Chapter 1 - The Blackout
The plunge into darkness was instantaneous and absolute.
One second, the Sterling Plaza’s grand ballroom was a glittering testament to my in-laws' manufactured wealth; the next, it was a suffocating tomb. The sudden silence that followed the power cut lasted only a heartbeat before panic erupted. Five hundred of the city’s most elite socialites began murmuring, then shouting. High heels scrambled against the marble floor. Glass shattered in the dark.
From my side of the service stairwell, I leaned against the heavy fire door, my chest heaving. Through the thick steel, I could hear Julian pounding his fists against the locked handle.
"Clara! Open this door right now!" Julian roared, his voice stripped of its usual polished, aristocratic veneer. It was the sound of a man losing control. "This isn't funny! The backup generators should have kicked in! Open the door!"
I touched my cheek in the pitch black. The skin was hot, swollen, and throbbing with a dull, vicious ache. My husband had struck me in front of the world, and they had laughed. But the tears that had pricked my eyes mere moments ago were gone, replaced by a terrifying, icy calm.
My father’s words echoed in my mind: By the time I pull up, the Sterlings won’t own a brick of it.
My phone buzzed in my hand, the screen casting a pale, ghostly light over my face. It was a text from my father. Go down to the service lobby. Do not use the main elevators. My security is waiting.
May you like
I didn't answer Julian. I turned away from the heavy steel door and began my descent down the concrete stairs. The clicking of my heels echoed through the empty shaft. Above me, I could hear Victor’s booming voice trying to command the panicked crowd, yelling at the hotel staff to restore order.
They didn't know it yet, but there was no order left to restore. The illusion was over.
