Chapter 2 - The Shocking DNA
Within forty-five minutes, the birthday banquet had completely dissolved into anarchy. Hotel security cleared the screaming, gossiping guests out of the main hall, but the damage was already done. The live-streamed videos had blown up online. Across Twitter, TikTok, and Facebook, hashtags like #VanceFamilyScandal and #CakeBanquetDrama were trending globally.
We moved into the private VIP holding suite directly behind the main ballroom. Landon stood near the fireplace, wrapping his warm wool coat over my wet, ruined satin dress. His hands were still shaking from rage.
Sienna sat on a brown leather couch in the corner, dabbing cake frosting off her chest with a wet cloth. The arrogant, cruel smile she had worn when she flung that wine glass at my face had completely disappeared, replaced by the frantic, nervous twitching of a cornered animal.
"Explain. Now," Landon demanded, walking over until he towered over her. "Every single word out of your mouth, Sienna."
"It's... it's a mistake, Landon!" Sienna stammered, looking desperately over Landon's shoulder toward Victor, who was staring out the tinted window. "I was confused! It was dark that night at the country club six weeks ago, I thought—"
"I was in Chicago for a tech summit six weeks ago, Sienna!" Landon cut her off, slamming his palm against the back of the sofa. "I have flight manifests, hotel key logs, and twenty corporate board members who can swear under oath that I was eight hundred miles away from you!"
I stepped forward, my wet hair clinging to my face, looking my half-sister dead in the eyes. "You came after my fiancé because you couldn't stand seeing me happy. You've hated me ever since our father left my mother his estate instead of yours. But you made one massive mistake, Sienna."
I pulled out my phone from my clutch bag and held up a crisp, high-resolution document I had received from my family trust lawyer just an hour before the party started.
May you like
"Victor didn't just kick Landon to stop him from punching you," I said, my voice cutting through the room like a cold razor. "He kicked him because he’s been wiring $50,000 from a offshore account into your personal bank account on the first of every single month for the last half year."
Landon froze in his tracks. He turned around very slowly, looking at his father with a look of horror. "What?"
