Chapter 2 - The FallElena's scream tore through the mansion.
Her body struck the marble staircase again and again before she finally collapsed near the bottom.
For one horrifying second, the entire house went silent.
Then the emergency alarms activated.
Security personnel rushed into the foyer.
"Call the medical team!"
"She's pregnant!"
"Don't move her!"
Claire stood frozen above the staircase.
The woman who had spent years manipulating boardrooms and social circles suddenly looked less like a powerful heiress and more like someone who had just realized she had crossed a line that could never be uncrossed.
Elena's hand trembled against her stomach.
"My baby..."
The words were barely audible.
Julian appeared seconds later.
He had been in the west wing when he heard the alarm.
The moment he saw Elena lying on the floor, something inside him went completely still.
He dropped to his knees beside her.
"Elena. Look at me."
Her eyes opened.
"Julian..."
"I'm here."
"Please... the baby."
Julian took her hand.
"The baby is going to be okay."
He didn't know that.
But he needed her to believe it.
Outside, the storm intensified.
Inside, Julian looked toward the staircase.
Claire was still standing there.
Their eyes met.
And for the first time in years, Claire saw something terrifying in Julian Sterling's expression.
Not anger.
May you like
Not rage.
Certainty.
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