\n
Natalie let out a blood-curdling shriek, her hands flying to her mouth, her eyes bulging out of her head as if she had just seen a ghost standing before her.
\n\u201cD-David?!\u201d she gasped, her voice cracking into a high-pitched, hysterical squeak. The color drained from her face so completely she looked like a corpse. \u201cOh my God… David?!\u201d
\nJulian backed away toward the bathroom, his hands up in a defensive posture, his eyes darting frantically around the room looking for an exit or a weapon.
\n\u201cWhoa, hey, man!\u201d Julian stammered, his confident voice instantly vanishing into a terrified whine. \u201cLook, brother, I didn’t know! She told me you guys were legally separated! She told me you were getting a divorce!\u201d
\nI didn’t move an inch from the doorway. My hands remained folded calmly across my chest, my posture relaxed, my eyes cold and dead as ice.
\n\u201cJulian Vance,\u201d I said softly, reciting his full name from memory. \u201cBorn March 14, 1982. Principal broker at Vance Real Estate Group. Currently forty-five days delinquent on your commercial credit line at First National Bank.\u201d
\nJulian froze, his mouth hanging open in complete shock. \u201cHow… how do you know that?\u201d
\n\u201cBecause I\u2019ve spent the last two weeks studying every single detail of your pathetic life while I was waiting for my flight home,\u201d I replied smoothly. \u201cAnd if you take one more step toward that bathroom, my associate standing at the bottom of those stairs with a licensed sidearm will consider it a threat and break your legs.\u201d
\nOn cue, heavy footsteps echoed from the hallway, and Marcus stepped up behind me, his massive six-foot-four frame filling the doorway, his arms crossed, glaring down at Julian with pure malice.
\nJulian turned white as a sheet, trembling violently. \u201cI\u2019m leaving! I\u2019m leaving right now!\u201d
\n\u201cNo, you\u2019re not,\u201d I said flatly. \u201cYou\u2019re going to sit in that chair, shut your mouth, and listen to every word I say until I tell you to leave.\u201d
\nJulian practically collapsed into the velvet armchair in the corner, his knees knocking together in panic.
\nNatalie stepped forward, tears instantly welling up in her eyes\u2014the same manipulative, performative tears she had used for years whenever she wanted to escape accountability.
\n\u201cDavid… sweetie, please!\u201d she wailed, reaching her hands out toward me. \u201cIt\u2019s not what it looks like! I was so lonely… you were gone for so long! I was struggling with depression! He took advantage of me!\u201d
\nI held up one single finger.
\nNatalie stopped in her tracks, her breath catching in her throat.
\n\u201cSave the performance, Natalie,\u201d I said softly. \u201cYou aren’t lonely. You aren’t depressed. You\u2019re a thief, a liar, and a neglectful mother who brought strange men into the house where my children sleep.\u201d
\n\u201cWhere are the kids?!\u201d she suddenly screamed, panic flashing in her eyes as she looked toward the hallway. \u201cWhat did you do with Emily and Evan?!\u201d
\n\u201cThey are in a safe place, far away from you,\u201d I said clearly. \u201cWhere they will never have to watch their mother destroy our home again.\u201d
\nI pulled the thick leather binder from under my arm and threw it onto the king-sized bed between us.
\nIt landed with a heavy, thunderous thud.
\n\u201cWhat is that?\u201d she whimpered, backing away.
\n\u201cThat is your life, Natalie,\u201d I said softly. \u201cAnd it\u2019s about to fall completely apart.\u201d<\/p>\n