Chapter 4
The heavy mahogany bedroom door clicked shut behind Julian, leaving Vanessa standing alone in the ruins of her crumbling high-society fantasy.
She stared down at the silver metal bucket resting in a puddle of spilled milk, her chest heaving as panic finally overtook her senses.
Grabbing her smartphone from the bedside table right beside the small US flag, she frantically dialed her father's private office number.
"Dad! You have to fix this immediately! Julian has gone completely insane and claims he's calling off the entire wedding!" she screamed into the receiver.
"What are you talking about, Victoria? The catering trucks are already parked outside, and Wall Street executives are flying in!" her father roared back.
"It was just a silly maid! She spilled coffee on my designer dress, and Julian walked in at the exact wrong moment!" Vanessa lied desperately.
"You absolute fool! That maid is the niece of federal judge Thomas Miller! Do you have any idea what you've just done to us?" her father bellowed.
The phone line went dead with a harsh automated tone as her father hung up on her, leaving her trapped in a nightmare of her own making.
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Vanessa threw the phone across the room, watching in fury as the expensive device shattered against the decorative white marble baseboards.
The luxury estate that had once felt like an impenetrable fortress now felt like a gilded cage closing in around her throat.
