Chapter 2 - The House of Cards
For a long, agonizing moment, the only sound in the room was the muffled bass of the techno music playing downstairs.
Adrian’s mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air. "You? You're Valkyrie? No. No, that’s impossible. Valkyrie is a Swiss-backed institutional debt fund run by an investment board. You're... you're just Mara."
"I am Mara," I agreed, slowly reaching up to wipe a smudge of dirt and my own blood from my cheek. "And Mara’s family trust funded your entire existence. Did you really think I’d let a petulant child play with my family’s money without keeping him on a leash?"
"You're lying," Vanessa spat, stepping in front of Adrian as if she could shield him from the truth. "She's bluffing, Adrian! She's a hysterical, pregnant housewife who hasn't left this bed in months. She probably looked at your emails while you were asleep. She doesn't have the brains to run a fund like that."
I didn't even look at Vanessa. To me, she was a non-entity, a temporary parasite that would be washed away the moment the host died.
"Call your chief legal counsel, Adrian," I said calmly. "Ask him who signed the authorization for the immediate seizure of Apex Crest’s assets at exactly 9:14 PM tonight."
Adrian’s hands were shaking so badly he could barely input his passcode. He tapped the contact for Marcus, his head of legal and his closest friend since college. He put the call on speaker.
It rang once. Marcus picked up on the first second, his voice tight, breathless, and absolutely panicked.
"Adrian? Thank God. Where the hell are you?"
"Marcus, what's going on?" Adrian choked out. "I just got an automated notice about a hostile margin call from Valkyrie. It says they’ve taken control of my voting shares. Tell me it's a system glitch. Tell me we can freeze it."
"It's not a glitch, Adrian," Marcus said, his voice cracking. "It’s a massacre. I don't know how, but Valkyrie executed a unilateral debt-to-equity swap. They bought up our secondary debt from the Delaware banks last week, and they just triggered a default clause based on your personal solvency."
"My personal solvency?" Adrian screamed, his voice echoing off the high ceilings. "I'm worth fifty million dollars on paper!"
"Not anymore," Marcus groaned. "Your personal real estate portfolio, including the penthouse you're standing in, was cross-collateralized against the Apex Crest launch loan. Valkyrie just called the loan. They've already filed the transfer of deeds with the city. Adrian... they own your house. They own your cars. They own your carry-interest pool. As of five minutes ago, you don't even have a seat on your own board."
Adrian's phone slipped from his hand, bouncing off the plush rug. Marcus’s voice continued to tinny out of the speaker.
"Adrian? Are you there? We need to issue a statement. The board is calling an emergency meeting in ten minutes. Adrian!"
Adrian didn't answer. He was staring at me, his eyes wide with a horror so profound it was almost beautiful. The god of venture capital, the golden boy of the Manhattan elite, had just been stripped naked in front of his own court.
"Why?" he whispered, his voice trembling. "Why would you do this? We're married, Mara. If I go down, you go down! Your twins—"
"Do not speak about my children," I interrupted, my voice dropping to a dangerous, freezing register. "You kicked their mother in the back. You dragged me across the floor while they fought for survival inside me. You thought you could abuse me, humiliate me, and use my body as a vessel while you flaunted your mistress in my home."
I slowly pushed myself up to a standing position. A wave of dizziness washed over me, and I had to grip the bedpost to keep from falling. I felt a warm dampness between my thighs. Panic flared in my chest, but I suppressed it, forcing my body to obey my will. I had to finish this.
"This isn't your home, Adrian," I said, looking around the beautifully decorated master suite. "This penthouse was bought with my grandfather's money, leased to Apex Crest, and subleased to you. And as of ten minutes ago, your lease has been terminated for breach of conduct."
Vanessa’s face went completely white. She looked down at the champagne glass in her hand as if it had suddenly turned into poison, quickly setting it down on a nearby table. "Adrian... what is she saying? We have to leave?"
"Get out," I said to her.
Vanessa stepped back, her eyes darting between Adrian and me. "Adrian, do something! Tell her she can't do this!"
But Adrian was frozen. The realization of his absolute ruin was settling into his bones.
Downstairs, the music suddenly cut out. The heavy, thumping bass was replaced by a confused murmur of voices, followed by the sharp, authoritative sound of security guards shouting.
May you like
"What is that?" Adrian whispered.
"That," I said, pulling a silk robe over my shoulders and tying it loosely over my pregnant belly, "is my security team. They are currently clearing your guests out of my building."
