Chapter 15 - The Uninvited Guest
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Beatrice walked down the carpeted hallway into Vincenzo’s master office.
Sitting in the leather chair across from Vincenzo was a middle-aged woman wearing a faded velvet coat, her hands clutching a worn handbag.
It was Charlotte Kensington—Evelyn’s mother.
Charlotte looked up as Beatrice entered, her eyes burning with bitter humiliation.
“So this is her,” Charlotte sneered, pointing a trembling finger at Beatrice. “The little servant girl who destroyed my family.”
Vincenzo didn't raise his voice. He sat back in his high-backed chair, his dark eyes fixed on Charlotte with icy warning.
“Watch your tongue in my office, Charlotte,” Vincenzo said softly. “Beatrice didn't destroy your family. Your daughter’s greed and your husband’s debts did that all by themselves.”
“She lied!” Charlotte cried out, tears of anger spilling down her cheeks. “Evelyn was devoted to you! She was going to be the queen of this city!”
Beatrice walked calmly over to the desk, standing right beside Vincenzo’s chair. She didn't flinch beneath the older woman's glare.
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“Your daughter put hemlock in his coffee, Mrs. Kensington,” Beatrice said, her voice clear, calm, and resonant. “She traded his life for thirty percent of a rival empire. The only thing she was devoted to was the money she thought she’d inherit.”
Charlotte opened her mouth to speak, but the cold authority in Beatrice’s voice silenced her completely.
