Chapter 1 - The Fall of the Golden Boy
The heavy mahogany door practically splintered as two sheriff’s deputies burst into the dining room.
Julian immediately threw his hands in the air, his face morphing into a sickening mask of pure innocence.
"Officers, thank God you are here," he lied smoothly, his voice dripping with fake panic.
"My wife just had a terrible mental breakdown and smashed a glass against her own face."
His mother, Eleanor, immediately stepped forward, clutching her pearls with practiced theatricality.
"It was horrifying to watch, Officer," she whimpered, dabbing her dry eyes with a silk napkin.
"She has been so unstable lately, and we were just trying to get her some help."
Around the table, the rest of the Sterling family nodded in perfect, sickening unison.
Fifteen voices chimed in, corroborating the exact same fabricated story.
They thought their wealth and unified front would easily discredit a bleeding, hysterical woman.
But I wasn't hysterical.
I was perfectly calm.
I kept my hand tightly closed around the micro-SD card Clara had given me, hiding it in my pocket.
"Officer," I said, my voice steady and cold.
"I am the owner of this property, and I did not injure myself."
I pointed a blood-stained finger toward the ornate bookshelf in the corner of the room.
"There is a motion-activated nanny cam hidden on the third shelf, behind the encyclopedia."
The color instantly drained from Julian’s face.
Eleanor let out a sharp gasp, her hands dropping to her sides.
"It uploads directly to a secure cloud server in real-time," I explained, pulling out my phone.
With two taps, I pulled up the app and handed the screen to the lead deputy.
The volume was all the way up.
The entire dining room watched in horrified silence as the video played.
They heard my refusal.
They heard Julian’s screaming fit.
And they watched, in crystal-clear high definition, as he violently smashed the glass against my head while his family sat doing absolutely nothing.
The deputy handed the phone back to me and unclipped his handcuffs.
"Julian Sterling, you are under arrest for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon," the officer barked.
Julian screamed and thrashed as they forced him against the wall.
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"You malicious witch, I will destroy you!" he roared, spitting in my direction.
"You already tried," I whispered, watching them drag him out into the cold night.
