Chapter 5
For a long moment, the only sound in the grand ballroom was the faint hum of the air conditioning vents. Julian stared at the tablet screen in David’s hand, watching his own deceit played back in pristine, irrefutable high definition. The clever illusion he had crafted to ruin a child’s reputation and cover his own financial crimes was laid bare for the entire family to witness.
Uncle Arthur stepped forward, his face flushed with deep disappointment and suppressed fury. He stopped just a few feet from Julian, looking down at the younger man with a gaze that carried more weight than any physical blow.
“I watched you grow up, Julian,” Arthur said, his voice trembling slightly with suppressed anger. “I gave you a position in the firm, trusted you with accounts, and welcomed you to this family table. And you repay that trust by using a terrified little girl as a shield for your own criminal cowardice?”
Julian swallowed hard, his throat dry. He looked around the room, desperately searching for an ally among the stunned relatives, but every face was turned away in cold judgment. Even Great-Aunt Beatrice gave him a look of absolute disgust, crossing her arms defensively over her silk dress.
“I... I was under pressure,” Julian stammered, his polished confidence completely shattered. His hands shook so violently that he nearly dropped the black smartphone he was still clutching. “The market dropped. My investments failed. If I couldn’t settle the margin calls by midnight, I would have lost everything. I didn’t mean to hurt Lily, I swear. It was just... it was just a temporary fix.”
“A temporary fix at the expense of a six-year-old child,” Clara said, her voice cutting through his pathetic excuses like a surgical blade. She stepped forward, keeping Lily safely behind her. “You bruised her arm when you shoved the phone into that pocket. You knew she was vulnerable, and you didn’t care what psychological damage you left in your wake as long as you saved your own skin.”
Julian flinched at the reminder of the physical contact. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. The realization that his career, his social standing, and his freedom were all evaporating in real-time finally crashed over him with crushing weight.
David didn’t give him time to recover. With a calm, deliberate motion, David pressed another icon on his tablet. The heavy wooden double doors at the entrance of the ballroom swung open once more, revealing two uniformed hotel security officers accompanied by a local police lieutenant.
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“Julian Vance,” the lieutenant stated clearly, stepping into the room with official gravity. “You’re being detained for questioning regarding corporate embezzlement, digital trespassing, and malicious fabrication of evidence against a minor.”
Julian’s knees buckled slightly. As the officers stepped forward to take him into custody, Julian made a split-second, desperate decision. He spun around and lunged toward the open French doors leading out to the garden terrace, hoping to vanish into the night.
