Chapter 5: Leaving The Cage

Natalie stepped into the back seat of the Maybach. The door closed with a soft thud, shutting out the noise of the ballroom and cutting off her five-year chapter of silent endurance.

Butler Harrison handed her a crystal glass of chilled sparkling wine and a sleek encrypted tablet.

“Lady Natalie,” Harrison said, his tone filled with reverence. “Congratulations on successfully completing your five-year trial of independence. Lord Sinclair has officially transferred eighty percent of the family’s global voting shares to your name. As of this moment, you are the absolute Head of the Sinclair Consortium.”

Natalie took a slow sip of the wine. Her eyes, once soft and patient, were now piercing and regal.

“Harrison,” she murmured, gazing out at the glowing city skyline. “How much of Carter Group’s assets are tied directly to Sinclair’s backing?”

Harrison pulled up a financial breakdown on the tablet. “Ninety-two percent, My Lady. Their luxury silk suppliers, their main retail leases in New York, Paris, and Milan, and their primary line of credit—worth seventy million dollars—were all underwritten by Sinclair Capital under your secret authorization.”

“Good,” Natalie replied coldly. “Then it’s time to collect the debt.”

“What are your orders?” Harrison asked.

“Issue an immediate freeze on all line-of-credit extensions for Carter Luxury Group,” Natalie instructed calmly. “Terminate our raw silk supply contracts by midnight. And inform the European Fashion Council that Master ‘N’ has permanently revoked Carter Group’s license to use any of my original design patents.”

Harrison smiled subtly. “It shall be done within the hour, Lady Natalie. And what about Ethan Carter himself?”

“He wanted to see how far his ‘brilliant talent’ could take him without a parasite wife,” Natalie said, a dark smirk gracing her lips. “Let’s give him front-row seats to his own destruction.”