Chapter 7 - The Ledger of Sins
I reached into the pocket of my cardigan and pulled out a small, leather-bound notebook—the private record I had kept during my three years of marriage to Richard. Every cruel word, every financial threat, every midnight abandonment, and every physical bruise meticulously documented with dates, times, and medical notes.
I dropped the book onto the floor right in front of Richard’s knees.
"Read it," I commanded.
Richard swallowed hard, his trembling fingers picking up the journal. He flipped open the cover, his eyes scanning the horrifying catalog of his own cruelty.
"You... you kept track of everything?" he whispered, horrified.
"Every single drop of poison you poured into my life," I replied evenly. "And unlike your corporate ledgers, Richard, these accounts can't be cooked or erased by a high-priced lawyer."
Jax stepped forward, kicking the notebook out of Richard’s hands so it slid across the floor. He grabbed Richard by the collar of his shirt and hauled him up to his feet, slamming him against the grand staircase banister.
"Here’s how this is going to go," Jax said, his voice deadly calm. "First, you are going to sign over one hundred percent of your shares in Sterling Logistics to our sister, effective immediately. Second, you are going to record a full video confession detailing every instance of physical and psychological abuse you inflicted upon her over the last thirty-six months."
"I won't do it!" Richard cried out, thrashing weakly in Jax’s iron grip. "That would destroy me! I'd lose everything!"
Kael stepped up beside Thomas, still holding him against the wall, and tightened his grip slightly. "You've already lost everything, Richard. The only question left is whether you lose your teeth before you sign the paperwork, or after."
From his tactical vest, Jax produced a sleek, encrypted tablet and a digital stylus, thrusting them into Richard’s shaking hands.
"Sign," Jax ordered.
May you like
Richard looked around the room for help, but his family was completely paralyzed. Eleanor was weeping silently into her hands; Thomas was gasping for air against the wall; Jessica was curled into a ball on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.
With shaking, tear-blurred eyes, Richard pressed the stylus to the glass screen, signing away his empire, his wealth, and his fake aristocratic legacy with a few strokes of digital ink.
