CHAPTER 5 — CAMERA SEVEN
The corridor outside the private elevator was all brass and mirrored metal.
Beautiful.
Cold.
Designed so guests could check their faces before returning to people who would judge them.
Julian released my elbow only after the ballroom doors closed behind us.
“You are going to ruin everything,” he said.
“No. I’m refusing to disappear quietly.”
He laughed once.
“You disappeared years ago. They just haven’t been told formally.”
That landed.
Because it was almost true.
He opened the folder and pushed the signature page toward me.
“Sign.”
“No.”
His jaw tightened.
“You do not understand what I have protected you from.”
“What? My work? My mother’s board? My own bank accounts?”
“From yourself.”
I slipped my hand into my clutch and found the black access card.
The brass plate beneath the camera was three feet behind him.
I needed him to move.
I said, “The trustees won’t accept it.”
“They will after tonight.”
“Because of your speech?”
“Because of the medical statement.”
My blood went cold.
“What medical statement?”
He smiled.
Finally.
The real smile.
“Dr. Mallory has confirmed you are experiencing stress-related impairment. Nothing cruel. Nothing permanent. Just enough to let responsible people help.”
“Responsible people.”
“Me.”
He stepped closer.
“You were never built for power, Natalie. Your mother knew it. That is why she surrounded you with locks. But locks are useless when the person holding the key is unstable.”
I moved back.
He followed.
One step.
Two.
The brass plate was behind my hand now.
I tapped the card twice.
Soft.
Metal against metal.
Julian did not hear it over his own voice.
“You will sign. You will go inside. You will stand beside me and look grateful. If you cry, even better.”
“No.”
His expression darkened.
He caught my chin between his fingers.
Not a slap.
Not a punch.
Something quieter.
A polished man’s violence.
His ring caught the corner of my lip.
Pain flashed.
Warm blood touched my mouth.
He noticed.
Then smiled.
“Actually,” he whispered, “that may help.”
The camera above us clicked into active audio.
My phone vibrated.
I looked down.
May you like
CAMERA SEVEN ACTIVE.
That was when I smiled.
