Chapter 8 - The Price of Treason
|
Julian stared at the leather folder on the table as if it were a venomous snake. His chest heaved as panic finally broke through his confident exterior.
"You're crazy..." Julian whispered, looking around the room at the armed men surrounding him. "You can't do this! This is Greenwich! The police—"
"The Chief of Police is currently standing outside your front gates, Julian," Sal interrupted smoothly. "He is waiting for me to finish my conversation with you before he steps inside to arrest you for corporate fraud, grand murder, and human trafficking."
Maya scrambled out from behind the sofa, crawling on her hands and knees toward Julian, grabbing his trouser leg.
"Julian! Do something!" Maya sobbed, her voice high and panicked. "Tell them to let us go! You said nobody could touch us!"
Julian looked down at Maya, his eyes dark with cold, murderous hatred. Without a second thought, he kicked his leg back, shoving her violently away from him.
"Get off me, you useless parasite!" Julian spat. "This is all your fault! If you hadn't thrown yourself down those damn stairs, none of this would have happened!"
Maya hit the marble floor, gasping in shock as she stared at the man who had promised her the world just hours ago.
I looked down at them from the gurney, feeling a profound, cold clarity.
"Julian," I called out, my voice raspy but resonant in the quiet hall.
Julian snapped his head toward me, desperation gleaming in his eyes. "Victoria! Honey, listen to me! Maya tricked me! She manipulated everything! I was just trying to protect our assets! We can fix this, Victoria—we're husband and wife!"
May you like
"We were never husband and wife, Julian," I said softly, lifting my hand to reveal the green jade pendant resting in my palm. "You were just a thief sitting in my father's chair."
Sal nodded to his men. "Take him out."
