Chapter 5 - The Fabricated Excuse
Victoria froze.
Her face drained of color so fast she looked like a ghost beneath the chandelier.
Her hands dropped to her sides, her fingers twitching against her silk skirt.
"Ethan!" Victoria gasped, her voice instantly shifting into a high-pitched, trembling whimper.
She took two frantic steps toward him, clasping her hands together near her chest.
"Oh, thank God you're home!" Victoria cried, tears springing to her eyes on command. "It was an accident... she lost her balance! She was running near the table and tripped!"
Ethan didn't move. He stood like an iron statue near the doorway, his eyes fixed on his fiancée.
"An accident?" Ethan repeated softly.
"Yes! I tried to catch her!" Victoria stammered, pointing a trembling finger down at Elena. "The maid... she rushed out and knocked us over! She made it worse! I was only trying to protect her!"
Elena looked up from the floor, her eyes wide with total disbelief at the speed of the lie.
"Mr. Blackwood..." Elena began, her voice shaking.
"Be quiet, servant!" Victoria shrieked, turning her head to glare at the maid. "Don't you dare lie to him!"
Ethan took three slow, deliberate strides across the foyer.
His polished shoes crunched over the shattered glass on the floor.
He stopped directly in front of Victoria.
"I saw exactly what you did," Ethan said, his voice cut like glass. "I was standing in the elevator vestibule through the clear glass panel."
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Victoria’s breath caught in her throat.
"I saw you grab my daughter," Ethan continued, his jaw setting into a hard line. "And I saw you toss her into the air."
