Chapter 8 - The Escape from the Estate
Two hours before Clara walked through the doors of the Grand Regent, she had been trapped in the master bedroom of the Vance Estate, three towns over. The estate was a sprawling mansion built by her late father, Arthur Vance, but for the past three years, it had felt like a golden cage.
Her husband, Richard Sterling, had spent months cutting Clara off from her father’s inner circle. Ever since Arthur passed away six months prior, Richard had taken control of the daily operations of Vance Holdings, slowly replacing loyal executives with his own corrupt allies. He had convinced the press that Clara was emotionally unstable from grief, keeping her confined to the estate while he signed away company assets.
That afternoon, Clara had overheard Richard speaking in hushed, vicious tones in his private study downstairs.
"She doesn't suspect a thing," Richard had told his lawyer over the speakerphone. "By tomorrow morning, the board will vote to declare her mentally unfit. All voting rights will transfer to me permanently. Once the paperwork is processed, I'll have her moved to the private facility in upstate."
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Clara had stood on the landing, her hand pressed over her mouth to suppress a gasp. They weren't just taking her father’s legacy—they were planning to lock her away forever.
👉 Clara knew she had only a few hours to gather the evidence before Richard realized she had heard everything.
