Chapter 4 - The Audio File
"Let me go! You are making a scene! This is insane!" Nathan roared, thrashing against the security guards as the guests gasped in shock and outrage.
Linda leaped out of her seat in the front row, pointing a shaking finger at Sharon. "She’s unstable! She’s having a psychotic episode! Don't listen to a word she says! Shut those monitors down!"
Instead of shutting down, the audio system in the pavilion crackled to life. The crisp, unmistakable audio of Nathan’s voice filled the massive glass hall, broadcasted at maximum volume for every single guest to hear:
"Did you manage to get her to sign that document?" Linda’s recorded voice asked clearly.
Nathan’s recorded laugh echoed off the glass walls: "Almost. She’s a bit suspicious of the paperwork, but after the wedding, she’ll do whatever I want. Especially because of those weird kids. She’s desperate for a stable life... Once we’re married, I’ll secure her house and savings accounts. She’ll be left with nothing. It’s perfect. I can’t wait to get rid of her. She disgusts me."
The silence in the Grandview Pavilion was absolute. You could have heard a pin drop on the marble floor.
Three hundred pairs of eyes slowly turned away from the giant screens and locked onto Nathan and his mother. The corporate partners who had trusted Nathan with millions of dollars in investments stared at him with undisguised disgust. Several high-profile clients visibly recoiled, whispering furiously to one another.
Sharon stood entirely unmoving at the altar, her veil catching the breeze, her expression an impenetrable mask of quiet triumph. She looked down at Linda, who had collapsed back into her seat, trembling violently as she realized her family's social standing, reputation, and financial future had just been incinerated in less than sixty seconds.
"You... you bitch," Nathan choked out, his voice cracking with pure, unadulterated rage as he struggled against the security guards. "You ruined everything! I gave you years! I played nice with your brats! You were supposed to be an easy mark!"
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"Thank you for admitting it publicly under oath—or in this case, under three hundred witnesses and a live audio feed being recorded by my attorney," Sharon replied coolly. She reached up, unclasped her veil, and let it float gracefully to the floor. "The wedding is officially canceled, Nathan. But don't worry about lodging—your mother’s house is going to be tied up in civil litigation by Monday morning to cover my legal fees and emotional damages."
With that, Sharon turned on her heel, signaling to Ben and her nieces. With their heads held high, the small family walked down the aisle together, leaving the shattered wreckage of Nathan’s carefully constructed scam behind them in the dust.
