Chapter 5 - The Empire Strikes Back
Victoria Sterling was not a woman who went down without a vicious fight.
By Monday morning, she had hired a ruthless crisis PR firm. They went on the offensive, attempting to discredit me. They leaked fake stories to tabloid sites, claiming I was a gold-digger who tried to extort the Sterlings for a massive prenuptial payout and framed them when they refused.
They even hired private investigators to dig into my father’s small hardware business, looking for any mud they could sling.
"They’re calling you a disgruntled, hysterical ex-fiancée on the morning news," Chloe warned me, pacing around our living room.
I was sitting at my laptop, calmly sipping green tea. "Let them talk. Victoria thinks this is a PR war. She doesn't understand that this is a legal execution."
I made one phone call to the lead federal prosecutor handling the incoming Sterling case. "They are trying to destroy my credibility," I told him. "Do you have enough to move forward?"
May you like
"Ms. Vance," the prosecutor said, a smile evident in his voice. "Your documentation was the most pristine, neatly organized evidence file I have seen in twenty years. We aren't just moving forward. We are executing the warrants tomorrow morning."
I closed my laptop. Victoria had spent forty-eight hours trying to save her image. She should have spent it packing a bag.
