“Miss Vance, you were scheduled to be away for a full week, so did something go wrong?” he asked gently.
“Plans have changed, George, so take me to the Vance headquarters and call Attorney Bradley from legal to gather his team in my office by two o’clock,” I said while opening my tablet.
He nodded firmly and pressed down on the gas pedal.
I opened an encrypted document on my screen, which was a divorce filing I had prepared two years ago during a dark moment but never had the courage to sign. Aaron was a self-made entrepreneur built on the secret foundation of my family’s wealth. To protect his pride, I had stayed in the background acting like an ordinary socialite while he gave interviews to major magazines. I thought my quietness was love, but Aaron had convinced himself that he was a genius who did not need a wife like me, making Jasmine the easy target for his ego.
At two o’clock, I sat behind the wide wooden desk in the executive suite at Vance Enterprises. Attorney Bradley slid a thick stack of legal papers across the smooth desk.
“Miss Vance, all contractual clauses have been verified,” Bradley explained clearly. “The one point five billion dollar loan provided to Vanguard Dynamics includes a morality clause that allows you to demand immediate repayment. Furthermore, the thirteen power patents used in their new vehicle line belong entirely to the Vance Research Institute, so we can revoke their license today.”
I picked up my pen and signed the final page without any hesitation.
“Send a copy to the office of the CEO at Vanguard Dynamics, and tell our financial team to begin recovering our assets immediately,” I ordered calmly.
“Understood, Miss Vance, and our legal team will serve these papers by courier so they reach his resort in Honolulu by dinner,” Bradley said before exiting the room.
I leaned back in my chair and looked out over the city skyline, feeling completely ready for what was coming next.
PART 3: THE DEMAND FOR PAYMENT
Over two thousand miles away, the sunny patio of the Grand Pacific Resort in Honolulu was filled with the sound of ocean waves and loud corporate conversations.
Aaron sat at the center of a long dining table with his parents on either side of him. Jasmine had completely recovered from her sickness and was moving around the table in a expensive evening dress, acting as the host.
“Jasmine is such an attentive girl, unlike certain people who only know how to spend family money,” my mother-in-law announced so the nearby staff could hear.
Aaron held a glass of red wine, but his eyes kept checking his phone every few minutes. Eight hours had passed, and usually, I would have texted him a long message apologizing for causing trouble and asking for his forgiveness. But his screen remained completely blank.
He typed out a short text telling me to stop throwing a fit and call him back, but his pride made him delete the message before sending it. He assumed I would break eventually because he thought I had no other options.
Suddenly, his Chief Operating Officer ran across the dining area with a pale face, holding a ringing phone in his hand.
“Mr. Prescott, you need to take this call right now because it is Mr. Stanford from Beacon Capital,” the officer gasped.
Aaron took the phone with a frown. “Good evening, Stanford, and if this is regarding our second round of funding…”
“Aaron, I am calling to tell you that our board just suspended the five hundred million dollar investment effective immediately,” Stanford interrupted coldly.
“What are you talking about, Stanford, because that violates our agreement!” Aaron shouted back.
“You crossed someone you should have never crossed, so figure it out on your own,” Stanford said before hanging up the phone.
Before Aaron could even lower the device, his officer’s personal phone rang again, displaying an urgent message from their corporate lawyers.
“Sir, our legal department just received an official notice from the Vance Group,” the officer stammered nervously. “They are revoking our patent licenses for all thirteen core power modules, which means our entire production line is legally frozen.”
The lively laughter at the table died instantly as every manager stared at Aaron in silence.
Aaron stood up so fast that his chair flipped onto the stone floor. “What did you just say?”
“The Vance Research Institute canceled the contract, citing a breach of partnership,” the officer explained while reading his screen.
“Aaron, what is happening right now?” his mother yelled angrily. “Is Alyssa throwing another childish tantrum? Call her right now and demand that she fix this!”
“Be quiet!” Aaron shouted back at his mother with terrifying force, causing her to jump in shock.
He grabbed the tablet from his assistant’s hands and opened the attached file, which contained my signed divorce papers alongside a formal debt demand stamped by Vance Enterprises. The document demanded the complete repayment of one point five billion dollars within seventy-two hours.
Jasmine stepped forward and placed her hand on his arm in a soft attempt to comfort him. “Mr. Prescott, how could your wife do something so horrible to your company? Let me call her to explain…”
“Get your hands off me!” Aaron roared, pushing her arm away so hard that she lost her balance.
Her heel snapped, sending her crashing into a small service table and spilling red wine all over her white dress. The surrounding executives quickly stepped back from her, recognizing that her influence was completely gone.
Aaron ran out onto the open balcony, pulled out his phone with shaking hands, and dialed my direct line.
I was sitting in my quiet office watching the evening fog cover the bay when the phone rang. I let it ring several times before answering.
“Alyssa, have you lost your mind?” Aaron screamed into the receiver. “Do you realize that taking back those patents will destroy Vanguard Dynamics? Are you really willing to ruin our marriage over a simple airplane seat?”
“Mr. Prescott, did you not tell me to focus on the bigger picture earlier today?” I replied in a steady voice.
“It was just a seat, and Jasmine was feeling sick!” Aaron pleaded desperately. “I will fire her right now if that makes you feel better, so please cancel the legal papers so we can talk like adults when I return.”
“You still think this is about a seat, Aaron,” I said with a quiet laugh. “You got so used to my support that you convinced yourself my family’s fortune belonged to you. That money was a business loan, and those patents were created by my brother’s team. I built your career, and I can easily take it all back.”
“You are bluffing, because Vanguard is too big to fall and you are not this cruel,” Aaron said while struggling to breathe.
“You have seventy-two hours to find out,” I answered plainly. “Have the one point five billion dollars in our accounts by Friday, or legal officers will lock your factory doors.”
I ended the call and blocked his number completely.
PART 4: THE CONFRONTATION IN THE RAIN
When Aaron flew back to the city two days later, heavy rain was pouring over the streets. He ran out of the airport without an umbrella, getting soaked before catching a taxi directly to the corporate office.
The mood on the executive floor felt like a battlefield after a total defeat. Aaron sat at his desk with wet hair sticking to his forehead and deep red circles under his eyes.
“Give me an update right now,” he demanded from his Chief Financial Officer.
“We are completely ruined, Mr. Prescott,” the officer whispered in defeat. “We only have nine hundred million dollars in available cash, so if we cannot pay the remaining six hundred million by tomorrow morning, the courts will freeze all operating accounts. Payroll will fail, and our suppliers will cancel every contract.”
“Can we get a short term loan from the major banks in the city?” Aaron asked frantically.