Chapter 7 - THE LIVE STREAM Fiasco
Back in Chicago, the main lobby of the Hayes Financial Tower was lined with marble floors, soaring glass walls, and high-end security turnstiles.
Chloe Vance sat on a plush velvet sofa in the center of the lobby, holding her iPhone high on a selfie stick.
Her eyes were red and artfully smudged with mascara to look as dramatic as possible. Over two thousand viewers were currently watching her Instagram Live stream.
"Hey guys, welcome back," Chloe sobbed into her phone, her voice echoing off the marble walls. "I'm still sitting here at Hayes Capital headquarters. As you guys know, my sister Mia married into this ultra-wealthy family, and ever since then, they've been using their lawyers to destroy my small business. They took away my transportation, they froze my credit, and now they won't even let me speak to my sister!"
The comments on her stream were rolling in rapidly:
@DesignGirl99: OMG that's so sad! Rich people are evil!
@ChicagoChiIC: Why won't her sister help her?!
@RealTalk_Sam: Is this the same family from the country club scandal news?
Two local news camera crews were standing outside the glass entrance, filming through the windows. Chloe sneered inwardly. It’s working, she thought. The Hayes family hates bad publicity. Marcus Hayes will have his assistant come down with a check for fifty thousand dollars just to make me shut up and leave.
Suddenly, the heavy glass doors of the executive elevators clicked open.
A tall woman in a sharp navy power suit walked out, flanked by two men in dark suits carrying leather briefcases. It was Sarah Jenkins, the chief legal counsel for Hayes Enterprises—a woman known in corporate legal circles as "The Viper."
Chloe’s eyes lit up. She pointed her phone camera directly at Sarah. "Look guys, someone is finally coming out! Let's see if they're going to do the right thing!"
Sarah Jenkins walked straight toward Chloe. She didn't look flustered. She didn't look nervous. She had a cool, professional smile on her face.
"Chloe Vance?" Sarah asked, her voice calm and authoritative.
"Yes! I am Chloe Vance, founder of Vance Creative Design!" Chloe declared loudly, making sure her phone caught every word. "Are you here to negotiate my settlement?"
"No, Ms. Vance," Sarah replied smoothly. "I am here to deliver two items to you."
Sarah gestured to the man on her right.
The man stepped forward, pulled a thick white stack of legal papers from his coat, and handed them directly to Chloe.
"Chloe Vance, you are officially served," the process server announced clearly, making sure his voice carried to the news cameras outside. "You are being sued in Cook County Circuit Court by Hayes Enterprises and Daniel Hayes for Defamation Per Se, Tortious Interference with Business Relations, and Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress. The damages sought are ten million dollars."
Chloe’s jaw dropped. Her hand holding the selfie stick shook so violently the camera tilted toward the ceiling. "W-What?! Ten million dollars?! Are you crazy?!"
"Furthermore," Sarah Jenkins continued, her voice crystal clear, "we have already transmitted the video surveillance footage and the fraudulent notarized towing request you presented yesterday at the St. Regis garage to the Chicago Police Department."
Right on cue, the heavy glass front doors of the lobby swung open.
Three uniformed Chicago Police officers walked briskly across the marble floor.
The live stream comments went completely wild:
@ChiTownNews: HOLY SHIT IS SHE GETTING ARRESTED ON LIVE?!
@Sara_B: THE POLICE ARE THERE!
@LMAO_Drama: SHE BROUGHT POLICE ON HERSELF LOL!
"Chloe Vance?" the lead officer asked, pulling a pair of steel handcuffs from his utility belt.
Chloe scrambled backward on the velvet sofa, dropping her iPhone onto the floor. The camera was still running, pointed directly at the ceiling, broadcasting the audio to three thousand live viewers.
"No! Wait! You can't arrest me! I'm the victim here!" Chloe screamed, her voice cracking into a high-pitched panic. "My sister is married to Daniel Hayes! Call my mother! Call my mother!"
"Ms. Vance, you have the right to remain silent," the officer said calmly, grabbing her wrist and clicking the cold steel cuff around her right arm. "You are under arrest for attempted grand theft auto and criminal forgery."
"Get off me! Get your hands off me!" Chloe shrieked, kicking her legs as the officers pulled her to her feet and handcuffed her behind her back. "MIA! MIA, YOU EVIL BITCH, YOU DID THIS TO ME! MOM! HELP ME!"
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The police led a sobbing, screaming Chloe out through the lobby glass doors, directly past the blinding flashbulbs of the local news reporters and news cameras.
On the floor of the lobby, Chloe’s phone screen lit up with thousands of comments, hearts, and laughing emojis before Sarah Jenkins calmly stepped forward, reached down, and tapped the button to end the live stream.
