Chapter 8 - Get OutEvelyn looked at the ownership plate.
“This hall was leased to us.”
Mr. Brooks nodded.
“Until midnight.”
Daniel stared at him.
“The wedding contract runs through tomorrow.”
“It was tied to the financing closing.”
Silence.
Without the deal, the Prescott family no longer had the right to remain.
The woman who had clapped twice while Emily sat on the floor now stood inside Emily’s property without a valid lease.
Emily did not smile.
She did not repeat Evelyn’s cruelty.
She simply said:
“You have one hour to remove your family documents.”
Evelyn stared.
“You are throwing us out of a wedding hall?”
“No.”
Emily looked toward the bridal chair.
“You ended the wedding.”
A pause.
“I am closing the transaction.”
The distinction was satisfying because it was true.
Daniel stepped closer.
“What about the guests?”
“They are gone.”
“The vendors?”
“My trust will pay them.”
His face changed.
The Prescotts had not even funded their own wedding invoices.
Emily continued:
“The staff will receive full wages.”
“The florist will be paid.”
“The musicians will be paid.”
“The caterers will be paid.”
She looked at Evelyn.
“The people who worked today will not suffer because your family lied.”
Mr. Brooks nodded.
Everything had already been arranged.
Vanessa removed a diamond bracelet Evelyn had given her that morning.
She placed it on the bridal chair.
“I don’t want this.”
Evelyn looked disgusted.
“You wanted everything else.”
Vanessa’s eyes filled.
“I wanted a family that chose me.”
Silence.
Emily understood that too.
Vanessa had mistaken selection for love.
The Prescotts had mistaken Emily’s loyalty for weakness.
Daniel had mistaken control for commitment.
Then his phone rang.
The board vote had concluded.
Six directors supported accepting the collateral transfer.
Two abstained.
Only Evelyn opposed it.
At midnight, the Bennett trust would become Prescott Hotels’ largest voting shareholder.
Evelyn whispered:
“This family will never answer to you.”
Emily looked at her.
“That is the problem.”
Silence.
“You believe answering to anyone is humiliation.”
Then Mr. Brooks approached Daniel.
“Sir, the venue security archive contains a recording relevant to the board.”
Daniel went pale.
“What recording?”
“Your conversation with Mrs. Prescott before the ceremony.”
Emily stared.
May you like
Daniel looked toward his mother.
And Evelyn’s fear revealed that Vanessa’s press release had not been their worst plan.
