Chapter 19
Back in Washington, D.C., the federal penitentiary walls cast long, bleak shadows across the exercise yard where Julian Sterling served his daily sentence. Stripped of his wealth, his suits, and his title, he was just another inmate in an orange jumpsuit.
He stared blankly through the chain-link fence toward the distant American flag snapping in the federal courtyard. Every arrogant word he had spoken in the mansion foyer replayed endlessly in his mind like a relentless curse.
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He had thought Victoria was entirely dependent on him, completely unaware that she was the actual architect of his success. By trying to crush her, he had inadvertently handed her the entire kingdom.
A correctional officer tapped sharply on the fence wire, breaking Julian from his bitter trance. "Move along, Sterling. Visiting hours are over."
