The Bride Victoria Needed to Delay
Chapter 03 - The Bride Victoria Needed to Delay
The Hale wedding was not only a family celebration.
It was a corporate deadline.
At midnight, Hale Crown Resorts planned to sell its historic properties division to Meridian Dominion for $1.9 billion. The sale included hotels, coastal estates, employee housing, and the private archive beneath Hale House.
Victoria chaired the transaction committee.
Dakota opposed the sale.
She had spent six years restoring historic buildings for the company and knew Meridian intended to convert protected properties into private membership resorts. Employee housing would be demolished. Archive access would be transferred to a storage company owned by Victoria’s brother.
Dakota’s vote alone could not stop the deal.
The Founder’s Covenant could.
Once activated by the registered marriage ceremony, the covenant required independent review of any sale involving Eleanor’s preserved assets.
Victoria needed one of three outcomes.
Dakota canceled the wedding.
Dakota married without the authenticated lace.
Or Dakota signed away her voting rights before entering the chapel.
Destroying the dress created pressure for all three.
Victoria expected Dakota to panic, accept the replacement gown, and sign the waiver to avoid scandal.
May you like
She had mistaken Dakota’s love for her mother’s lace as weakness.
The envelope transformed that attachment into a chain of evidence.
