Chapter 10 - The Framed Mother
A cold, suffocating wave of nausea washed over Maya as she stared at her own name glowing in bright green text on the monitor.
Someone had set her up.
The security logs were designed to show that she had disabled the cameras. If an investigation was launched into Chloe’s fall, the evidence would indicate that Maya had engineered the entire incident herself—a desperate, calculated ploy by an insecure, low-class wife to cause a scene, frame Victoria, and force Julian to cut ties with his mother.
"It's a clever trap, isn't it?"
A quiet, dry voice spoke from the shadows behind her.
Maya whipped around, her heart jumping into her throat.
Arthur Vance stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame. He wore a dark sweater, his pale face illuminated by the blue glare of the monitors. In his hand, he held a small silver revolver, resting loosely against his thigh. His expression was not angry or psychotic; it was completely, terrifyingly flat.
"Arthur," Maya whispered, backing up against the heavy desk, her hands searching blindly for anything heavy. "You... you framed me."
"My mother wanted you gone, Maya," Arthur said softly, taking a slow, deliberate step into the room. "She has wanted you gone from the moment Julian brought you home. You brought dirt into our bloodline. You brought common, worthless genetics into a family that has spent a hundred years cultivating power."
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"She tied a three-year-old child to balloons and dropped her into the mud!" Maya spat, her voice trembling with intense rage. "How can you defend that?!"
"I don't defend it," Arthur said coldly, raising the revolver slightly, pointing it directly at her chest. "I found it distasteful, to be honest. But my mother promised me something I have wanted my entire life. If I helped her orchestrate your permanent exile... she would hand over her voting shares in the corporation to me. Not Julian. Me."
