Chapter 6: The Name That Ruined Everything
The romantic music drifting from the grand ballroom suddenly sounded like a funeral dirge.
Emily stared at Daniel, her heart hammering violently against her ribs. The warmth that had enveloped them just seconds ago evaporated, replaced by a freezing, suffocating tension. Daniel stepped back again, the disgust on his face slicing through her more deeply than Vanessa’s slap ever could.
“How did you find out?” Emily choked out, her voice barely a whisper.
“So it’s true.” Daniel’s voice was lethal, stripped of all emotion. He thrust the phone toward her. “Arthur Thorne. The man who embezzled fifty million dollars from Sterling Enterprises. The man whose lies caused my father to take his own life. You are his daughter.”
Emily’s breath hitched. She reached out, trembling. “Daniel, please, let me explain—”
“Do not say my name!” Daniel roared, his voice echoing off the marble pillars. Several guests lingering near the terrace doors turned their heads, their eyes wide with fresh gossip.
Daniel dragged a hand through his perfectly styled hair, his mind racing. “Was this the plan? Did he send you? Get a job as a maid in my house, play the victim, bat your eyelashes, and get close enough to destroy what’s left of my family?”
“No! I haven’t spoken to him in ten years!” Emily cried, tears spilling over her lashes, ruining her makeup. “I changed my last name to escape him! He destroyed my life too. I didn't even know who you were when I took the job through the agency. It was just a paycheck to keep my mother in her care facility!”
“Liar.” The word cracked like a whip in the night air.
Vanessa stepped out onto the terrace, a triumphant, wicked smirk painted on her ruby-red lips. She glided over to Daniel, placing a sympathetic hand on his rigid shoulder.
“I tried to tell you, Daniel,” Vanessa purred. “She’s a snake. She manipulated you into turning against me, all while hiding her true, filthy bloodline. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
Daniel shrugged Vanessa’s hand off, his eyes never leaving Emily. The betrayal in his gaze was absolute. He reached forward and unclasped the diamond necklace from Emily’s throat with brutal efficiency. The cold metal scraped her skin, but it was nothing compared to the ache in her chest.
“Take off the dress, leave it in the guest suite, and get off my property,” Daniel ordered, his voice terrifyingly calm. “If you ever come near me or my company again, I will make sure you share a prison cell with your father.”
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Emily stood paralyzed, the world spinning. She looked at Daniel, begging silently for him to see the truth in her eyes, to remember the kiss they had shared just moments ago. But his eyes were like twin panes of dark glass.
Without another word, Emily turned and ran. She fled through the terrace, ignoring the whispers and pointing fingers of the elite guests, running until she burst through the front doors of the mansion and into the cold, unforgiving night.
