The heavy double doors at the front entrance of the mansion swung open with a sharp creak.
Victoria stepped out onto the top step, wearing an elegant white designer dress and oversized dark sunglasses.
The clicking sound of her high heels echoed loudly across the wide marble steps as she descended.
She carried a silver tray with a tall glass of sparkling iced tea, completely unbothered by anything.
She froze in place on the fourth step when her eyes landed directly on her returned husband.
Her perfect composure cracked completely, revealing a momentary flash of pure, unadulterated panic on her face.
"David?" Victoria gasped out, clutching her sun hat tightly against her styled blonde hair.
"You were supposed to be in Dubai until Friday evening!" she yelled out in total shock and disbelief.
David stood up slowly, picking up his trembling young daughter safely into his broad, strong arms.
His eyes were sharp and filled with a dangerous, blazing rage that Victoria had never seen before.
"Explain this right now, Victoria," David commanded, his deep voice shaking with incredible suppressed anger.
Victoria quickly adjusted her sunglasses, attempting to regain her usual smug and superior posture on the stairs.
"Oh, don't be so dramatic, David," Victoria replied with a cold, careless wave of her manicured hand.
"The child was disobedient and spilled juice on my imported white silk sofa in the formal living room."
"She needed to learn a proper lesson about respecting expensive things in a high-class home like this."
David took three quick, aggressive steps up the marble stairs, closing the distance between them instantly.
"You put my daughter in a trash bag and bound her hands with industrial tape!" David roared.
Victoria stepped backward in surprise, her high heel catching slightly on the edge of the smooth stone step.
"She is spoiled and needs strict discipline!" Victoria shouted back, her voice growing increasingly shrill and angry.
"I am the mistress of this house now, and you gave me authority over her daily upbringing!"
"You have no authority over anything in this house anymore!" David yelled, taking another intimidating step forward.
Victoria reached out aggressively, attempting to snatch Isabella's arm to pull her away from David's chest.
David reacted instantly, turning his shoulder sharply to block Victoria's hand from touching the frightened girl.
He shoved Victoria's arm away with great force, sending her stumbling backward down two stone steps.
She landed hard on the flat landing, her iced tea glass shattering into hundreds of tiny pieces beside her.
Victoria gasped loudly in utter shock, sitting on the cold marble floor with her jaw wide open.
"Don't you ever touch my daughter again!" David warned, pointing a sharp finger straight at her face.
"If you even look in her direction again, I will personally see that you end up in prison!"
Victoria glared up at him with intense hatred, her refined mask slipping away to reveal total venom.
"You can't talk to me like that!" Victoria shrieked, scrambling up onto her feet with desperate anger.
"I am your legal wife, and half of this massive estate belongs to me under state law!"
David looked down at her with cold contempt, holding his quiet daughter even tighter against his warm heart.
"We will see what belongs to you after my legal team finishes with you," David said quietly.