Chapter 3 - The Cruel Game
The silence in the ballroom became heavy and suffocating. You could hear the ice melting in the cocktail glasses.
Dante slowly stood up to his full height. He turned his head to look at Victoria. The look in his dark eyes wasn't just anger; it was a lethal, quiet promise of destruction.
Victoria instantly panicked. The arrogant, bossy demeanor vanished, replaced by a frantic, artificial sweetness. She stepped forward, reaching out to touch his suited arm.
"Dante, darling, she’s just confused!" Victoria laughed nervously, her teardrop diamond catching the light as her chest heaved. "It’s a game! Lily wanted to play dress-up and help the catering staff. You know how children have wild imaginations. She’s just throwing a tantrum because it’s past her bedtime."
Dante didn't look at her hand on his arm. He kept his eyes locked on her face. "A game."
"Yes!" Victoria insisted, shooting a vicious, warning glare at the little girl. "Tell your father you were just playing, Lily."
Lily flinched, shrinking back behind Claire, too terrified to speak.
"It's not a game, sir," a voice rang out clearly.
Everyone turned. It was Claire. The young maid’s hands were shaking so badly that the champagne glasses on the silver tray rattled together, but she raised her chin, refusing to back down.
Victoria’s face turned the color of chalk. "Claire, shut your mouth right now, or you are fired!"
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"I don't care," Claire said, tears welling in her own eyes as she looked directly at the mafia-connected billionaire. "She makes Lily scrub the baseboards every time you go to the office, Mr. Dante. She tells her that her bedroom belongs to her now."
👉 What other sick punishments has the future stepmother been inflicting behind Dante's back?
