Julian reached the top of the marble staircase in just a few powerful strides.
He stood directly in front of Victoria, his tall frame looming over her trembling form.
Victoria tried to regain her composure by smoothing the front of her expensive silk dress.
She pointed a long, manicured finger downward toward the tearful maid sitting on the floor.
Victoria: She clumsy girl tripped over her own feet and dropped him!
Julian: I watched the entire incident happen with my own eyes!
Victoria: You are mistaken because the light was bad down there!
Julian: I saw you tilt the wooden carrier over the edge!
Elena: I saw her hand tilt the basket forward, sir!
Victoria: Keep your foolish mouth shut, you pathetic little maid!
Julian: Do not speak to her like that ever again!
Julian took a deep breath to steady his voice, though his eyes burned with fury.
He had married Victoria six months ago, believing she genuinely loved him and his newborn son.
His late wife had passed away during childbirth, leaving him as a grieving single father.
Victoria had appeared in his life shortly after, offering comforting words and fake maternal warmth.
Now the horrifying truth was staring him right in the face inside his own hallway.
Elena stood up slowly from the marble floor, keeping Leo wrapped securely inside her arms.
She walked toward the safety of the library room, away from the heated upper balcony.
Julian turned back to Victoria, demanding an explanation for her horrific and reckless actions.
Julian: Why would you ever endanger my son like this?
Victoria: It was a total accident, I swear to you!
Julian: You wanted something terrible to happen to him today!
Victoria: How could you accuse your own wife of that?
Julian: Because you only care about my family inheritance money!
Victoria: That is a disgusting thing to say to me!
Julian: Pack your bags and leave this mansion immediately!
Victoria's face flushed bright red as her polite facade shattered into bitter anger.
She realized that her carefully calculated scheme was rapidly unraveling before her eyes.
She gripped the polished wooden banister so tightly that her knuckles turned bright white.
She knew that if Julian divorced her now, she would receive nothing from his estate.
Their prenuptial agreement specifically stated that infidelity or harm toward family members canceled alimony.
She needed to find a way to shift the entire blame onto someone else fast.
She stared down at Elena through the open library doorway with pure malice in her eyes.
The quiet maid had ruined everything that Victoria had spent months carefully planning to achieve.
Julian pulled out his sleek smartphone and dialed his senior corporate legal attorney immediately.
Julian: Arthur, I need you at my house this minute.
Arthur: Is everything alright with the estate, Mr. Sterling?
Julian: We have a critical emergency regarding my prenuptial agreement.
Arthur: I am getting into my car right now, sir.
Julian hung up the phone and glared at Victoria with complete, unwavering icy coldness.
He told her not to move an inch while he went to check on his son.