Chapter 10 - Bailey's Betrayal of Gerald
The room fell into a suffocating silence.
"What did she sign, Marcus?" Eleanor demanded, her voice dangerously low.
Before Vance could answer, the side door to his private office swung open.
Two junior detectives stepped inside, escorting Bailey Cole. But she wasn't smiling. She wasn't triumphant. She was clutching a worn leather notebook to her chest, her makeup smeared across her cheeks, trembling from head to toe.
"She didn't sign for me, Vance," a voice called out behind her.
Julian Vance stepped into the room—not as the arrogant groom who had humiliated me, but looking pale, exhausted, and accompanied by his own personal counsel.
"Julian?" Nathaniel said, surprised.
"I didn't know the extent of my father’s and uncle’s sickness," Julian said, his voice raw with regret as he looked directly at me. "When Bailey came to my apartment tonight begging me to take her back in exchange for stolen files, I finally saw the truth. My father and Marcus were using Gerald Cole to orchestrate a hostile takeover of Vanguard Design and frame Vanessa for municipal corruption."
Julian turned to Bailey, nodding gently.
Bailey stepped forward, her eyes avoiding mine as she dropped the leather notebook onto Vance’s marble desk.
"Dad kept a physical ledger," Bailey whispered, her voice choking on tears. "He didn't just forge Vanessa’s name on the loan. He recorded every single meeting he had with Marcus Vance’s associates over the last six months. Dad was scared Vance would double-cross him, so he taped every phone call."
Marcus Vance’s cold smirk vanished instantly. His hand twitched toward the notebook, but one of the state investigators slammed a heavy hand down on the leather cover.
"Don't touch that, Mr. Vance," the investigator commanded. "This is state evidence."
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"Bailey..." Vance whispered, his eyes flashing with lethal fury. "Do you have any idea what you've just done to your family?"
"My family is already dead!" Bailey screamed, breaking down completely into violent, racking sobs. "Dad ruined us! Mom lost her mind! Julian despises me! And Vanessa..." Bailey looked up, meeting my eyes for the first time in years without jealousy or contempt, but with utter, broken defeat. "...Vanessa was the only one who ever told me the truth, and I tried to drown her for it."
