Chapter 6: The Desperate Confession
Claire stood on the foyer runner, water pooling around her designer boots. Her hair clung to her face, and her eyes were bloodshot from crying.
"Julian..." she breathed, clutching her soaked wool coat tightly around herself. "Please don't turn me away. Just five minutes. That's all I'm asking."
Julian stood five paces away, his arms folded, expression unreadable. "You broke your bail terms coming up here, Claire. What could you possibly have to say?"
"My father is blaming everything on me," Claire cried, her voice cracking with despair. "He handed the FBI doctored communications showing I acted alone! He’s sacrificing me to protect his own skin!"
Julian watched her closely. There was undeniable fear in her eyes, but Julian had learned the cost of sympathy without truth.
"You agreed to steal my proprietary trade data, Claire. You walked into my home and smiled at my nephew while planning our ruin," Julian said, his tone icy and steady. "Your father may be ruthless, but you chose to be his accomplice."
"Because I didn't think I had a choice!" she sobbed, sinking to her knees right there in the entryway, much like Clara had at the altar days before. "He controlled my trust fund, my career, my entire life. He told me if I didn't secure the Vance merger and the harbor codes, he would leave me with nothing!"
"And what did you think you would leave Leo and me with?" Julian asked softly.
May you like
Claire had no answer. She looked down at the polished hardwood floor, her shoulders shaking.
"Integrity isn't measured by what you do when life is easy, Claire," Julian continued. "It’s measured by the lines you refuse to cross when you’re under pressure. You crossed every single one."
