Charles pushed past Victoria with a sharp movement, his face contorted in pure shock and rising anger as he knelt beside Sarah on the bright floor. The high-key daylight through the large windows showed every detail of Sarah's tired face, making the dark circles under her eyes look deep and painfully real. He gently reached out his hand, his fingers trembling as he brushed a strand of hair away from her forehead, terrified that she might disappear if he touched her. Sarah looked into his eyes, a soft sob escaping her lips as she recognized the warmth and safety in his brown eyes that she had missed for so many dark months.
Sarah: Charles... you came back for me... she kept me locked away in the guesthouse...
Charles: I thought you were gone forever... they told me you left the country, Sarah!
Victoria stepped back toward the archway, her heels clicking loudly as she looked around for an escape route or a way to turn the situation around. A personal bodyguard stood quietly near the entrance doors, his face neutral under the bright indoor lighting, waiting for instructions from the owner of the house. Victoria tried to sound confident, pulling her white jacket tight around her chest as she tried to make Sarah look like a liar who was trying to ruin their peaceful marriage for money. But her voice cracked with every word she spoke, exposing the deep terror that was taking over her heart.
Victoria: She is lying to you, Charles! She came back here as a servant just to get your money! She fake-tested everything!
Charles: HOW DARE YOU LIE TO ME?!
Charles stood up slowly, his tall frame towering over Victoria as he turned to face her with intense anger in his eyes. The veins on his neck stood out tight against his collar as his voice roared through the pristine villa, shaking the glass artwork hanging nearby. He stepped closer to Victoria, his shadow covering her completely as she backed up against the cold marble wall with her hands over her face. He remembered every night he had spent crying over a child he thought had died, every legal document he had signed while grieving, and every lie Victoria had whispered into his ear to gain control over his family trust and estate.
Charles: You took my wife... you tried to destroy my child... and you brought her into my house to suffer as a maid!
Victoria gasped in terror, her back pressed hard against the wall as she looked up at the man who held all the legal power over her life. She dropped her hands slowly, her mascara running down her cheeks in dark lines as she tried to find words to save herself, but nothing came out except soft, frantic gasps for air. She knew that her life of high status, her access to his bank accounts, and her place in Dallas society were completely gone. Charles did not wait for her to give another weak excuse; he turned his head toward the bodyguard standing near the entrance and shouted a clear order that echoed into the grand hallway.