Chapter 11 - The Steel Grip of Justice
Victoria hauled herself up against the bent metal frame of the wrecked cocktail table, gasping for breath.
Her platinum hair was matted with spilled alcohol and blood from shallow cuts along her neck and arms.
Her ruined crimson gown hung in tatters around her knees, the cruel elegance of the evening utterly destroyed.
She looked toward the shattered doorway, searching for a blind corner or an emergency exit stairwell.
Before she could take a single limping step, the thunder of tactical boots echoed violently down the hallway.
Two uniformed police officers burst onto the rooftop terrace, their service weapons drawn and ready.
The lead officer shouted with booming authority, commanding everyone to freeze and raise their hands immediately.
Victoria froze in place, her eyes darting between the officers, the skyline, and the brother who despised her.
Julian remained stationary near the pool lounge, his body positioned as an impenetrable shield over Clara.
The younger officer moved with practiced tactical precision, covering Victoria with a taser drawn and aimed.
The senior officer holstered his weapon, his expression hardening as he took in the submerged wheelchair in the pool.
There was no room for Victoria to weave lies or manufacture excuses in the presence of undeniable evidence.
The senior officer stepped through the scattered glass, unclipping a pair of heavy steel handcuffs from his utility belt.
Victoria began to stammer frantic denials, her voice rising into a shrill, hysterical pitch of helpless terror.
She claimed it was an accident, a tragic malfunction of the mechanical chair, an innocent misunderstanding.
Julian did not even dignify her desperate lies with a glance, focusing solely on warming his shivering wife.
The officer closed the distance, his grip clamping down like iron onto Victoria’s trembling, cut-covered wrist.
The cold, unyielding bite of the steel cuff clicked open with a sharp, ominous mechanical snick.
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Victoria stared at the open metal ring, the full reality of a lifetime behind bars descending upon her soul.
Her breath hitched in raw horror as the ratcheting steel swung downward toward her second wrist.
