Julian walked slowly over to the glass display table, his leather shoes clicking against the stage tiles. He picked up the yellowed document with shaking fingers, flipping to the second page under the bright chandelier lights.
Julian: "Full liquidation of Clara Sterling’s trust fund... transferred to Victoria Vance..."
Victoria: Julian, darling, listen to me! Your father wanted me to manage those accounts if anything ever happened to Clara!
Julian: My father left fifty percent of his corporate voting shares exclusively to Clara! You had no right to touch a single penny!
Victoria: I did it to protect the company! Clara was unstable!
Clara: I was a top-ranked honors graduate from Columbia University, Victoria! I wasn't unstable until you locked me in a burning room!
Guest C: This is horrific! She stole her entire inheritance!
Guest D: The police need to be called right now!
Victoria: Shut up, all of you! You are guests in my mansion!
Clara: This isn't your mansion, Victoria. This house was built by my grandfather forty years ago.
Clara took three slow steps up the stage stairs, her bandaged feet leaving small red prints on the white carpet. Victoria backed away toward the floral altar, clutching her diamond necklace with trembling hands.
Victoria: Keep away from me! Don't come near me with those hideous scars!
Clara: These scars are the price of your greed, Victoria. But they saved my life because they reminded me every single day why I had to survive.
Julian: Clara... what happened to your voice? It sounds so raspy.
Clara: Smoke inhalation ruined my vocal cords, brother. I spent six months learning how to speak again just so I could say these words to her face.
Julian’s eyes filled with tears as he looked at his scarred sister, then turned toward Victoria with pure, cold fury.
Julian: You told me she died in your arms, Victoria. You cried on my shoulder for two weeks after the funeral!
Victoria: I was grieving too, Julian!
Julian: You were acting! You put on a white gown and tried to marry me so you could secure sixty percent of my family’s corporate stock!
Victoria: I love you, Julian! Everything I did, I did so we could build an empire together!
Julian: You didn't do it for us! You did it for yourself!
Julian reached up and unclipped his silk boutonniere, throwing it onto the floor at Victoria’s feet.
Julian: The wedding is canceled.
Victoria: You can't cancel the wedding! The press is outside! The board of directors is sitting right there!
Julian: The board of directors is watching you get exposed as a criminal, Victoria.
Clara reached into her dark trench coat once more, pulling out a sleek black digital recorder and pressing the play button.
Clara: Let’s hear what your private doctor said when I woke up last month, Victoria.