Chapter 3 - The Conspiracy Unravels and the Arrest
“Marcus?” Richard whispered, the name feeling like poison on his tongue.
Marcus Vance didn't flinch. He adjusted his cuffs, his smile remaining eerily calm as the chaos around him erupted into shouting matches. The congregation was in absolute pandemonium; reporters in the back were frantically snapping photos, and police sirens were beginning to wail in the distance outside St. Patrick’s.
“Richard, my dear friend,” Marcus said smoothly, his voice carrying effortlessly over the noise. “It seems your wife is remarkably resilient. Though, I must admit, our medical dosage calculations were supposed to keep her unconscious for at least another forty-eight hours.”
Sophie spun around, staring at Marcus with wide, betrayed eyes. “Uncle Marcus? You... you helped do this to my mother?”
Marcus sighed softly, shaking his head with mock disappointment. “Oh, sweet Sophie. Business is business. Your father’s real estate empire is worth upwards of four billion dollars. But according to your mother’s ironclad prenuptial agreement, if Richard passed away, she controlled the entire board voting shares. However, if she passed away first, her personal estate reverted entirely to a charitable trust controlled by... well, yours truly.”
Richard lunged forward like a striking predator, grabbing Marcus by the lapels of his expensive suit and slamming him violently against the stone pillar.
“You tried to bury my wife alive!” Richard roared, his fist drawing back. “You greedy bastard!”
Before Richard could strike, four uniformed NYPD officers burst through the cathedral doors, guns drawn, shouting commands to secure the area.
“Hold your fire! Drop him, Mr. Ashford!” the lead detective yelled, rushing up the steps.
Richard reluctantly released Marcus, shoving him hard against the wall where two police officers immediately slapped steel handcuffs onto the lawyer’s wrists.
Dr. Cole, seeing the game was entirely lost, dropped to his knees near the altar, sobbing hysterically. “It was Marcus! He threatened my medical license! He paid me off to administer the medical coma induction drug—tetrodotoxin derivative! He said she’d die peacefully in her sleep once the coffin was sealed underground!”
Marcus didn't struggle against the cuffs. Instead, as the officers dragged him down the aisle past the gaping crowd, he cast one last cold, calculating look at Richard.
“You might have saved her today, Richard,” Marcus sneered, his voice dripping with malice as he was hauled toward the doors. “But the corporate board meeting is tomorrow morning at nine. Without your wife’s signature on the restructuring papers, your entire company goes into default bankruptcy by tomorrow night. Enjoy your resurrection reunion!”
The heavy oak doors slammed shut behind the police escort, leaving the cathedral in a stunned, heavy silence.
Down on the floor of the altar, medical personnel finally swarmed the open casket. Paramedics lifted Evelyn gently from the white silk lining, placing an oxygen mask over her face and sliding her onto a gurney.
Richard grabbed her hand, refusing to let go as they wheeled her down the aisle toward the waiting ambulance outside.
“I’m right here, sweetheart,” Richard whispered fiercely, kissing her knuckles. “You’re safe now. I’ve got you.”
Evelyn managed a weak, exhausted squeeze of his hand, her eyes shining with tears of relief.
As the ambulance doors closed and sped away toward the hospital sirens fading into the Manhattan night, Richard turned back toward the cathedral steps. Standing near the bottom of the stone steps, clutching his frayed jacket and looking entirely out of place among the discarded white roses, was little Caleb.
Richard walked down the steps, knelt in front of the seven-year-old boy, and gently placed a hand on his small shoulder.
“Caleb,” Richard said, his voice thick with emotion. “You saved her life. You saved our family.”
Caleb looked down shyly, rubbing his bare feet against the cold stone. “My mom said... she said angels always find a way to help people who are trapped.”
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Richard smiled, pulling out his wallet, though he knew mere money could never repay this debt. “Your mother is a brave woman, Caleb. And starting tonight, your family’s life is going to change forever. You’ll never have to worry about rent, or food, or anything ever again.”
Little did Richard know, however, Marcus Vance’s parting threat wasn't an empty bluff. The corporate wolves were already circling, and the real war for the Ashford empire was only just beginning.
