Chapter 5 - Eleanor’s Mask Slips
Eleanor Vance’s pristine colonial home had always been her sanctuary—a grand symbol of generational wealth and social standing. But by Wednesday afternoon, that sanctuary felt like a prison.
The front gates were surrounded by local news vans, and her high-society friends had stopped answering her calls. Worse still, her bank accounts remained frozen. She couldn't even pay her landscaping crew.
"It's that little brat," Eleanor hissed to herself, pacing her marble foyer while clutching a glass of gin. "She thinks she can destroy my family? I built this name!"
Determined to end the nightmare, Eleanor bypassed Audrey’s legal team and drove her backup vehicle—an old station wagon registered under her maiden name—to the quiet safehouse apartment Audrey was using outside the city.
When Audrey opened the door, she wasn't wearing the terrified expression Eleanor expected. She wore a simple cream sweater, her dark hair pulled back, her bruise now faded to a pale yellow shade.
"How dare you!" Eleanor spat, forcing her way past the threshold before Audrey could shut the door. "How dare you put my son in a holding cell! Do you have any idea what you are doing to our family's legacy?!"
Audrey closed the door slowly and turned around, crossing her arms. "You shouldn't be here, Eleanor. The restraining order covers you, too."
"Restraining order?" Eleanor laughed bitterly, her refined mask dropping to reveal ugly, desperate venom. "You were nothing before Julian married you! A quiet, boring girl with a spreadsheet obsession! I gave you a place at our table! And how do you repay us? By dragging our name through the gutter over a couple of bruises and a minor financial transfer!"
"A minor transfer?" Audrey’s voice was cool, precise, and utterly devoid of fear. "Julian stole $450,000 from my personal accounts. And you used $200,000 of it to pay off the back-taxes on this very house so the city wouldn't put it up for auction."
Eleanor froze, her eyes widening slightly.
"Did you think I wouldn't find out, Eleanor?" Audrey continued, stepping closer. "I went through your family estate filings from five years ago. You’ve been broke for half a decade. You pushed Julian to marry me because you needed my salary and my pristine credit rating to keep your fake aristocratic lifestyle alive."
"You... you deceitful little rat—" Eleanor raised her hand to strike Audrey across the face.
Audrey caught Eleanor’s wrist mid-air with shocking strength. Her grip was ironclad.
"Touch me," Audrey whispered, her eyes burning like frozen steel, "and I promise you, the assault charge I add to your file today will ensure you share a cell block with your son."
Audrey shoved Eleanor’s hand back. Eleanor stumbled onto the sofa, trembling with rage and shock.
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"Get out of my apartment," Audrey said softly, pointing to the door. "And start packing your bags. Because when the federal court finishes liquidating your assets to pay back what you stole from me, you won't even own the clothes on your back."
Eleanor scrambled to her feet and fled into the hallway, her designer heels clicking frantically on the linoleum floor.
