Chapter 9 - The Fall of the Thornes
The crystal-clear audio recording filled the silent ballroom.
It was the conversation from the pantry—Camille’s voice furiously berating the supervisor, demanding the stolen ledger, and explicitly referencing her plan to sabotage the ladder in the gallery.
"I sawed the rung just like you said... You incompetent fool! Now he's got guards on the east wing..."
The guests gasped in horror. Senator Thorne’s face drained of all color, turning a sickly shade of gray.
"That's a fake!" Camille screamed, backing away as whispers erupted around her. "It's a fabrication! He made it up to ruin my father’s campaign!"
"It isn't a fake, Miss Thorne," Marco’s voice cut in from the perimeter of the room. He stepped forward accompanied by four federal agents in dark suits. "And your supervisor has already signed a full confession detailing five years of illegal extortion, corporate espionage, and attempted murder."
The lead federal agent stepped up to Senator Thorne. "Senator Richard Thorne, you and your daughter are under arrest for conspiracy, extortion, and bribery. Come with us."
"You can't do this to me! Do you know who I am?!" Senator Thorne raged as the silver handcuffs clicked around his wrists.
Camille began to weep hysterically, her polished facade completely crumbling as the agents led her away past the crowd of onlookers who had once been her closest friends.
As the commotion cleared and the security team escorted the disgraced family out of the hotel, the ballroom slowly returned to a stunned silence.
Alio turned to face Adeline. He took both of her hands in his, ignoring the gaze of every powerful person in the city.
"I promised to protect you," Alio said softly, his dark eyes filled with a raw warmth she had never seen before. "I am sorry it took this long to clean the filth from my house."
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Adeline looked up at him, her eyes misting with tears of relief. "You saved me, Alio. In the gallery... and every day since."
Alio raised her uninjured hand to his lips, kissing her knuckles gently. "You saved yourself, Adeline. You showed more courage standing on that broken ladder than any man in this room."
