Chapter 7 - The Master of Ceremonies
Downstairs in the groom's suite, Julian was admiring himself in the antique cheval glass, adjusting his bespoke silk bow tie.
His best man, Tyler—a fraternity brother from Chapel Hill who worked at a boutique wealth management firm—poured two glasses of thirty-year-old Macallan.
"To the king," Tyler laughed, handing Julian a tumbler. "Bro, you pulled off the heist of the century. You’re locking down twenty million in timber alone, plus the Charlotte commercial leases? You won life."
Julian took a slow sip, savoring the burn. A smirk played at the corners of his mouth. "I told you, Ty. You just have to find the right mark. The ones with old names and big bank accounts are the easiest. They're so desperate to believe someone loves them for who they are that they hand you the keys to the vault."
"And what about Claire?" Tyler asked, lowering his voice. "She’s not going to get possessive? The girl is crazy about you, man."
"Claire knows her place," Julian sneered, setting the glass down. "She gets twenty percent of the liquid transfer and the house in the Highlands. After that, she can go marry some tennis pro. I’m running Vance Enterprises."
A knock sounded at the door.
"Come in!" Julian called out.
The door opened, and Arthur Sterling stepped inside. The eighty-two-year-old attorney looked frail in his dark three-piece suit, leaning heavily on a silver-topped walking cane. His white hair was neatly combed, his watery blue eyes blinking behind thick bifocals.
"Ah, Arthur!" Julian greeted him warmly, stepping forward with an outstretched hand and his best boyish smile. "Thank God you’re here. Did you bring the county marriage register and the supplemental property binder?"
Arthur took Julian’s hand with a grip that was surprisingly firm. "I have everything right here, young man."
Arthur laid a heavy leather binder onto the desk. Inside was the North Carolina Marriage Certificate, requiring the signatures of the bride, groom, and two legal witnesses, along with the fifty-page pre-nuptial agreement.
Julian flipped quickly to the back of the binder, his eyes scanning for the specific rider he had slipped in—**Addendum D: Immediate Joint Commingling of Non-Trust Liquid Assets upon Solemnization.**
There it was. Typed neatly, bearing the initialed stamp of the clerk's office.
"She signed it?" Julian asked, his voice barely suppressing his excitement.
"Elena signed every single page I placed before her," Arthur said softly. "She is a very thorough young woman, Julian. She trusts the people she loves implicitly."
"That’s what I adore about her," Julian smiled, signing his own name on the groom's line with a flourish of his Montblanc pen. "Her trust is her greatest asset."
"Indeed," Arthur said, taking the binder back and tucking it under his arm. "Let us hope it serves her well today."
Julian clapped the old man on the shoulder. "See you at the altar, Arthur. Make sure you don't lose that binder."
May you like
"Oh, I won't lose it, son," Arthur replied, his voice dry as parchment as he turned toward the door. "I’ve been guarding the Vance family for fifty years. Nothing leaves my sight today."
***
