Chapter 2: Twelve Seconds
The color drained from Diane's face so fast that even the champagne glass trembled in her hand.
On the screen — clear, timestamped, undeniable — was a video.
Diane's shoulder connecting with Lily's back.
The child stumbling.
The centerpiece shattering.
And Diane stepping away, smoothing her dress, not even looking down.
"That's—" Diane started.
"Twelve seconds," Marcus said.
"Twelve seconds of you walking away from a seven-year-old you just knocked to the floor."
The murmuring crowd had gone very quiet.
Diane's smile came back, but it was thinner now.
"One video won't change a board vote, Marcus.
You know that."
"You're right," he said.
"Which is why I already sent it to three people in this room."
Diane's eyes swept the crowd.
And that's when she saw them — her husband's business partner, the gala's event chair, and a woman Marcus had never introduced to anyone tonight.
A woman holding her own phone.
Recording.
Diane took one step toward Marcus.
"Who is she?"
Marcus looked down at Lily, who had stopped crying.
His daughter was watching Diane now with dry eyes and a stillness that didn't belong on a seven-year-old's face.
"Someone who's been watching you for a lot longer than tonight," Marcus said quietly.
Diane's glass slipped.
May you like
She caught it.
But her hand was shaking.
