Chapter 6 - Whispers in the Ivy
The gala was,
The talk of,
The campus.
Black tie.
High stakes.
Julian was,
Desperate.
He needed,
This night,
To go,
Perfectly.
To prove,
He was,
Still in,
Control.
Ethan knew,
Better.
He had,
Spent the,
Last few weeks,
Whispering.
In the,
Right ears.
He had,
Spread rumors.
Subtle.
Deadly.
That Julian,
Was embezzling.
That the,
Company was,
In trouble.
That the,
Sterling name,
Was mud.
It was,
Working.
He saw,
Investors,
Looking worried.
He saw,
Board members,
Talking.
In hushed,
Tones.
The whispers,
Were everywhere.
Like ivy,
Growing,
Over the,
Sterling mansion.
Choking,
The life,
Out of,
It.
Julian felt,
The pressure.
He was,
Drinking,
Too much.
He was,
Edgy.
He was,
Snapping,
At people.
He was,
Unraveling.
Ethan watched,
It all.
From the,
Side.
He was,
The fly,
On the,
Wall.
The shadow,
In the,
Corner.
He was,
Enjoying,
The show.
The way,
Julian,
Tried to,
Hold it,
All together.
But it was,
Falling,
Apart.
Ethan had,
The documents.
The proof.
He was,
Waiting,
For the,
Right moment.
To drop,
The bomb.
The gala,
Would be,
The stage.
Where it,
All ended.
He saw,
Julian,
Scanning,
The room.
Looking for,
The source,
Of the,
Trouble.
He couldn't,
Find it.
Because the,
Source,
Was everywhere.
The whispers,
Were in,
The air.
They were,
In the,
Thoughts,
Of everyone.
Julian was,
Fighting,
A ghost.
And he was,
Losing.
Badly.
Ethan felt,
No pity.
Only,
Satisfaction.
This was,
Justice.
This was,
The price,
Of clay.
Paid in,
Full.
He walked,
Through the,
Crowd.
Invisible.
Unnoticed.
He was,
The puppet,
Master.
And Julian,
Was the,
Marionette.
Dancing,
To his,
Tune.
The whispers,
Grew louder.
The tension,
Mounted.
The atmosphere,
Was electric.
Charged with,
Impending,
Doom.
Julian was,
Sweating.
He was,
Cornered.
He didn't,
Know it,
Yet.
But the,
Walls were,
Closing in.
And there,
Was no,
Way out.
The gala,
Was the,
Beginning.
Of the,
End.
And Ethan,
Was ready.
To pull,
The trigger.
He smiled.
The night,
Was going,
May you like
To be,
Legendary.
