After Seven Empty Chairs, I Took My Daughter and Left Chapter 29

After Seven Empty Chairs, I Took My Daughter and Left Chapter 29

Ava stood at the entrance to the private club. The night wind carried moisture from the Charles River, clearing her chaotic thoughts somewhat. She had just called a car and was waiting.

“Ava.”

A voice came from behind her. It was Sloane. She had followed her out.

“I’ll make sure your reputation is completely ruined in Boston and throughout the Ivy League circle.” Sloane leaned close to Ava’s ear and whispered in a voice only the two of them could hear, the venom in it like a poison-tipped ice pick.

Before Ava could respond to the threat, she heard a flurry of footsteps behind her. The group of alumni had followed them out, too.

The instant they appeared, Sloane’s body dramatically went weak. As if shoved hard, she screamed and tumbled down the club’s smooth stone steps.

“Sloane!”

“Oh my God!”

The people rushing over happened to witness this “shocking” scene. They immediately surrounded Sloane, who sat pitifully on the steps after having been “pushed by Ava,” and threw angry, condemning looks at Ava.

“Ava Reed, that was too much!”

“How could you lay hands on someone? We’re calling the police!”

Just then, a black Porsche 911 stopped at the curb with a sharp screech of brakes. Noah rushed out of the car. At a glance, he saw Ava being attacked by the crowd and Sloane trembling while being supported by others.

The string in his mind labeled “protect Sloane” tightened instantly. Without asking any questions, he roared at Ava.

“Ava, what are you doing now? Apologize to Sloane immediately!”

Ava looked at him coldly, the corner of her mouth lifting in sarcasm.

“If your eyes are useless, consider donating them to Harvard Medical School. This club spent a fortune on high-definition security. It wasn’t for scenery.”

Being contradicted by Ava like this made Noah’s face flush red. But he still instinctively shielded Sloane behind him, the chivalry formed over so many years now muscle memory.

“You can’t take your anger out on Sloane just because I don’t love you! Ava, this is illegal!”

Ava was nearly amused by his righteous stupidity. Was his gentlemanly behavior to stab his former wife without hesitation?

Just then, a more restrained, quiet Bentley Mulsanne glided silently to a stop nearby.

The door opened, and Elias Mercer stepped out.

The moment he saw Ava surrounded by the crowd, his usually gentle eyes turned cold as bone. He strode forward, pulled Ava behind him, and shielded her in one smooth, forceful motion.

He didn’t lose his temper. He only said to Noah in a tone so calm it was frightening,

“It seems the Whitaker venture firm still has too much free time lately.”

Noah’s face went instantly pale.

Elias didn’t even look at him again. His gaze slowly swept over the indignant alumni. Everyone who met his eyes instinctively shrank back.

“From now on,” he said, each word clear enough for everyone to hear, “I do not want to see any of you at any company or foundation in which the Mercer family invests.”

Before his words had fully faded, a well-trained security guard behind him had already handed an iPad to the club manager. On the screen, the surveillance footage from moments earlier played on a loop: Sloane leaning close to Ava, then throwing herself down in an exaggerated fall. The entire process was perfectly clear.

Elias no longer paid attention to those “elite” people, now turned to stone with ashen faces. He only wrapped an arm around Ava’s shoulders, led her into the Bentley, and drove away.