Chapter 2: The Fury of the True Heir
The heavy, mahogany double doors of the Belmont mansion were suddenly kicked open with such force that the glass panes rattled.
Julian Belmont stormed into the foyer, his tie loosened, his expensive Tom Ford suit disheveled. He had left a multi-billion-dollar board meeting early after receiving a frantic, garbled text message from Clara. The moment his eyes adjusted to the dim light of the foyer, his breath caught in his throat.
"Clara!"
Julian dropped his briefcase, sprinting across the marble floor. He fell to his knees beside his wife, his hands shaking violently as he hovered over her broken body. "Oh my God... Clara, look at me! Look at me, baby. Who did this to you?"
Clara could barely open her eyes, her lips pale and trembling. "Julian... it hurts..." she whispered, before losing consciousness entirely, her head slumping into his lap. Julian’s hands came away covered in her blood. A roar of pure, unadulterated primal fury ripped from his chest.
"Who did this?!" Julian screamed, his eyes locking onto the security guards, who immediately took a step back, terrified of the young billionaire's wrath.
"I did," a calm, chillingly arrogant voice replied from above.
Julian looked up to see his mother, Victoria, leaning casually against the mezzanine railing, sipping a glass of chilled Chardonnay.
"Mother?" Julian’s voice cracked, a mixture of horror and disgust washing over him. "Are you insane? You pushed her? She's my wife! She's pregnant with your grandchild!"
Victoria scoffed, swirling her wine. "Don't be dramatic, Julian. It's a minor setback. She’s a gold-digger from a trailer park, Julian. I did you a favor. I’ve already spoken to Mayor Vance. His daughter Evelyn is ecstatic to see you. We will announce your engagement next week once the lawyers finalize a quiet divorce settlement for this... creature."
Julian stood up slowly, his body shaking with a rage so intense it felt demonic. The blood of his wife was smeared across his white shirt. He looked at his mother as if she were a monster.
"You think she's a gold-digger?" Julian’s voice dropped to a deadly, quiet whisper that carried more weight than a scream. "You think she comes from nothing?"
"She’s an ordinary small-town nobody, Julian! Her father probably works at a gas station!" Victoria shouted back, losing her patience. "Get a grip! You are a Belmont! We own this city!"
"No, Mother. We don't," Julian said, a terrifying, dark smile breaking through his tears. "You think you’re untouchable because you know the Mayor? Let me tell you something about the woman you just tried to murder. Her real name isn't Clara Smith. It's Clara Vance-Harrison. Her estranged father isn't a mechanic. He is Senator Thomas Harrison—the man who controls the federal funding for this entire state, the man who is currently running for President of the United States."
The wine glass slipped from Victoria’s fingers, shattering into a thousand pieces on the marble floor below. The color drained from her face instantly.
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"What... what did you say?" Victoria stammered, her knees suddenly feeling weak.
"She hid her identity because she wanted someone to love her for her, not her family's terrifying power," Julian snarled, pulling out his phone with bloody fingers. "And right now, I am calling her father. May God have mercy on your soul, Mother, because the Harrison family will destroy us by morning."
