Chapter 1 - The Wrath of the Protector
The silence that followed the crash of the shattered glass panel was absolute.
Julian, the man in the charcoal-black suit, did not spare a second glance at Vanessa—the woman in the scarlet red dress who was now trembling so violently she could barely stand. Her gold high heels, once a weapon of cruel dominance, clicked erratically against the marble floor as she stumbled backward.
"Julian, please! You have to listen to me!" Vanessa’s voice rose in a desperate, screeching pitch. "She’s an intruder! She tried to steal the family registry! I was only protecting your family’s legacy!"
Julian didn’t even look at her. His eyes, dark as an approaching storm, remained locked on the floor.
There, shivering on the cold marble, was Clara. Her eight-month-pregnant belly was cradled protectively by her left arm, while her right hand—now swollen and bearing the angry, bleeding imprint of Vanessa’s sharp gold heel—shook uncontrollably. Clara’s breath came in ragged, shallow gasps. Her bare feet were bruised, and her hair was matted with sweat and tears.
With a swift, fluid motion, Julian shed his heavy designer suit jacket and draped it gently over Clara’s shivering shoulders. Without a care for the expensive fabric or the blood staining her skin, he gathered her into his arms. He lifted her with a tenderness that seemed entirely foreign to the cold, ruthless billionaire the business world feared.
"I’ve got you," Julian whispered, his voice cracking with a raw emotion that made the nearby servants gasp. "Clara, look at me. Breathe. I’m here. No one will ever touch you again."
Clara clung to his shirt, her fingers digging into the fabric as if he were her only lifeline in a drowning sea. "The baby... Julian, please... make sure the baby is safe..."
"The medical helicopter is landing on the south lawn right now," Julian said, his voice instantly turning into a commanding steel bar. He turned his head toward his chief of security, Mark, who stood by the shattered glass entryway with ten heavily armed guards. "Mark. Secure this entire estate. No one leaves. Especially not her."
Vanessa’s face drained of what little color she had left. "Julian! You can’t do this to me! I am your fiancée! My father’s company funds your overseas shipping lines!"
Julian stopped at the threshold of the massive double doors. He didn't turn around, but his voice cut through the cavernous foyer like a guillotine.
"You were a business arrangement, Vanessa. But the moment you stepped on my wife’s hand, you signed the death warrant of your father’s entire empire. Mark, download the cloud feed from the hidden camera in the chandelier. Send it directly to the District Attorney and the press. I want the world to see the monster hiding behind the red dress."
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"No! Julian, you can’t!" Vanessa screamed, rushing forward, but two massive security guards instantly blocked her path, pinning her arms behind her back. Her designer dress tore slightly, and one of her gold heels snapped, sending her crashing onto the very same cold marble floor where she had just tortured Clara.
Julian ignored her shrieks. He ran through the heavy rain toward the roaring blades of the medical helicopter, holding Clara against his chest as if she were the most precious treasure on earth.
