Chapter 8 - The Final Settlement
The fallout was swift and absolute.
Victoria Vance pleaded guilty to avoid a lengthy public trial and was sentenced to seven years in federal prison. Without her son's money or her social status, she was nothing more than an inmate with a number.
Dominic’s company officially went bankrupt. I bought out the remaining thirty-eight percent for pennies on the dollar, completely removing the Vance name from the corporate world. The mansion was sold, and all the proceeds were donated to a charity supporting underprivileged single mothers.
A month later, Dominic sat across from me in a stark legal conference room for the finalization of the divorce. He looked ten years older. His hair was graying, his clothes wrinkled. He had nothing left.
He signed the papers without looking up.
"Are you happy now, Audrey?" he whispered. "You destroyed my life."
"No, Dominic," I said calmly, signing my own name to the papers, officially stripping away the name 'Vance' forever. "You destroyed your own life the moment you allowed cruelty to dictate your actions. I simply stopped protecting you from the consequences."
I stood up, adjusting my coat.
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"Goodbye, Dominic. Enjoy the family you chose."
I walked out of the room, leaving him alone with his regrets.
