Chapter 2: The Web of Venom
The master suite of the Sterling estate was a sanctuary of silence and warmth, a stark contrast to the cold marble of the foyer. Julian had laid Clara gently on the plush bedding, wrapping her in a soft, heated blanket. He had summoned his private physician immediately, refusing to leave her side for even a fraction of a second.
As the doctor examined Clara, ensuring the baby was unharmed by the stress and the heat of the spilled food, Julian paced the room like a caged panther. The ultrasound photo was still clutched tightly in his fist.
“The baby is perfectly healthy, Mr. Sterling,” the doctor finally announced with a reassuring smile. “But Miss Clara’s heart rate is elevated, and she is severely malnourished. She needs rest, a strict diet, and zero stress.”
“She will have everything,” Julian vowed, his voice thick with emotion. Once the doctor departed, Julian knelt by the edge of the bed, taking Clara’s small, calloused hands in his.
“Clara,” he said softly, his thumb tracing the knuckles that had scrubbed floors for months. “Tell me everything. How did you end up back here? Why didn't you answer my calls?”
Tears welled in Clara’s eyes again. “I never left, Julian. The night you went to London for the merger… Victoria came to the servant's quarters. She had men with her. They took my phone. They locked me in the old cellar house at the edge of the property.”
Julian’s breath stopped. “The cellar? For six months?”
“She forged the medical documents,” Clara cried softly, the horrific memories flooding back. “She brought me papers with your signature, saying I had miscarried and that you were terminating my employment. But she said if I tried to leave the estate, her men would make sure I never made it to the city alive. She forced me to work in the shadows, cleaning the unused wings, surviving on scraps. She told me it was my punishment for daring to love a Sterling. Today was the first time she dragged me into the main house… to humiliate me, because she thought you wouldn't be back until tomorrow.”
Julian closed his eyes, a tear escaping and trailing down his cheek. He pressed his forehead against her hands. The guilt was a physical crushing weight on his chest.
“I came back early to cancel the engagement,” Julian confessed, his voice ragged. “I told Victoria before I left that I couldn't marry her. I told her I loved you. I was coming back to find you, to take you away. She told me you had a miscarriage and fled in shame.”
Clara gasped, her hand instinctively going to his hair. “You… you didn't abandon us?”
“Never. I would die before I let anything happen to you or our child,” Julian swore, looking up at her with fierce devotion.
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Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from the hallway outside.
Julian’s expression instantly hardened into stone. He stood up, the vulnerable lover vanishing, replaced by the ruthless billionaire CEO. “Rest, my love. I have a snake to behead.”
