitting the speed dial on his phone. The screen flashed NO SERVICE.
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"Cellular jammers," Marcus muttered, his voice dropping into absolute lethal focus. "The security perimeter just went down. Elena, get to the nursery right now!"
Before Elena could take a step toward the library doors, the heavy glass French doors leading out to the rear terrace shattered inward with a deafening blast.
