Chapter 2 - The Shattered Table
Before the leather strap could make contact with Clara’s skin a second time, the heavy mahogany double doors at the entrance of the living room burst open with a force that rattled the glass panes.
Standing in the doorway was Marcus Vance.
At fifty-four, Marcus was a man carved from granite. Broad-shouldered, carrying the quiet, lethal weight of a former elite military commander turned international security director, he wore a dark navy utility shirt and fitted trousers. His hair was cropped short, silvering at the temples, and his eyes—normally a calm, calculating gray—were burning with a primal, terrifying fire.
Marcus took in the scene in a fraction of a second: his daughter crumpled on the floor, the red welt on her neck, and the man standing over her holding a leather whip.
A sound tore from Marcus’s chest—a low, guttural roar of pure, untamed fury.
"Get away from my daughter!"
Marcus charged across the silk rug like a predator breaking cover. Julian turned his head, his face twisting into shock, but before he could even raise his arm to defend himself, Marcus was upon him.
Marcus didn't hesitate. He launched his body forward, his massive shoulder slamming directly into Julian’s chest. The impact shattered the small glass decorative table behind them, sending colorful porcelain Easter eggs exploding across the hardwood floor like shrapnel.
The two men crashed into the beige sofa. Marcus grabbed Julian by the collar, dragging him over the back of the couch and slamming his torso into the floor.
"You hit my daughter?!" Marcus screamed, his voice shaking the plaster ceiling. He drove a heavy, closed fist directly into Julian’s jaw with a crack that echoed like a gunshot.
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Julian’s head snapped back, blood spraying from his lip onto the white sofa cushions. He tried to scramble backward, his eyes wide with sudden, blinding panic. "Marcus, wait—"
"You picked the wrong father!" Marcus roared, grabbing Julian by his throat and hurling him across the floor, where he crashed against the base of the marble fireplace mantle.
