Eleanor: Evelyn! Don't you dare turn your back on me!
Julian: Get back here! You ruined everything!
Evelyn: Keep screaming, Julian. It really sells the desperation.
The entire hall remained dead silent as Evelyn’s high heels clicked sharply against the white marble floor. Wealthy donors, corporate executives, and high-society socialites stood frozen, watching the dramatic collapse of the Sterling empire's ruling matriarch.
Guest A: Did she just say the federal prosecutors froze their accounts?
Guest B: Look at Julian... he's covered in food and blood from the glass. This is going to be on every news channel by midnight.
Guest C: I always knew Eleanor was a fraud. She drove poor Arthur into his grave.
Eleanor: Stop staring, all of you! Mind your own business!
Julian: Security, do your job! Arrest her for assaulting me!
Security Guard: Sir, we saw the whole thing. You ran at her screaming. That was self-defense.
Julian: I'm Julian Sterling! I pay your salary!
Security Guard: Actually, sir, the venue contract is under Sterling Global... which just revoked your guest privileges.
Eleanor: You insolent brute! How dare you speak to my son like that!
Evelyn: Save your breath, Eleanor. Nobody is taking orders from you anymore.
Evelyn pushed through the grand glass exit doors and stepped out into the cool night air. The valet immediately stepped forward, holding the door of a sleek, black luxury SUV.
Valet: Your car is ready, Miss Sterling.
Evelyn: Thank you, Marcus.
Eleanor: Evelyn! Wait!
Eleanor burst through the doors, her off-white dress stained with champagne from Julian's fall, her manicured hair disheveled.
Eleanor: We can make a deal! We can split the estate! Fifty-fifty!
Evelyn: You had three years to offer a deal, Eleanor. You chose to try and bankrupt me instead.
Eleanor: I was protecting my son! Any mother would do the same!
Evelyn: You were protecting your greed. And now you're going to pay for every single bribe, every forged document, and every lie.
Julian: Mom, the police are pulling up to the valet stand!
Two black-and-white police cruisers pulled into the driveway, lights flashing red and blue against the marble pillars of the hotel entrance.
Officer Harris: Eleanor Sterling? Julian Sterling?
Eleanor: What is the meaning of this? Do you know who I am?
Officer Harris: We have a warrant for your arrest regarding grand larceny, wire fraud, and falsification of corporate records.
Julian: Arrest her! She hit me!
Officer Harris: Put your hands behind your back, sir. Don't make this worse for yourself.
Evelyn slid into the back seat of her luxury vehicle, pulling the door closed behind her as the officers forced Julian and Eleanor against the hood of a cruiser. She took a deep breath, resting her head against the leather headrest, and pulled her smartphone from her clutch purse.