“Stronger hands?” I asked.
Victor pointed toward Roland.
“Families like the Marceaus bring influence.”
“No,” I said. “They bring debt.”
My legal director gave a small nod.
The harbor screen changed again.
Marceau Holdings.
Frozen accounts.
Unpaid yacht loans.
Pending fraud claims.
Illegal transfer attempts.
Then Victor’s personal account appeared.
Payments from Marceau Holdings.
Consulting fees.
Hidden bonuses.
One after another.
The guests stepped away from him as if corruption could stain silk too.
Victor’s face went pale.
Roland cursed under his breath.
The influencer covered her mouth, crying now.
“You used me,” she whispered to her father.
Roland snapped, “You were supposed to distract her, not ruin everything.”
The words hit her harder than any insult.
And for the first time that night, I almost pitied her.
Almost.
Because she still had thrown the champagne.
She still had torn my dress.
She still had believed a woman without diamonds deserved to be humiliated.
I turned to the officers.
“Seize the Marceau yacht. Lock Victor Laurent’s accounts. Suspend every transfer processed through his office for the last two years.”
Victor shouted, “You can’t remove me!”
I looked at him.
“I just did.”
The Fleet Captain gave one order.
“Escort him off my deck.”
This time, the crew moved as one.
FINAL PART
They took Victor first.
His white jacket looked almost ridiculous beneath the harsh legal lights now flashing across the harbor.
Then they took Roland Marceau.
His daughter screamed after him, but he did not look back.
That was the final lesson he gave her.
Not love.
Not protection.
Only self-preservation.
Across the water, officers sealed the yacht her family had bragged about all night.
Red legal tape crossed the gangway.
Dock lights blazed against the dark water.
Thousands of viewers watched the Marceau name collapse live.