The draft from the high open terrace shook the heavy velvet curtains across the mezzanine[cite: 5].
Six-year-old Emma pressed her back against the cold stone railing, her white dress rustling in the sudden gust of wind[cite: 5].
Victoria stood over her in a dark grey t-shirt and jeans, her face twisted in a cold sneer[cite: 5].
Victoria: Stop crying, you little nuisance[cite: 5].
Emma: Please, Victoria! I want to go downstairs and wait for my dad[cite: 5]!
Victoria: Your father isn't here to protect you, and he never will be again[cite: 5].
Emma: Daddy said he was coming home early from his meeting[cite: 5]!
Victoria: Your father cares about our corporate merger, not a messy orphan[cite: 5].
Victoria grabbed the child by both wrists, lifted her over the ledge, and let go[cite: 5].
Emma screamed in sheer terror as she plummeted through the empty air toward the marble lobby floor[cite: 5].
Down below, the heavy entrance doors flew open as Julian Sterling walked inside in his dark suit[cite: 5].
He looked up toward the chandelier and saw his daughter falling straight toward the stone tiles[cite: 5].
Julian sprinted across the polished floor, diving onto his knees with his arms outstretched[cite: 5].
The impact hit his chest hard, knocking the breath from his lungs as his knees skidded over the marble[cite: 5].
He held the weeping girl tightly against his neck, his heart hammering against his ribs[cite: 5].
Emma: Daddy, I was so scared[cite: 5]!
Julian: I've got you, baby. Daddy has you safe[cite: 5].
Julian stood up, scooped Emma into his arms, and strode furiously up the stairs toward the balcony[cite: 5].
He confronted Victoria and slapped her hard across the face, sending her stumbling against the wall[cite: 5].
Julian: Don't you ever dare touch my child again[cite: 5]!
Victoria: Julian, how dare you lay a hand on me[cite: 5]!
Julian: Get out of my house[cite: 5]!
Victoria gasped on the floor, totally unaware of the locked safe in the study that held her darkest secret[cite: 5].