Chapter 9 - The Mask Slips
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Victoria lay sprawled on the marble, clutching her rapidly swelling jaw. Her emerald green dress was crumpled and stained with dirt from the crushed wildflowers scattered around her.
She stared up at Edward with a mixture of utter shock and venomous hatred.
"You hit me?" Victoria whispered, her voice trembling with disbelief and fury. "You chose this dying old woman over your own wife?"
Edward didn't answer her. He didn't even look at her. He dropped to his knees, gently gathering his mother into his arms.
Florence was weeping hysterically, her breathing shallow and ragged, her knuckles white as she clutched Edward’s dark blue suit jacket.
"Mother, oh my God, are you okay? What is happening here?" Edward pleaded, his voice cracking with pure agony as he checked her head for injuries.
Victoria slowly pushed herself up off the cold floor, wiping a trickle of red blood from her lip. A cold, mocking sneer returned to her face.
"She’s dying, Edward!" Victoria spat, her voice echoing off the high ceilings of the foyer. "Your precious mother has terminal cancer! She’s been keeping it from you!"
Edward went rigid. He looked down at his mother. Florence squeezed her eyes shut, fresh tears spilling over her bruised cheeks, silently confirming the tragic truth.
"She was planning to leave this entire estate to a charity instead of us!" Victoria yelled, stepping closer, her eyes glittering with unhinged greed. "She has millions in a secret trust, and she was going to write us completely out of the will! I was doing what was necessary! She was going to sign those transfer papers today, one way or another!"
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Edward slowly stood up, turning to face his wife. The love he had once felt for her was completely dead, replaced by a cold, absolute disgust.
"We deserve this house, Edward!" Victoria screamed, taking another step forward. "We deserve this life!"
