Adrian reached me, took one look at Sophie shivering in my arms, and immediately removed his jacket, wrapping it around us both.
“I’m here,” he said softly.
That was all.
“They pushed her,” I told him.
His jaw tightened.
He turned to one of his men. “Lock it down. No one leaves.”
Then he faced the crowd.
Silence fell—heavy, unnatural.
Ethan stepped forward again, louder now. “You can’t just walk in here and—”
Adrian glanced at him once.
Recognition hit instantly.
Ethan’s confidence shattered. “Mr. Hale,” he stammered.
Whispers spread.
Hale.
My mother’s face drained of color. My father stepped back.
Adrian didn’t even acknowledge them.
“Five years ago,” he said calmly, “I married Claire in private. For security reasons. My family was kept out of the public eye.”
No one breathed.
He pulled me closer, Sophie safe between us.
“Tonight, you humiliated my wife and terrified my child.”
His gaze landed on my father. Then Natalie. Then Ethan.
“You mistook silence for weakness.”
No one laughed now.
Ethan tried to recover. “Sir, I didn’t—this is being blown out of proportion—”
Adrian pulled out his phone.
“Cancel the Prescott deal. Withdraw all Hale investments. Call in their debt—immediately.”
He ended the call.