Chapter 10 - The Spectacle of Despair
The massive screen shifted seamlessly from the financial documents to a crystal-clear,
high-definition security video from the mansion's living room.
The date stamped in the corner proved it was only two days ago,
the very day they threw me out into the cold.
The entire ballroom of billionaires,
politicians,
and socialites stood in absolute,
horrified silence as they watched the video play out in enormous proportions above their heads.
They saw Evelyn sneering,
calling me a useless,
barren beggar,
and they watched in collective shock as Daniel raised his hand,
striking me violently across the face with enough force to snap my head to the side.
A collective gasp of outrage and disgust ripped through the elegant crowd,
and several prominent women covered their mouths in horror,
glaring down at the pathetic,
shivering figures of Daniel and Evelyn.
"This is the reality of the Sterling family,"
I proclaimed powerfully,
my voice echoing off the grand,
gilded walls of the ballroom,
"they build their false thrones on the backs of others,
they drain the life and resources of those who care for them,
and they respond to kindness with brutal,
unforgivable violence."
Daniel was curled into a tight,
miserable ball on the expensive carpet,
his hands covering his face as he sobbed loudly,
the weight of his public annihilation finally crushing his fragile,
egotistical mind.
Evelyn,
however,
was completely unhinged,
her eyes wide and manic,
her cheap thrift-store dress clinging awkwardly to her shaking frame.
"It's a lie!"
Evelyn screamed hysterically,
pointing a trembling,
accusing finger at the massive screen,
"she edited that video,
she is a manipulative,
lying snake who stole our fortune,
someone arrest her!"
But nobody moved,
nobody offered her a shred of sympathy,
they simply stared at her with deep,
unwavering contempt.
The mayor himself,
a man who used to attend Evelyn's Sunday dinners regularly,
stepped forward from the crowd,
his face a mask of pure disgust.
"You sicken me,
Evelyn,"
the mayor spat coldly,
turning his back on her,
"you and your cowardly son are hereby banned from every respectable establishment in this city,
you are an absolute disgrace."
The rejection from her most prized social connection was the final,
fatal blow to Evelyn's fragile,
delusional reality.
She stumbled backward,
her breathing rapid and shallow,
clutching her chest as she looked wildly around the room,
finding nothing but hostile,
judging eyes staring back at her.
"Daniel,"
she gasped,
kicking her son weakly in the ribs,
"Daniel,
get up,
do something,
defend your mother!"
But Daniel didn't look at me,
he didn't look at the crowd,
he slowly lifted his tear-stained,
broken face and looked directly at his mother with a hatred so pure and venomous it made the air turn ice cold.
"Defend you?"
Daniel whispered,
his voice raw and shaking with absolute,
unfiltered rage,
as he slowly staggered to his feet.
"This is all your fault,
you stupid,
arrogant,
greedy old woman!"
The crowd watched in silent fascination as the two former socialites turned on each other like starving,
rabid wolves.
"How dare you speak to me that way!"
Evelyn screeched,
slapping him weakly across the shoulder,
"I gave you everything,
I made you who you are!"
"You made me a beggar!"
Daniel roared,
his voice cracking,
pushing her away with such force that she stumbled and nearly fell to the floor.
"You pushed her,
you insulted her every single day,
you made me hit her to protect your pathetic pride,
and now I have lost billions of dollars because you couldn't keep your toxic mouth shut!"
He turned toward the grand exit,
tears streaming down his face,
his gray,
cheap suit wrinkled and stained with sweat.
"I hate you,"
he sobbed,
not looking back at his mother,
"I never want to see your face again,
you ruined my life,
you ruined everything."
Daniel practically ran out of the ballroom,
bursting through the heavy oak doors,
disappearing into the dark,
cold night,
leaving his mother standing completely alone in the center of the room.
Evelyn looked around,
her lower lip trembling,
the realization of her total isolation finally sinking in.
She looked up at me,
standing on the marble staircase,
looking down at her with the cold,
merciless eyes of a conqueror.
I didn't smile,
I didn't gloat,
I simply raised my glass of vintage champagne,
taking a slow,
satisfying sip,
watching as the security guards stepped forward to drag her out of the building.
The empire was mine,
May you like
the revenge was absolute,
and the parasites were finally,
