Chapter 8 - The Betrayal Unfolds
I didn't actually have to send the recording to Victoria, because she was already orchestrating her own exit strategy.
Victoria was a survivor in the worst sense of the word. When she realized Julian was a sinking ship, she immediately began looking for a new lifeboat. She started frequenting upscale hotel bars in the city, wearing her emerald green dress, trying to catch the eye of a new investor.
She found one. An older, wealthy real estate developer named Thomas.
What Victoria didn't know was that Thomas was a major investor in Apex Solutions, and he was fiercely loyal to my grandfather’s legacy.
When Victoria propositioned him in the lounge of the Four Seasons, feeding him a sob story about how her "abusive boyfriend" was holding her hostage in a cheap apartment, Thomas nodded politely, bought her a drink, and immediately called me.
"She's looking for a buyout, Clara," Thomas chuckled over the phone. "What do you want me to do?"
"Set up a date with her," I said, a wicked smile spreading across my face. "And make sure Julian knows exactly where she's going to be."
The confrontation happened at a high-end steakhouse. Julian, tipped off by an anonymous text message, stormed into the restaurant just as Victoria was leaning across the candlelit table, trailing her fingers over Thomas’s hand.
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The screaming match that followed was entirely public and spectacularly destructive. Julian threw a glass of wine in her face; Victoria slapped him so hard she left a scratch down his cheek. They were escorted out by police in handcuffs for disturbing the peace.
It was the final nail in the coffin of their tragic, toxic romance.
