Chapter 10: The Matriarch's Despair
A week later, as Elena stepped out of Marcus’s Brooklyn office, a sleek black town car idled at the curb. The tinted window rolled down, revealing Beatrice’s sharp, aging face. She looked tired, the stress of her son’s public downfall etching deep lines around her eyes.
"Get in, Elena," Beatrice commanded.
Elena stopped on the sidewalk, maintaining her distance. "If you have something to say, you can say it to my lawyer."
Beatrice’s jaw tightened. "I can offer you ten million dollars. Cash. Tax-free. All you have to do is refuse to testify and leave the country. Start a new life. Be reasonable."
Elena looked at the woman who had sat on a velvet sofa and sipped champagne while she was being brutalized. Pity mingled with a deep, resolute anger.
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"Your money is worthless to me, Beatrice," Elena replied, her tone icy. "You built a life on looking the other way, but the world is looking right at you now. You're going to lose the penthouse, you're going to lose your social standing, and you have already lost your son."
Without waiting for a response, Elena turned and walked down the bustling street, leaving the sputtering matriarch alone in the back of her expensive car.
