The Tyrant's Return : From Beggar to Sovereign

Chapter 8: The Misunderstanding in the Lobby

Chloe stared at the polished leather shoes right in front of her face. Her eyes slowly traveled up the perfectly tailored trousers, past the broad chest covered in a fine midnight blue suit jacket, and finally stopped on Ethan’s face. For a brief second, her heart stopped beating. She thought she was looking at a royal prince. The heavy, powerful aura coming off him made her feel incredibly small as she knelt on the hard marble floor.

But then, her brain kicked in. She shook her head wildly, wiping the tears from her messy cheeks.

“Ethan?” Chloe gasped, her voice instantly losing its pathetic tone and turning sharp with disbelief. She scrambled up to her feet, her wrinkled, grease-stained red dress shaking. She looked at his beautiful suit, then at the way he stood so straight and proud. A wave of anger rushed into her chest. “What are you doing here? Why are you dressed like that?”

Ethan did not answer. He just stood there, his eyes colder than the winter rain, looking at her like she was a bug on the wall.

Chloe’s mind raced as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. There was no way Ethan was a rich man. He had been her family dog for three whole years. He had washed her cars and taken her mother's slaps. Then it hit her. The Vance Group was a massive company that hired thousands of workers every week.

“Oh, I get it now,” Chloe scoffed loudly, crossing her arms over her chest. Her face twisted into a nasty, arrogant smirk. “You got a job here. My mother said you rented a fake suit last night to trick the restaurant manager, and now you are using it to pretend you are a big shot. You must have begged one of the low-level managers to give you a job cleaning the toilets or moving heavy boxes in the basement. You used some cheap fluke to step inside this building.”

The young receptionist behind the front desk looked up, watching the scene with growing interest.

Chloe stepped closer to Ethan, poking her raw, red finger directly toward his chest.

“Listen to me, you useless trash. This is the Vance Group Headquarters. The top executives of the city are walking through this lobby right now. I am here representing the Miller family to secure a vital five million dollar emergency loan from the higher-ups. My family's entire future depends on this meeting.”

Ethan looked down at her finger, his voice incredibly quiet and flat.

“Get your hand out of my face, Chloe.”

“Or what?” Chloe yelled, her voice echoing loudly across the wide marble lobby. Several business workers in expensive suits stopped walking, turning their heads to watch the drama. Chloe felt a surge of pride. She wanted everyone to see how pathetic Ethan was. “You are ruining my company's reputation just by standing near me. If the bank directors see a dirty, low-life janitor like you talking to me, they will think the Miller family associates with beggars. They will never give us the loan.”

She turned around toward the entrance of the lobby and waved her hand frantically. A tall, muscular man in a tight grey suit immediately ran forward. This was Logan, the personal bodyguard Chloe had hired this morning using the last bit of cash her family had left. He was built like a professional wrestler and had a fierce, angry scar across his left cheek.

“Logan, get over here right now,” Chloe ordered, her voice full of authority. “This broke loser is my soon-to-be ex-husband. He is a nobody who sneaked into the building in a rented suit to stalk me and ruin my business meeting. Call the corporate guards and have them drag him out through the back door like the trash he is.”

Logan stepped forward, his heavy boots thudding against the white marble. He glared at Ethan, flexing his massive fists.

“Hey, kid. You heard the lady. Move your feet before I break them.”

Chloe smirked, turning to the surrounding crowd of business executives who were watching.

“Everyone, look at this clown. He works as a low-level cleaner here, but he thinks he can wear a nice suit and act like a human being. He is just a parasite trying to shame my family name.”

Just as Chloe finished her sentence, a loud, heavy march of boots echoed from the private elevator hallway.

A group of eight massive corporate security guards, wearing advanced tactical uniforms and holding heavy iron batons, rushed into the center of the lobby. Leading them was a tall, fierce-looking man with short grey hair and a chest covered in gold security medals. His name was Commander Brock, the Head of Security for the entire seventy-story Vance Group skyscraper. He was a retired elite military captain who answered only to the absolute top leaders of the global empire.

Chloe’s eyes lit up with wild excitement. She thought her loud shouting had finally brought the real authority of the building to help her.

“Commander Brock!” Chloe called out, stepping forward with a fake, sweet smile, pointing her finger directly at Ethan’s nose. “Thank goodness you are here. This man is a total fraud. He is wearing a fake suit and bothering the elite guests in your lobby. My bodyguard was just about to handle him, but your men should take over. Drag him out to the street and throw him into the mud. He is an embarrassment to the Vance Group.”

Commander Brock did not say a single word. His hard, stone-like face did not change expression. He marched forward with long, terrifying steps, his heavy black combat boots stopping right in the middle of the space between Chloe and Ethan.

Logan, Chloe’s personal bodyguard, grinned widely. He stepped up beside Commander Brock, raising his large hand to grab Ethan’s shoulder.

“Let me help you throw this trash out, Commander.”

The Head of Security stepped forward, but instead of grabbing Ethan, he struck Chloe’s personal bodyguard across the face.