Chapter 7 - BEFORE SUNSET

The scissors slipped from Vanessa’s trembling hand, clattering against the hardwood floor.
Daniel stepped fully into the bedroom. His face was devoid of any emotion, which made him look infinitely more dangerous. He didn't look at Vanessa. He walked straight over to Amara, who was shaking violently against the wall.
"Are you hurt?" he asked softly.
Amara shook her head, unable to speak.
Daniel finally turned to his fiancée. The woman he was supposed to marry in less than a month.
"Danny," Vanessa choked out, tears instantly flooding her eyes. "Danny, you don't understand, she was threatening me, I was just—"
"Save it," Daniel cut her off. His voice cracked through the room like a whip. "I recovered the security footage from the patio, Vanessa. I saw you drop the glass. I saw you pay Eric five thousand dollars in the kitchen to delete the footage. I saw it all."
Vanessa took a step back, the blood completely draining from her face. "Danny..."
"And then you tried to frame her for felony theft. And now this." Daniel gestured to the scissors. "You are deeply, profoundly disturbed."
"I did it for us!" Vanessa cried, playing her final, desperate card. "She's trying to ruin our relationship! She's a gold digger, Daniel! She wants your money!"
"The only person obsessed with my money is you," Daniel said coldly. "The wedding is off."
Vanessa stopped crying. A harsh, ugly silence filled the room. "You can't do that. The invitations are out. The press knows. My family—"
"Your family will receive a polite email from my publicist stating we have parted ways due to irreconcilable differences," Daniel stated. "If you so much as utter a single word to the press, or if you ever come within fifty feet of Amara or her daughter again, I will hand over the video of you bribing my employee to the police. Extortion and filing a false police report carry heavy jail sentences. Do you understand me?"
Vanessa stared at him, realizing in an instant that she had lost everything. The billionaire lifestyle, the status, the power. Gone.
"You have thirty minutes to pack whatever fits in your car," Daniel said, checking his watch. "My security team will escort you off the property before sunset."
May you like
He turned his back on her, a profound dismissal, and looked gently at Amara. "Come with me. Let's get you out of here."
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