Chapter 5 - The Fall of Sierra
By noon on Christmas Day, Cole and Sierra were stranded in the VIP terminal of the Aspen Pitkin County Airport.
There was no private Gulfstream waiting on the tarmac. Instead, they sat on hard plastic chairs near the regional commuter gate. Sierra had already spent two hours on the phone trying to reach her modeling agency, only to find out that her upcoming campaign with a luxury jewelry brand had just been canceled.
"They dropped me, Cole!" Sierra shrieked, slamming her phone down on her carry-on luggage. "They said the brand's primary investor pulled all sponsorship contracts associated with your name! Do you have any idea what that means for my career?"
"Keep your voice down," Cole snarled, his eyes bloodshot, his stubble rough against his pale skin. He was wearing the same designer sweater he had put on the night before, now rumpled and smelling of stale sweat. "My lawyers are sorting this out. It's a temporary injunction. Lauren is bluffing."
"She’s not bluffing! Look at Twitter! Look at Bloomberg!"
Cole grabbed her phone. The headlines were screaming across every financial news feed:
*BREAKING: WHITMORE CAPITAL ASSETS FROZEN AMID FRAUD AND DOMESTIC ABUSE INJUNCTION.*
*BENNETT TRUST CALLS IN $300M RECALL AGAINST COLE WHITMORE.*
*WALL STREET ‘GOLDEN BOY’ REVEALED AS MERE TRUSTEE BENEFICIARY.*
Beneath the articles was the photograph Cole had accidentally sent to Lauren at 11:47 p.m. It had somehow leaked to Page Six, captioned: *The $300 Million Slip: Infidelity Photo Sparks Wall Street Collapse.*
Cole felt the blood rush to his ears with the force of a freight train. "How did they get this photo?"
"You sent it to her, you idiot!" Sierra screamed, drawing stares from travelers nearby. "You took a picture of us in bed to show off to your golf buddies and sent it to your wife! And now I’m the girl who ruined a family on Christmas Eve!"
She reached into her bag, pulled out the velvet Tiffany box containing the diamond and pearl necklace Cole had given her the night before, and threw it hard against his chest.
May you like
"Keep your damn stolen necklace," she spat, her eyes flashing with pure disgust. "I looked up your apartment. The deed was in her name. The cars are in her name. You don't have a dime. You’re just a cheap fraud in an expensive suit."
Before Cole could speak, she grabbed her luggage and marched toward the economy boarding gate, leaving him alone in the crowded terminal.
