“Emery…”
She looked down at the hand mped around her wrist. “Samuel?”
He tried to pull her toward the side corridor. “Come with me. Now.”
Before he could move her, another hand locked onto his, hard. James.
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James peeled Samuel’s fingers off Emery’s skin one by one. “What do you think you’re doing?<b>” </b>
Samuel yanked back, face tight. “This is between me and Emery. <i>Stay </i>out of it. Em, let’s leave this ce. Come with me.<b>” </b>
“Let go,” Emery said, pulling her wrist free. She stepped back, chin up. “Who do you think you are to order me around?<b>” </b>
James shifted, putting his body between them. “Mind your manners, Mr. Dwight. This is a Be event. You don’t grab my people around.”
“Your people!?” Samuel snorted. “How about you mind yours? You and I don’t know each other. This is a personal matter. Don’t interfere.”
“Personal matter?” James snorted. “I don’t remember you and Emery being ‘personal‘ with each other or… did I miss the memo?”
“I am warning you. Stay out of this- ”
“Or what?” James asked, his voice cutting into the hum of the room. A few heads turned at the tension, and conversations nearby slowed to a cautious hush.
Samuel shifted closer, lowering his voice but not his re. “You don’t know a thing about her. Don’t act like you do. Step back before you cross a line you’ll regret.”
James didn’t move. “I know enough. I also know you have a fiancée recovering from surgery, Mr. Dwight, and yet you’re here<b>, </b>at a public event,ying hands on another woman. What do you think the Ardens will say when this gets around?”
“Shut up,” Samuel snapped, voice rising. “This has nothing to do with you.”
“It has everything to do with where you’re standing,” James said. He nced past Samuel. Two Be security men had already started toward them. “Last warning. Keep your hands to yourself.”
Samuel tried to edge around him. “Emery,e with me. We need to talk somewhere else. Stop embarrassing yourself here.”
“Embarrassing myself?” Emery didn’t know what to say.
“Come with me,” Samuel said. “This <b>is </b>not a ce that you can go.”
<b>9:27 </b>Mon, Sep 15 <b>d </b>
“No,” Emery said. “You don’t get to pull me anywhere. You don’t get to touch me. We’re done.”
He stiffened. “You think hiding behind him changes anything?”
James stepped in again, shoulder square, blocking the path. “You’re not hearing her. Back off.”
“Who are you to tell me-”
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“James Be,” he said evenly. “Host’s family. Which means I decide when a scene ends. It ends now.”
The wordsnded with enough force to shift the room. More people turned, curiosity pulling them in. A handful of phones tilted higher, recording just in case something unfolded. The quiet buzz of conversation turned into low murmurs that rippled through the crowd, everyone waiting to see if the situation would escte.
Seeing this, Vanessa quickly pushed through the circle with ire on her heels, smile pasted on, eyes sharp. “I apologize for this Mr. Be, Samuel is under a lot of stress. His fiancée-”
“And everything about him is none of my business,” James said without looking at her. “Instead of bothering people around, why not go home and spend your precious time with the love of your life?”
Vanessa’s smile twitched. “This is a misunderstanding.”
“Then you’ll have no problem removing him,” James said.
Samuel’s jaw flexed. “Emery, I’m not leaving without-”
“Mr. Be, this is a misunderstanding,” ire quickly butted in. She tried to pull her brother away as she smiled at James. “You might not know this but my brother is just… is just concern about you.”
“Concern?” James snorted.
“Y–Yes- “ire said <b>as </b>she turned her head towards Emery. “That woman… is someone that my brother had been in a rtionship with for years. A sugar baby that he’s been paying.”
Almost immediately, murmurs filled the hall. Satisfaction filled ire’s gaze. “My brother is just concerned that Emery will harm you. He just wanted to- “Before she could finish her words, a loud pping sound echoed.
The sharp crack of the p froze the room, ire’s head snapped to the side, her hand flying to her cheek as the red mark began to bloom. Murmurs were immediately cut off into stunned silence. Every phone that had been half–raised was now fully lifted, screens catching the moment.
That p didn’te from Emery or from James. It came from Mary Be,
Casps rolled across the hall. Vanessa immediately lunged forward, arms wrapping around her daughter. “Mary! Why would you strike ire? She was only telling the truth.” Her voice rose, frantic. “That woman lived off my son for years. She’s nothing but a leech, and ire was worried she might hurt Mr. Be. And now you p her? If you don’t believe me, you can check… there should be some proof of this somewhere!”
The second pnded before anyone could stop it. This time Vanessa reeled back, one hand clutching her
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…
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face, eyes wide. The crowd erupted. Shocked gasps, whispers darting from one corner to the next.
“You- “Vanessa’s eyes were so wide as she clutched her cheeks. Did she miss something here? “You dare hit me!? <b>I </b>was just-”
“How dare you!” Mary’s voice snapped across the hall, her face twisted with fury. “How dare you smear my granddaughter with such filth!” She jabbed a finger at Vanessa and ire, her re unrelenting. “Do you think the Dwight family can say whatever they please and walk away untouched? Do you think you’re untouchable? I will see to it myself–the Bes will not let this stand. Is the Dwight family prepared to gamble their future on a lie?”
“What?”
“Did she say… granddaughter!?”
The word struck harder than the p. Granddaughter. For a long, suspended moment, Vanessa, ire, and Samuel could only stare at her, their disbelief in on their faces.
ire’s mouth hung open. Samuel looked like he’d been struck himself and Vanessa’s grip on her daughter tightened, her eyes darting around the crowd as if searching for someone to deny what they had just heard.
But the whispers spreading through the guests told her it was toote.
“What did you just-” Samuel’s voice caught. He swallowed hard. “Emery Vaughn is… your granddaughter. She’s a member of the Be Family?” He turned to her, searching her face. “We- you and I were together for years and you-”
Emery let out a short, humorless snort and said nothing.
“Is that true?” Samuel pushed on. “Are you really part of the Be family?”
Mary’s stare didn’t waver. “Do you think we would lie about something like this? How pathetic can you be?”
Samuel opened his mouth, then shut it. The pieces didn’t fit. Emery had never asked him for money. She wasn’t chasing brands or luxury. She kept her head down. She didn’t have a lot of friends either and he… he thought she was an orphan!
When Emery disappeared, she left nothing behind. Samuel couldn’t find an address, a trail, or even a single lead. The only person left in the picture was Nina–and Nina was never simple. She had money, influence, and a way of making problems disappear.
Samuel had always wondered how Emery ended up with a friend like that, but he never asked, and she never offered an exnation. At the time, he convinced himself that Nina was the one who helped Emery vanish.
Now the exnation hit him in one line. If the Bes were involved, that would exin the clean break and the brick wall he ran into. He looked between Emery and Mary, at a loss for words.
“No. There must be a misunderstanding…” Vanessa’s lips trembled. She wanted to convince herself that she’s dreaming or that they were ying a prank on her. “This-
”
“You’re leaving,” Emery cut in.
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Samuel opened his mouth to fire back.
“Don’t,<b>” </b>James said, voice t. “Security will handle it.”
Two guards stopped at James’s side. “Sir?”
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James didn’t take his eyes off Samuel. “Mr. Dwight and his family are finished here. Walk them out.”
“No! We want an exnation! I deserve one!” Samuel suddenly said. Then he tried to approach Emery. “Why didn’t you tell me you are someone from the Be Family!?”
AD