Chapter 1 - The Shattered Glass
The silence hanging over the grand dining room was louder than the shatter of glass. Seconds ago, the Vance estate had been an impenetrable fortress of wealth and arrogance. Loretta Vance stood frozen at the head of the polished marble dining table, her usual cold posture evaporated. The paper in her hands—a folded stack of financial documents pulled directly from my father’s charcoal coat—trembled violently.
"How did you get this?" Loretta’s voice cracked, losing its sharp command.
My father, Warren, didn’t answer. He stood six-foot-two in his tailored suit, a silent wall of pure protection. His eyes were pinned on Loretta, cold and lethal.
To his right, Derek—my husband—was groaning on the floor, surrounded by the shattered remains of my glass trophy cabinet. My academic awards lay broken around his face. Derek clutched his chest, gasping for air.
Near the side table, Tessa was slowly pushing herself up off the floor, clutching her crimson cheek where Warren’s slap had landed. "You... you hit me!" she shrieked. "Derek, call the police!"
Derek didn't move. He couldn't. His eyes were fixed on the folder in his mother's hands.
I was still on my hands and knees on the freezing marble. The icy water Loretta had dumped over my head soaked through my dusty pink maternity dress. My hands were bright red, shaking uncontrollably. Ice cubes were still melting in the spilled food nearby, but my six-month pregnant belly had never touched the ground. My baby was safe.
"Camille." My father’s voice cut through the chaos. He dropped to one knee, wrapping his heavy charcoal overcoat around my shivering shoulders, and lifted me smoothly into his arms. "I've got you, sweetheart. You're never coming back here."
"Warren, wait!" Loretta shouted. "We are family!"
Warren stopped at the door. "We were never family, Loretta. You treated my daughter like a servant. You forgot who built the ground your house stands on."
May you like
I looked at Derek from over my father’s shoulder. "I'm not your wife anymore, Derek. And you're nothing."
Warren carried me out to his SUV. As we pulled away, my phone buzzed: Alert: Transfer of $500,000 initiated by Loretta Vance. They thought money could buy my silence. They were dead wrong.
