Chapter 4 - The Predator’s Panic
Within forty-eight hours, the Mercer empire collapsed like a house of cards in a hurricane. With their corporate assets frozen and the federal indictment dominating national news, Brandon’s high-priced defense lawyers vanished overnight. No one wanted to touch a case involving federal charity fraud combined with a high-profile domestic violence charge.
Because of the extreme threat Brandon posed to my safety, the federal prosecutor had denied his bail. He was trapped in a maximum-security cell at the Fulton County Jail, waiting for his arraignment.
On Thursday morning, my attorney, Marcus Vance, walked into my recovery room with a document in his hand.
"He wants to deal, Vivian," Marcus said, sitting down in the chair beside my bed. "Brandon knows he’s facing twenty years in a federal penitentiary for the financial crimes alone. His legal team just sent over a total, unconditional plea agreement for the domestic violence charges. He's willing to plead guilty to aggravated assault and battery in exchange for a concurrent sentence."
I looked out the window, watching the Atlanta skyline. The sun was breaking through the gray clouds, casting a warm light across the city.
"What are the terms of the divorce settlement?" I asked.
"Total capitulation," Marcus replied, a small, victorious smile touching his lips. "He’s relinquishing all rights to your shared assets, the Greenwich estate, the private accounts, and he’s signing a permanent, lifetime protective order. He just wants to avoid a public trial where your forensic recordings of his abuse would be played for a jury."
"No," I said simply.
Marcus blinked in surprise. "No? Vivian, this is a total win. You get everything, and he goes to prison without you ever having to step foot in a courtroom."
"I don't want a deal, Marcus," I said, turning my head to look at him, my green eyes flashing with an unyielding determination. "Men like Brandon Mercer spend their entire lives using deals to escape the consequences of their actions. He thinks a plea bargain is a way to control the narrative, to keep the ugliest parts of his behavior hidden from the world. I want him to sit in that courtroom. I want the world to hear the tapes. I want every single corporate investor, every photographer who took our picture at those galas, and every man who looked the other way to hear exactly what he whispered behind those closed doors."
May you like
Marcus stared at me for a long moment, his expression shifting from corporate calculation to profound, unadulterated respect. He stood up, closing his briefcase with a sharp, decisive snap.
"Then we go to trial," Marcus said. "And we show them exactly who Vivian Mercer really is."
