Chapter 1 – The Fall
Chapter 1 – The Fall
The grand staircase of the Ashford Estate gleamed beneath an enormous crystal chandelier.
Emily Carter rested one hand on her growing belly as she slowly descended the polished marble steps. Seven months pregnant with her first child, every step demanded caution.
House guests chatted in the ballroom below.
Servants prepared dinner.
Everything seemed perfectly ordinary.
Until Maria screamed.
"Mrs. Carter!"
Before anyone understood what was happening, the longtime housemaid lunged forward and shoved Emily with all her strength.
Emily lost her balance.
She tumbled down the last few steps, curling instinctively around her unborn baby.
Gasps echoed through the mansion.
"She pushed her!"
"What is she doing?"
Then—
CRASH!
The massive crystal chandelier ripped free from the ceiling.
Thousands of pounds of steel and glass exploded across the exact spot where Emily had been standing only seconds before.
Crystal shards flew through the air.
Dust filled the hall.
Silence followed.
Maria lay on the floor, bruised from the impact of throwing herself against Emily.
She looked toward the shattered chandelier and whispered,
"Thank God..."
Emily stared at the destruction.
If she had remained on the staircase for even one more second...
Neither she nor her baby would have survived.
Before she could process what had happened, the front doors burst open.
Daniel Carter rushed inside.
"What happened?"
A guest pointed toward Maria.
"She pushed Emily down the stairs!"
Daniel's face twisted with fury.
"You attacked my wife?"
Maria tried to explain.
"I saw the chandelier moving—"
"Enough!"
He stormed toward her.
But as he did...
A small object slipped from the pocket of his tailored suit.
It clattered across the marble floor.
Wire cutters.
One detective attending the charity dinner as a guest bent down to pick them up.
Something silver was caught between the blades.
Tiny strands of steel cable.
The same type used to suspend the shattered chandelier.
The detective looked from the cutters...
May you like
To Daniel...
And suddenly the room became terrifyingly quiet.
