Chapter 8 - The House of Cards Falls
Eleanor’s security detail moved in, but they hesitated. The evidence was literally in Seraphina's hands, and the identical twins standing side-by-side on the ballroom floor was a visual confirmation no NDA could cover up.
"Clear the room!" Eleanor shrieked, the polished, elegant matriarch replaced by a cornered, feral animal. "All of you, get out!"
As the elite guests scrambled for the exits, whispering furiously, Eleanor turned on the twins. She drew a small, silver revolver from her evening bag, pointing it directly at Seraphina.
"I gave you everything," Eleanor sneered, tears ruining her expensive mascara. "I gave you a life of luxury, of power! You would have been nothing but a starving rat in the gutter like her, and this is how you repay me?!"
"You didn't save me," Seraphina said, stepping in front of Lyra, shielding her sister. "You stole me to secure a bank account."
"And what did you do to Arthur?" Lyra shouted from behind Seraphina, her street-honed survival instincts kicking in as she scanned the room for a weapon. "Where is our father?!"
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Eleanor laughed, a dry, broken sound. "Arthur? Oh, Arthur got too brave. He sent you away, Lyra, right before he came to my office demanding his daughter back. He threatened to go to the police. So, I had him handled. He's at the bottom of the bay."
A heavy, suffocating grief slammed into Lyra, but it was instantly swallowed by blinding rage. She wasn't just fighting for her future anymore; she was fighting to avenge the only parent who had ever loved her.
