Chapter 14 - The Unfortunate Rival
The grand,
opulent ballroom of the most exclusive,
expensive hotel in the massive,
bustling city was completely,
utterly filled with the wealthiest,
most powerful,
and incredibly influential elite in the entire,
sprawling society.
It was the highly anticipated,
massive annual charity gala hosted proudly,
generously by the invincible,
unstoppable Vance family foundation.
I stood elegantly,
gracefully near the massive,
glittering crystal chandelier,
holding a tall,
slender crystal flute of incredibly,
ridiculously expensive vintage champagne in my delicate,
gloved hand.
I was wearing a stunning,
custom-made silver gown that shimmered brightly,
beautifully under the harsh,
glaring lights,
making me look exactly,
precisely like a true,
untouchable queen of a vast,
endless empire.
Eleanor was currently,
happily entertaining a small,
exclusive group of incredibly,
powerful foreign dignitaries,
leaving me to independently,
confidently manage the massive,
swirling crowd of greedy,
sycophantic socialites.
Arthur Pendelton,
the completely,
utterly disgraced former billionaire I had ruthlessly,
publicly destroyed just two short,
busy weeks ago,
suddenly,
unexpectedly pushed his way forcefully,
rudely through the elegant,
well-dressed crowd.
He looked completely,
absolutely terrible,
his once-expensive,
tailored suit now looking slightly,
noticeably rumpled,
his face flushed heavily,
darkly with pure,
unadulterated rage and heavy,
excessive alcohol consumption.
"You think you are so incredibly,
untouchably perfect,
don't you,
you little,
arrogant brat!"
Arthur slurred loudly,
aggressively,
causing the entire,
massive ballroom to instantly,
shockingly fall into a dead,
heavy silence.
My massive,
intimidating security team immediately,
swiftly stepped forward to physically,
forcefully remove him,
but I simply,
calmly raised one delicate,
gloved hand,
silently,
instantly ordering them to completely,
absolutely stand down.
"Arthur,"
I said quietly,
smoothly,
my voice carrying easily,
effortlessly through the completely,
silent,
staring crowd.
"You are heavily,
embarrassingly intoxicated,
and you are currently,
blatantly embarrassing yourself in front of the entire,
civilized world."
Arthur let out a loud,
ugly,
and incredibly bitter laugh,
pointing a shaky,
trembling finger directly,
rudely at my beautiful,
calm face.
"I dug deeply,
thoroughly into your hidden,
pathetic past,
Clara!"
he shouted loudly,
triumphantly,
foolishly,
wrongly believing he finally,
miraculously held a powerful,
destructive trump card.
"I know exactly,
precisely where you came from,
and I know all about your dirty,
miserable childhood in those cheap,
abusive foster homes!"
He looked around the large,
silent room wildly,
desperately,
trying to loudly,
publicly incite a massive,
embarrassing scandal.
"She is not true,
noble royalty,
she is just a cheap,
discarded piece of complete,
utter trash that Eleanor Vance foolishly,
blindly picked up off the dirty,
ruined streets!"
Instead of gasping in shock,
horror,
or sudden,
scandalous outrage,
the entire,
wealthy crowd simply stared at him in pure,
unadulterated silence,
their expressions filled completely,
entirely with extreme,
uncomfortable pity.
I took a slow,
calm,
and incredibly graceful step forward,
closing the small,
tense distance between us until I was standing directly,
intimidatingly in front of his flushed,
sweaty face.
"You are absolutely,
completely correct,
Arthur,"
I stated loudly,
clearly,
refusing completely,
absolutely to hide from the dark,
painful shadows of my difficult,
tragic past.
"I grew up completely,
utterly alone,
bounced roughly,
cruelly from one terrible,
abusive home to another,
wearing cheap,
second-hand clothes and eating cold,
stale food."
I smiled softly,
coldly,
a terrifying,
predatory expression that made him physically,
visibly flinch backward in sudden,
abrupt fear.
"And yet,
despite every single,
terrible disadvantage I was unfairly,
cruelly handed by this dark,
unforgiving world,
I still managed to completely,
systematically,
and absolutely destroy your entire,
massive corporate empire in a single,
effortless afternoon."
The crowd let out a low,
collective murmur of deep,
profound awe and massive,
undeniable respect.
"You were born entirely,
completely into massive,
unearned privilege,
Arthur,
and you still somehow,
pathetically managed to lose absolutely,
completely everything,"
I whispered softly,
deadly,
leaning in close so only his terrified,
ringing ears could hear my final,
devastating words.
"I am a survivor,
a fighter,
and a true,
unstoppable Vance,
and you are completely,
utterly nothing."
I stepped back gracefully,
smoothly,
snapping my delicate,
gloved fingers exactly,
precisely once.
The massive,
intimidating security team moved swiftly,
ruthlessly,
grabbing Arthur roughly,
forcefully by his weak,
trembling arms,
dragging him completely,
embarrassingly out of the grand,
opulent ballroom as he screamed loudly,
uselessly into the cold,
dark night.
I turned back smoothly,
calmly to my incredibly,
ridiculously wealthy guests,
raising my tall,
crystal flute elegantly,
gracefully into the bright,
glaring light.
"Please,
everyone,
continue to thoroughly,
happily enjoy this beautiful,
wonderful evening,"
I announced smoothly,
warmly,
and the entire,
massive room instantly,
May you like
joyfully erupted into loud,
thunderous applause.
