Chapter 8 - Vivian’s Retaliation
While we worked inside Sterling’s fortified office, Vivian Vance was not sitting idle. A cornered predator is at its most lethal, and Vivian had spent forty years mastering the art of social and financial destruction.
At 1:00 p.m., my phone buzzed with an urgent news alert from the Charlotte Business Journal:
“BREAKING: Vance Global Holdings Announces Emergency Internal Audit; CEO Marcus Vance Placed on Administrative Leave Amid Allegations of Embezzlement and Extortion by Estranged Spouse.”
I clicked the link. Vivian’s public relations team had launched a full-scale smear campaign.
The press release claimed that I, Nia Vance, had fabricated audio recordings and manipulated internal family systems to blackmail the Vance family for an exorbitant divorce settlement. It quoted an unnamed "family source" claiming Marcus was suffering from severe psychological trauma and was being coerced by my family.
Minutes later, my personal bank accounts were frozen.
My mother called in a panic. “Nia! Two private investigators are parked outside my house taking photographs! They’ve been knocking on the neighbors’ doors asking slanderous questions about you!”
“Mom, don't open the door,” I instructed, keeping my voice level. “Arthur Sterling has already dispatched a private security detail to your house. They will be there in ten minutes to secure the perimeter and escort you to a safe location.”
“Be careful, Nia,” Elena pleaded. “Vivian is fighting for her survival. She won't stop at slander.”
She was right.
At 3:30 p.m., Marcus received a direct text from an unknown encrypted number:
“Marcus, darling. Look at the attached video before you make a mistake you can never undo.”
Marcus tapped the file.
The video showed a surveillance feed of a quiet rehabilitation clinic in Asheville, North Carolina. Inside a sunlit garden, a seven-year-old boy in a wheelchair was tossing a ball with a physical therapist.
It was Leo Davis—the surviving child from the 2018 crash.
Attached was a voice note from Vivian:
“You think you’re so brave, Marcus. If those federal files are released, the trust that pays for young Leo’s twenty-four-hour specialized medical care and life support will be instantly frozen by the courts. His treatment will terminate immediately. His mother died because of our family. Do you really want to be the reason that little boy loses his medical care and dies in a state ward? Bring me the hard drive by midnight, or I cut the funding to the clinic before dawn.”
Marcus slammed his fist onto the conference table, cracking the glass coaster. “She’s using a disabled child as a human shield!”
Sterling stood up, his jaw clenched. “This is extortion and witness intimidation. It’s a federal felony on top of everything else.”
“We can't let that boy suffer, Marcus,” I said, walking over to him, placing my hands on his trembling shoulders. “Vivian wants us to panic. She wants you to fold like you did seven years ago. But you are not that helpless boy anymore.”
Marcus looked up at me, his breathing ragged. “What do we do, Nia?”
“We protect Leo ourselves,” I said firmly. “Marcus, how much liquid capital do you have in your independent personal accounts—the ones outside the Vance Family Trust?”
Marcus blinked. “Around eight million dollars in private tech venture funds.”
“Then we set up an irrevocable, fully funded blind medical trust for Leo Davis right now,” I said, turning to Sterling. “Arthur, can you draft an emergency escrow agreement transferring full lifetime medical coverage for Leo, completely independent of Vance Global Holdings?”
Sterling’s eyes gleamed with admiration. “I can have it executed and deposited with the Asheville clinic’s board within two hours. Vivian’s leverage will be pulverized before dinner.”
May you like
Marcus looked at me, a profound look of awe and love washing over his face. He pulled me into his arms, burying his face in my neck. “Thank you,” he whispered. “Thank you for saving my soul, Nia.”
“We’re finishing this together, Marcus,” I whispered back. “Tomorrow, we take back your life.”
