Divorcing the useless son in law ; The return of the Tycoon

Empty hands of Lucian

"Where is the money, Lucian?" Seraphine asked, her voice cracking in the quiet hallway of the bank.

It was ten o'clock on a bright Thursday morning, but inside the executive office of First National Bank, the air felt freezing cold. Seraphine stood by the glass window, her hands clasped tightly together. Her silk blouse was creased, and dark circles shadowed her eyes. She had not slept for a single minute since Caelum signed the divorce papers two days ago.

Lucian stood opposite her near the walnut desk. He was wearing his usual navy suit, but his silk tie was slightly crooked, and a faint sheen of sweat covered his forehead. He had spent the last three hours pacing back and forth, holding his cell phone to his ear, listening to continuous dial tones that ended in automatic voicemail.

"I am telling you to be patient, Seraphine," Lucian muttered, wiping his brow with the back of his hand. "My capital firm handles international investments. The transfer from our European accounts requires multi-layer clearing. You cannot rush these things."

Behind the large glass desk sat Arthur Vance, the senior credit director of First National Bank. He did not look impressed. He slowly closed a dark leather binder and placed both hands flat on his desk.

"Miss Ollivier," Arthur said in a dry, calm tone. "I have known your late father for fifteen years. Out of respect for your family, I gave you until ten o'clock this morning. But business is business. The ten-million-dollar credit facility held by the Ollivier Group was backed by a private, anonymous trust fund. That trust fund withdrew its collateral guarantee forty-eight hours ago. Without collateral, your credit limit is zero. If you cannot deposit five million dollars in cash by three o'clock today, we will begin seizing your factory assets to cover your existing debt."

Seraphine took a small, trembling step toward the desk. "Director Vance, please! The Ollivier Group has been paying interest on time for three years! We have never missed a single payment! Why would the trust fund suddenly withdraw its support?"

Arthur looked up at her through his thin gold spectacles. A small, strange look flashed across his face.

"I am not permitted to reveal the name of the trustee," Arthur replied quietly. "However, I can share one small detail with you. When the trustee signed the revocation order, he left a short note for our board. He said the foundation was built for a wife, not a stranger. Once the marriage ended, the foundation naturally ceased to exist."

Seraphine froze. Her chest felt so tight that she could hardly breathe. Her mind raced back to the quiet apartment she had shared with Caelum. She remembered how he used to sit by the small window, drinking his plain green tea while she cried about bank interest rates. Every single time she hit a wall, she would wake up the next morning to discover that the bank had miraculously extended her grace period.

She had always believed it was her own sharp negotiation skills. She had boasted about it at dinner tables, telling her mother and cousin how brilliant she was at convincing stubborn bank directors.

Was it really Caelum? Was her entire success nothing more than a gift from the man in the wheelchair?

"No," Seraphine whispered to herself, shaking her head sharply. "No, that is impossible. Caelum does not have a dime. He lived off my earnings. He ate my food."

She turned her eyes frantically back to Lucian. "Lucian! You said your family's asset group was worth two hundred million dollars! You said you had three major banks in your pocket! Call your father! Tell him to transfer two million dollars just to cover the bank's immediate demand!"

Lucian’s jaw tightened. He pulled his smartphone from his pocket, made a quick show of tapping the screen, and placed it back to his ear. "Hello? Yes, Father? I am at First National Bank with Seraphine... What? The line is breaking up... Father? Hello?"

Lucian pulled the phone away from his ear, tapped the glass screen twice, and let out a fake, heavy sigh.

"The signal in this office is terrible," Lucian said, avoiding Seraphine's gaze. "My father is currently on a private yacht in the Mediterranean. High-seas communications are always spotty. Don't panic, Seraphine. We still have options."

Director Arthur Vance let out a low, dry cough from behind his desk. He looked at Lucian with an expression of cold amusement.

"Mr. Draymore," Arthur said smoothly. "Since you are here, perhaps we can discuss your firm's account with our city branch. Draymore Capital holds an overdraft balance of one point two million dollars with us. Our credit risk team sent three notices to your office last week regarding your unpaid office rent and bounced equipment leases. When should we expect your European clearing funds to settle those accounts?"

The room went dead silent.

Seraphine turned her head slowly, staring at Lucian in complete shock. "What... what did Director Vance just say? Overdraft? Bounced leases?"

Lucian's face turned bright red. "Director Vance, this is a private matter between my firm and your corporate department! You have no right to discuss my business affairs in front of my client!"

"Client?" Arthur chuckled softly, folding his arms. "Mr. Draymore, you are not a client. You are a registered high-risk debtor in our national corporate system. If you do not settle your firm's overdraft by Friday, our legal team will file for a corporate freeze on your remaining assets."

Seraphine felt as though someone had punched her squarely in the chest. She stumbled back until her hand brushed the edge of a velvet chair.

Lucian Draymore—the sharp, wealthy businessman who wore three-thousand-dollar Italian suits, drove sleek luxury sports cars, and promised to elevate her company to the top of the country—was broke.

He was not a billionaire. He was a debt-ridden fraud.

"Lucian..." Seraphine whispered, her eyes wide with betrayal. "Is this true? Are you broke?"

"Of course not!" Lucian snapped, grabbing her arm tightly. His gentle, charming persona was completely gone, replaced by a desperate, ugly panic. "Listen to me, Seraphine! Banks always use these scare tactics to push small firms around! My family's wealth is real! It is just temporarily tied up in offshore trusts! Once our joint merger goes through, we will use your company's fixed assets to unlock fresh bank loans! We can pull through this together!"

"Use my company's fixed assets?" Seraphine pulled her arm out of his grip, her voice rising in horror. "You want me to mortgage my family's factories to pay off your private debts?"

"It is a strategic business move!" Lucian argued loudly. "We are partners now! You divorced that useless crippled husband of yours so we could build an empire together! You can't back out now!"

Seraphine looked at Lucian's sweating face and angry eyes. A deep, cold regret flooded her heart.