Chapter 4 - The Arrest
At eight o'clock the following morning, the sun rose over the Vale family estate—a sprawling twenty-acre property in the most exclusive enclave of the city.
The front gates were surrounded by iron fencing, manicured lawns, and ancient oak trees. Inside the grand dining room, Victor, Celeste, Adrian, and Sienna were sitting at a mahogany table, eating breakfast served by silent house staff.
Adrian wore a white linen shirt, his hand bandaged from where he had scraped it against the gift table the night before. Sienna sat beside him, casually sipping orange juice while browsing a luxury shopping app on her tablet.
"We need to speed up the divorce proceedings," Victor said, slicing his steak with a silver knife. "I spoke to our attorney this morning. Since Mara has no family to back her and no financial resources to sustain a long legal battle, we’ll offer her a lump sum of two hundred thousand dollars to surrender full custody and sign a non-disclosure agreement."
"Two hundred thousand?" Celeste scoffed, dabbing her lips with a napkin. "That’s far too generous, Victor. Fifty thousand is more than enough for a woman of her background. She should be grateful we aren't suing her for ruining the shower decorations."
Sienna giggled. "I already booked the venue for our engagement party, Adrian. The Four Seasons penthouse. It’s going to cost a fortune, but my father said he’ll cover half as long as your father finalizes the harbor tower deal this week."
"Don't worry about the money, baby," Adrian said, leaning over to kiss Sienna’s cheek. "Mara will sign whatever we put in front of her. She’s weak. She’s always been weak. One night of crying in a hospital bed, and she’ll realize she has no choice."
Before Sienna could reply, the heavy wooden front doors of the estate echoed with three violent, booming knocks.
"Who the hell is that at this hour?" Victor grumbled, motioning to the butler. "Tell whoever it is that we don't accept unannounced visitors."
The butler walked toward the foyer, but before he could reach the handle, the double doors were thrust open.
Six uniformed officers from the Metro Police Department stepped into the grand foyer, led by Detective Miller—a stern, sharp-eyed investigator with the Domestic Violence Task Force. Behind them stood two process servers carrying thick leather folders.
Victor stood up, slamming his napkin onto the table. "What is the meaning of this insolence?! Do you know who I am?!"
Detective Miller ignored Victor entirely, walking straight into the dining room. His eyes swept over the breakfast spread, settling directly on Adrian.
"Adrian Vale?" Miller asked, pulling a set of steel handcuffs from his belt.
Adrian blinked, his arrogant smile flickering for a fraction of a second. "Yes. What is this nonsense?"
"Adrian Vale, you are under arrest for Aggravated Domestic Assault, Battery on a Pregnant Person, and Criminal Coercion," Miller stated in a loud, clear voice that echoed through the high ceilings.
Celeste shrieked, dropping her crystal coffee cup onto the Persian rug, shattering it into pieces. "Are you insane?! On whose authority?!"
"On the authority of the District Attorney’s office, ma'am," Miller replied, stepping around the table and grabbing Adrian’s arm. "Turn around and put your hands behind your back."
"Get your filthy hands off me!" Adrian yelled, trying to yank his arm away. "My father is Victor Vale! I'll have your badge by noon!"
"You can talk to your father from the central booking facility, Mr. Vale," Miller said coolly. With a swift, practiced movement, he forced Adrian’s arms behind his back and clicked the cuffs shut.
Sienna stood up, her face pale. "You can't arrest him! He’s the CEO of Vale Development! We have a party to plan!"
One of the process servers stepped forward, ignoring Sienna completely, and handed two thick blue folders to Victor.
"Victor Vale," the process server announced. "You are hereby served with an emergency restraining order on behalf of Mara Ashford-Vale. You, your wife, and your representatives are prohibited from coming within five hundred feet of Mrs. Ashford-Vale or her medical team."
"Ashford-Vale?" Victor spat, glaring at the document. "Her name is just Vale! She’s a nobody!"
"Read the second document, Mr. Vale," the server added calmly. "That is an official notice of default and acceleration from Aegis Capital Management. You have sixty minutes to deliver five million dollars in liquid cash to their trust account, or Aegis will initiate an immediate administrative takeover of Vale Holdings."
Victor’s face drained of all color. The document slipped from his trembling hands, fluttering down onto the stain-covered rug.
May you like
"Aegis...?" Victor whispered, his voice suddenly sounding hollow, weak, and old. "How does Aegis know about this?"
"They don't just know about it, Mr. Vale," Detective Miller said as he began dragging a swearing, struggling Adrian out the front door. "They ordered it."
