Chapter 1: The Lobby
The marble floors of the Grand Lexington Hotel gleamed under the crystal chandeliers as I stood holding my daughter’s small hand. Sophia clutched the paper necklace she had spent the entire afternoon making — red and blue construction paper looped together with uneven glue stains and a crooked heart drawn in the middle. She had been so proud of it.
“Daddy’s going to love it, right, Mommy?” she had asked in the car on the way here.
I had smiled and said yes, even though something uneasy had been sitting in my chest since Dominic told me he would be “too busy” for family dinner tonight because of the company gala.
I should have listened to that feeling.
We had barely made it past the marble fountain in the lobby when Chloe appeared.
Dominic’s executive secretary walked toward us in a sleek black dress, her heels clicking like warning shots. She looked me up and down with that familiar, condescending smile she always wore whenever I visited Dominic’s office.
“Vivienne,” she said, voice dripping with false politeness. “What are you doing here?”
Sophia smiled up at her shyly. “We came to surprise Daddy.”
Chloe’s smile widened, but it never reached her eyes.
“Surprise him?” She let out a short, cold laugh. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
I felt Sophia’s hand tighten around mine.
Chloe folded her arms and tilted her head.
“The executive vice president is already upstairs with his real family. His fiancée and their little boy are with him right now. They’re celebrating his promotion together.”
The words landed like ice water down my spine.
For a moment, the entire lobby seemed to tilt.
Sophia tugged on my sleeve, her voice small and confused.
“Mommy… where’s Daddy?”
I didn’t answer her immediately.
Instead, I slowly knelt down in front of my daughter, gently placed both hands over her ears, and stood back up. Sophia looked up at me, confused but trusting. She didn’t try to pull my hands away.
Chloe watched the gesture with open amusement.
“Protecting her from the truth?” she asked mockingly. “How sweet.”
I stared at her, completely still.
Then I reached into my purse, pulled out my phone, and dialed a number I rarely used but always kept saved.
The call connected after one ring.
“Victor,” I said, my voice calm and steady as I looked directly into Chloe’s eyes. “Destroy everything he thinks belongs to him.”
There was a brief silence on the other end.
Then my brother’s voice came through, low and cold.
“I’m already on my way.”
I ended the call.
Chloe’s confident smirk faltered for the first time.
May you like
She had no idea who I had just called.
And she had no idea what was coming.
