Chloe: Ah!
Chloe clutched her burning cheek, her eyes wide with shock as she slumped against the white wall. Her gold satin gown rustled loudly against the marble as she struggled to keep her balance.
Chloe: You... you hit me, Daniel! In front of the servants!
Daniel: You poured dirty water over the woman who gave me life! You are lucky I don't throw you off this balcony myself!
Chloe: I didn't know she was your mother! She was wearing a maid's uniform!
Daniel: Does wearing a uniform give you the right to abuse someone, Chloe? Is that how you treat people when you think nobody is watching?
Chloe: Mrs. Sterling, please! You have to understand! I was stressed about the wedding arrangements!
Margaret: Do not use your wedding as an excuse for cruelty, girl. My character does not change based on the clothes I wear, but yours certainly revealed itself the second you thought you had power.
Chloe: Daniel, darling, please! Think about our engagement! We have three hundred guests arriving for the dinner party tomorrow night!
Daniel: The dinner party is canceled. The wedding is canceled. You are leaving this house today.
Chloe: Canceled?! You can't cancel our wedding over a misunderstanding!
Daniel: This isn't a misunderstanding, Chloe. It's a revelation.
Arthur, the head butler, stepped forward quickly, holding a thick, plush wool blanket. He gently wrapped it around Margaret's wet shoulders, handing her a clean, dry hand towel.
Butler Arthur: Madam Sterling, shall I call your private physician to check on you?
Margaret: I am perfectly fine, Arthur. The water was cold, but my resolve is quite warm.
Butler Arthur: Right away, Madam. And what should we do with Miss Chloe's luggage upstairs?
Margaret: Have the staff pack every single box she brought into this house. Place them on the driveway near the front gates.
Chloe: No! You can't touch my things! I have designer dresses in that suite worth thousands of dollars!
Margaret: Dresses bought with my son's credit cards, no doubt. Every item you purchased using Sterling funds will remain right here until my forensic accountants review the statements.
Chloe swallowed hard, her face turning from pale to a dangerous, mottled red as desperation took over.
Chloe: Daniel, tell her she can't do this! We signed a prenuptial agreement last week! You gave me a five-hundred-thousand-dollar engagement allowance!
Daniel: The prenuptial agreement contained a standard moral conduct clause, Chloe. My mother's legal team drafted it personally.
Chloe: Moral conduct? What does that have to do with anything?!
Daniel: Clause fourteen clearly states that any act of physical hostility or unprovoked abuse against a member of the Sterling family voids the allowance immediately.
Chloe: I didn't know she was a Sterling!
Daniel: That makes it worse, Chloe. It proves you are a monster to anyone you consider beneath you.
Margaret wiped the last remnants of water from her neck and stepped forward, her posture straight and regal under the wool blanket. She looked down at Chloe with cold, piercing blue eyes.
Margaret: Arthur, call my chief legal officer, Vance. Tell him I need the corporate asset freeze executed immediately.
Chloe: Asset freeze? What asset freeze?!
Margaret: You didn't really think I was just playing dress-up as a housemaid for fun, did you, Chloe?