Chapter 2 - The Director’s Wrath

With Preston’s assets frozen by a federal judge pending the embezzlement investigation, his life rapidly unraveled.

Savannah, realizing that Preston was no longer the golden goose she thought she had caught, packed her designer bags and attempted to flee. She had booked a one-way first-class ticket to Dubai, hoping to escape the public hatred and start over.

But as she handed her passport to the ticketing agent at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, two plainclothes police officers stepped up behind her.

“Savannah Reed?” the female officer asked.

Savannah turned, her face hidden behind oversized sunglasses. “Yes? Who are you?”

“You’re under arrest for aggravated assault of a pregnant woman,” the officer said, pulling Savannah’s arms behind her back and snapping cold steel handcuffs around her wrists in the middle of the crowded terminal.

“Get your hands off me!” Savannah screamed, her sunglasses flying off. People in the airport recognized her from the viral video. Cell phones immediately came out, recording her humiliation. “I didn't do anything! It was a light tap! She faked it!”

“Tell it to the judge, ma'am,” the officer said, hauling her away while her designer luggage was left sitting on the floor.

Back at the Sterling Estate, I was sitting in the sunroom, drinking chamomile tea and reviewing the divorce settlement with a team of the most ruthless attorneys in the country.

“He has surrendered unconditionally, Ms. Sterling,” the lead attorney, a sharp woman named Eleanor, informed me. “He is signing over total legal and physical custody of the child to you. He waives all parental rights. In exchange, he is begging us to drop the civil lawsuits.”

“And the criminal charges?” I asked, resting a hand on my large belly.

“The District Attorney is pursuing the embezzlement and fraud charges regardless of the civil suit,” Eleanor smiled grimly. “He is facing a minimum of ten years in federal prison.”

I looked out the window at the sprawling green lawns of my family’s estate. For three years, I had shrunk myself to fit into Preston’s world. I had worn cheap clothes, kept my head down, and accepted his emotional abuse because he had convinced me I was nothing without him.

But I was a Sterling. And more importantly, I was a mother. I would never shrink myself again.

Suddenly, a sharp, breathtaking pain ripped through my lower abdomen. I gasped, dropping my teacup. It shattered on the marble floor.

“Emily?” Eleanor asked, jumping out of her chair.

Water rushed down my legs, soaking my dress. The baby was early. The stress of the last week had finally taken its toll.