Chapter 5 - The Secret Recording
I slipped my phone into my dress pocket, ensuring the voice recorder app was actively running in the background.
"Julian knew about this plan all along, didn't he?" I asked, keeping my tone deceptively hurt and fragile.
"He pretended to love me for three years just so you could secure my father's land development funds?"
Victoria scoffed, pouring herself a glass of ice water from the bedside carafe.
"Julian does whatever I tell him to do, Elena," Victoria boasted openly, taking a delicate sip.
"His father left twenty million dollars in a managed trust that doesn't unlock until Julian turns thirty-five or marries a woman I personally approve."
"You were never approved, my dear. You were just an asset acquisition target."
"We needed your father's signature on the water rights easement for our commercial development near the Energy Corridor."
"Once your father signed the easement and wired the down payment, your usefulness to the Vance family officially expired."
Every word was being captured in high-definition audio, uploaded instantly to my secure personal cloud server.
"And the drug you gave him last night?" I pressed softly. "What if you gave him an overdose?"
"It's a standard clinical sedative, you dramatic fool," Victoria snapped dismissively.
"He'll wake up at noon with a slight headache and no memory of the last twelve hours."
"He'll believe whatever story I tell him—just like he always does."
May you like
Suddenly, the bedroom door swung open completely, and two tall men in dark suits stepped into the threshold.
It was Victoria's private security team from her estate in River Oaks.
