Chapter 178
Chapter 178:
He didn’t make it two steps.
Jones stepped out from the side door. He moved with a speed that belied his size. He grabbed Russo by the collar and the belt, lifting him off the ground.
“Get your hands off me!” Russo screamed.
Aurora looked down at the man who had made her grandfather beg for heat. She felt nothing. No fear. No pity. Just a cold, clinical satisfaction.
“Your investment in intimidation has yielded bankruptcy,” she said.
She signaled Jones. “Get him out of my house. And give the press the file on the building violations p>
Jones dragged the screaming man toward the door. Russo was cursing. His lawyer was already running for the exit.
Aurora picked up her teacup again. Her hand was perfectly steady. She took a sip.
Eleanor, who had been watching from the doorway, stared at Aurora with wide eyes. She had expected the girl to be weak. To crumble. To pay him off.
Instead, she had just witnessed an execution.
Dominic Russo was thrown onto the wet pavement outside the Kensington gates. He landed in a heap of limbs and shame. Before he could stand up, flashbulbs blinded him. The reporters, bored of waiting, swarmed.
“Mr. Russo! Is it true you’re being investigated for slumlord practices p>
“Did you try to extort the Kensington heiress p>
Jones handed a thick folder to the nearest reporter. “Courtesy of Miss Vance. Public records regarding safety violations at Mr. Russo’s properties p>
The narrative flipped instantly.
Instead of “Heiress with a Dark Past,” the headline became “Heiress Takes Down Slumlord p>
𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙣? 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙩
Social media began to buzz within minutes. BossMove began to trend.
“She didn’t just pay him off, she exposed him? Queen behavior p>
“Finally someone holding these landlords accountable p>
High above, on the balcony of the Kensington manor, Aurora watched the scene through the gaps in the stone balustrade. She was hidden by the heavy curtains.
She watched Russo scramble into his car and speed away, the press chasing him.
She felt a weight lift off her chest—a weight she hadn’t realized she was carrying since that cold winter five years ago. The monsters of her past weren’t monsters anymore. They were just small, greedy men.
Grandpa Vance wheeled himself onto the balcony. He put a warm, heavy hand on her shoulder.
“It’s done,” he said.
“He’s gone,” Aurora whispered.
“He can never hurt us again,” he promised. “I’m proud of you, little bird p>
“I learned from the best,” Aurora said. She turned away from the window. “Thank you for trusting me p>
Inside the house, Eleanor was pacing in her room. She had seen the news feed.
She poured herself a stiff drink, her hand shaking. “She’s ruthless,” Eleanor muttered to the empty room. “She destroyed him. Publicly. Legally. Totally. And she made herself look like a hero p>