Chapter 6
The grand ballroom was paralyzed by the shocking display of violence and the scandalous revelation. The wealthy black-tie guests whispered frantically among themselves, their crisp American accents blending into a chaotic, buzzing hive. Hotel staff in their black-and-white uniforms stood frozen near the service doors, unsure if they should intervene or call the police.
Victoria scrambled backward on the marble floor, her high heels slipping wildly in the slick, ruined cake frosting. Her elegant emerald gown was completely destroyed, and her fair skin was flushed a dark, humiliated crimson.
"You don't understand!" Victoria cried out, raising her hands defensively as Alexander loomed over her. "The estate is expensive to run, Alexander! The maintenance, the staff, the property taxes... the money was needed elsewhere!"
"You stole from a child," Alexander said, his voice dropping from a booming roar into a cold, lethal whisper that was somehow infinitely more terrifying. "You starved my four-year-old daughter to fund your pathetic, aristocratic lifestyle."
"She didn't need that much money!" Victoria argued desperately, pulling herself up to a sitting position. "She is a child! She doesn't know the difference between a gourmet meal and scraps! I was teaching her humility! She has bad blood, Alexander! She is exactly like her mother!"
At the mention of Sophia’s mother, Alexander’s entire body went rigid. The muscles in his jaw clenched so tightly it looked as though his teeth might shatter.
"Do not speak my wife's name," Alexander warned, his eyes narrowing into dark, dangerous slits.
"Why shouldn't I?" Victoria sneered, her toxic, controlling nature flaring up even from the floor. "Elena was a commoner. A gold-digger who tricked you into marriage. I tried to warn you, but you wouldn't listen. When she died, you dumped her brat on me and buried yourself in your business!"
"I entrusted my daughter to my mother!" Alexander fired back, his voice cracking with a profound, agonizing heartbreak. "Because I was broken by grief! Because I thought you loved her! I thought you were family!"
Sophia, still clinging desperately to Alexander’s shoulder, began to whimper. The shouting and the intense tension in the bright, vividly colored room were terrifying her.
"Daddy, please," Sophia cried softly, burying her dirty face into his neck. "I don't like the yelling. Can we go home?"
Alexander immediately softened. He raised a hand to gently stroke the back of his daughter's tangled hair. "I know, sweetie. I know. We are leaving right now. You are never going back to that house with her."
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"You can't take her from me!" Victoria yelled, struggling to her feet, her hands covered in sticky white frosting. "I have legal guardianship! My lawyers will tie you up in court for years!"
"Your lawyers," Alexander stated coldly, turning his back on her to leave the ballroom, "will be too busy defending you against federal embezzlement and child endangerment charges."
