Chapter 10 - The Confrontation at the Gate
It was Richard. He stood in the doorway, his tailor-made suit pristine, a dark, calculating expression on his face. He looked at Clara, then at the open compartment in the grandfather clock, his eyes narrowing into slits of pure fury.
"What are you doing in here, Clara?" Richard asked, his voice low, deceptively calm.
Clara kept her handbag tightly tucked under her arm. "I'm leaving, Richard. I'm taking Lily and leaving."
Richard laughed, a cold, mocking sound. "Leaving? With what money? With what influence? You are fragile, Clara. The entire world knows you haven't been the same since your father died. If you step out that door, I will call the authorities and have you restrained for your own safety."
Clara didn't answer. She walked straight past him, her eyes fixed on the front hallway. Richard grabbed her wrist, his grip tight enough to leave bruises, but Clara didn't flinch. She looked him dead in the eye.
"Touch me again," she whispered, "and I will make sure the board sees what kind of man you are before the sun rises."
May you like
Richard hesitated, startled by the sudden, freezing strength in her tone. In that second of hesitation, Clara pulled her arm free, grabbed sleeping Lily from her bedroom, and ran out into the pouring rain toward her old sedan parked in the service driveway.
👉 Richard watched her car tear down the driveway, a cold smile spreading across his face as he pulled out his phone to make a devastating call.
