Chapter 3 - The Gala at the Crown Plaza
The legal battle escalated with terrifying speed.
Within four days, David Sterling’s legal team had filed a series of crushing federal injunctions against Ethan Walker, freezing his company’s domestic assets and preventing him from enforcing the fraudulent child custody warrant in the state of Texas.
However, Ethan was not a man who surrendered quietly.
Backed by his shady investors, Ethan used his remaining connections to launch a vicious tabloid smear campaign. Headline articles began popping up on gossip websites and social media platforms, alleging that Elena Morales had abandoned her marital vows to become the secret mistress of billionaire Adrian Prescott.
“Fugitive Mother or Billionaire’s Playground Companion?” one headline read, accompanied by a telephoto lens photograph taken of Elena standing on the balcony of Adrian’s River Oaks estate.
Sitting in the dressing room of the guest suite, Elena stared at the photograph on her phone, her chest aching with bitter shame.
She had spent five years being told by Ethan that she was worthless, that she was a burden, that no one would ever want a woman with no career and no independence. Now, the entire internet was echoing his cruel words.
The door to the dressing room opened softly.
Adrian walked in, looking striking in a tailored double-breasted black tuxedo. He carried a large black velvet box in his hands.
He stopped when he saw the tears shimmering in her dark eyes.
"Delete the app, Elena," Adrian said softly, setting the velvet box on the vanity table beside her. "Don't read the trash written by people who don't know your heart."
"They're ruining your reputation, Adrian," Elena wept, wiping her cheek with the back of her hand. "Your company’s stock dropped two points yesterday because of the media circus Ethan created! The Prescott Foundation’s annual charity gala is tonight at the Crown Plaza, and every paparazzi in the city is going to be standing outside!"
"Let them stand outside," Adrian said calmly. He stepped behind her chair, looking at her reflection in the mirror. "And they aren't going to ruin my reputation, because tonight, you are coming to the gala with me."
Elena turned around in her chair, her eyes wide with shock. "What? Adrian, no! That’s insane! If I walk onto a red carpet with you, it will confirm every lie Ethan told the press!"
"No," Adrian smiled gently, opening the black velvet box. Inside rested an exquisite diamond necklace that sparkled under the warm vanity lights like a constellation of stars. "It won't confirm his lies. It will prove to Ethan Walker, the media, and every corporate board in this country that you are not a hidden victim hiding in my shadows. You are under my explicit, public protection."
He lifted the necklace from its silk casing.
"Ethan tried to make you feel small, Elena," Adrian murmured, stepping closer, leaning down so his face was inches from hers. "Tonight, I want you to walk into that ballroom and remind him who you truly are."
Two hours later, a sleek black Maybach pulled up to the grand entrance of the Crown Plaza Hotel.
A wall of press cameras erupted into a blinding storm of white flashes as security officers cleared a path through the roaring crowd of reporters.
The Maybach’s door opened.
Adrian Prescott stepped out first, adjusting his cuffs, offering his hand back toward the interior of the luxury vehicle.
Elena took a deep breath, adjusted the emerald-green silk evening gown that hugged her graceful frame, and placed her hand in his.
The moment her heels touched the red carpet, the crowd went wild.
"Mr. Prescott! Is this Elena Morales?!"
"Mrs. Morales! Did you steal files from your husband's firm?!"
"Adrian! Are the mistress rumors true?!"
Elena’s heart hammered like a trapped snare drum, but as she stepped beside Adrian, he didn't pull away or walk quickly to avoid the cameras. Instead, he wrapped his broad arm firmly around her waist, pulling her close to his side, his head bent slightly as he whispered in her ear.
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"Keep your head up, Elena," Adrian murmured, his voice a steady anchor amidst the sea of noise. "You belong here."
Elena lifted her chin, her eyes flashing with a quiet, fierce pride she hadn't felt in five long years. She walked beside Adrian Prescott through the grand double doors of the hotel, ignoring the blinding camera flashes, leaving the shadows of her past behind her on the pavement.
