Chapter 2 - The Iron Contract
Marcus Voss stepped confidently into the center of the ballroom with absolute arrogance radiating from his tailored suit.
He completely ignored the shocked, frantic whispers of the elite guests watching the dangerous confrontation unfold.
Leonard stepped fiercely protectively in front of Aria, his silver eyes narrowing into a deadly, dangerous glare.
"You have exactly ten seconds to leave this building before my men break your legs," Leonard warned coldly.
Marcus merely laughed a hollow laugh and slammed the thick leather folder onto a nearby crystal champagne table.
"You can throw me out onto the street, but you cannot invalidate a legally binding blood contract," Marcus sneered confidently.
He pulled a faded, heavily stamped legal document from the folder and held it up high for the recording cameras.
"Aria's biological parents signed away all rights to her revolutionary medical algorithm before they tragically died," Marcus announced loudly.
The elite crowd gasped as they realized Aria was the anonymous genius behind the century's most lucrative technological breakthrough.
Selena immediately regained her cruel, mocking confidence and stepped proudly back to her father's powerful side.
"That means every single patent she ever creates belongs completely to Voss Industries forever," Selena mocked loudly.
Aria stepped bravely out from behind Leonard's protective shadow, keeping her father's heavy jacket wrapped tightly around her.
"That contract was poorly forged, and you know it perfectly well," Aria stated with absolute, unshakable calm.
Marcus smiled wickedly and pulled a small digital remote control from his inner pocket.
He pressed a red button, and the massive projection screens around the ballroom suddenly flickered violently to life.
A highly realistic, flawless video began playing, showing Aria secretly handing a glowing hard drive over to Marcus.
"You sold out your own adopted father to me last night for a billion dollars, Aria," Marcus lied flawlessly to the horrified crowd.
Leonard looked at the massive screen, his brilliant mind frantically trying to understand the incredibly advanced deepfake technology.
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Aria reached deeply into her pocket to pull out her encrypted phone to prove the video was entirely fabricated.
Before she could even unlock the digital screen, the head of Leonard's own security detail suddenly drew his weapon and pointed it directly at Aria's head.
