Chapter 8
Lily’s tiny fingers gripped the polished gold clasp of the pink floral handbag. The silence in the magnificent foyer was heavy, suffocating, broken only by the ragged, desperate breathing of Victoria kneeling on the marble floor.
With a soft, distinct click, the gold clasp opened.
Victoria instantly froze. Her frantic sob caught in her throat. Her face turned a sickly, deathly pale, the color draining completely from her lips. Her sharp blue eyes widened in absolute, paralyzing horror as she stared at the open mouth of the tiny purse. She looked as though she were staring at her own executioner.
Daniel slowly reached down, his large, tattooed hand hovering over the small opening. He reached his fingers inside the pink floral lining and pulled out the small, hidden contents that his late wife had stashed away three years ago.
The camera stayed tightly, relentlessly focused on Daniel’s face. The contents of the handbag were kept entirely out of view, hidden within the shadow of his massive palm.
As Daniel brought the object into the light, his expression underwent a violent, terrifying transformation.
The fierce, protective rage that had fueled him seconds ago completely vanished. His sharp jawline slackened. His dark, piercing eyes widened in absolute, paralyzed shock. The color drained from his own fair skin, leaving the black tattoos across his chest standing out in stark, terrifying contrast against his pale skin.
His lips parted slightly, but no sound came out for several agonizing seconds. His muscular chest stopped rising and falling as he stared down at the item in his hand.
The powerful billionaire, a man who controlled millions and feared nothing in the city, looked genuinely, profoundly horrified.
"What the hell is this?!" Daniel whispered, his deep voice trembling violently with a mixture of shock, betrayal, and absolute disbelief.
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He looked up from his hand, his dark eyes locking onto Victoria kneeling on the floor. The fury in his gaze was gone, replaced by a cold, sickening horror that promised a reckoning far worse than death.
Victoria let out a tiny, broken whimper, burying her face in her hands as she collapsed fully against the cold marble floor.
