Chapter 3 - Venom in the Press
By noon, the media storm surrounding the Kensington estate had transformed from a local Chicago scandal into a nationwide obsession.
The narrative was brilliantly crafted by the Vance family's high-priced PR firm: Victoria was the elegant, devoted wife who had been heartlessly cast aside and physically assaulted after trying to discipline two out-of-control, scheming young girls who were exploiting her wealthy husband. P paparazzi were parked at the iron gates of the estate like vultures circling a carcass, their long camera lenses pointing through the bars whenever a curtain so much as twitched.
Inside his home office, Arthur sat behind a mountain of paperwork, surrounded by his own legal council.
"We're fighting on three fronts, Arthur," said David Miller, Arthur’s long-time corporate attorney, pacing across the room. "First, the divorce. Victoria is demanding seventy percent of your liquid assets, claiming spousal abuse. Second, the Vance Group has frozen our offshore accounts using an injunction. And third—the most dangerous one—the CPS investigation."
"They're using the girls as leverage," Arthur spat out, slamming his fist onto the mahogany desk, causing the pens to jump. "They know I'll break if they try to take Maya and Lily."
"Of course they know," David said grimly. "Richard Vance wants to crush you, Arthur. He wants you broke, humiliated, and alone. If CPS deems this home unstable due to the ongoing media circus and financial instability, they will place Maya and Lily into temporary state care while the investigation proceeds."
Across the hall, Maya stood outside the slightly open door, listening to every single word.
Her heart hammered a terrifying rhythm against her ribs. State care. Foster homes. She knew what those places were like. She had friends from her old neighborhood who had been swallowed up by the system—separated from their siblings, dragged from one cold house to another, treated like burdens. She couldn't let that happen to Lily. She had promised her mother on her deathbed that she would protect Lily no matter what.
Silently, Maya retreated down the hall toward their bedroom. Lily was sitting on the rug, coloring in a picture book with bright wax crayons.
"Maya?" Lily looked up, her round eyes innocently searching her sister's face. "Are those people outside going to hurt us?"
"No, Lil," Maya said, sitting down beside her and pulling her into a tight hug. "Nobody is going to hurt us. I won't let them."
"I miss Mum," Lily whispered into Maya’s shoulder.
"I know, baby. I know." Maya squeezed her eyes shut, fighting back the burning tears. She looked around the room—the expensive velvet curtains, the plush carpets, the custom wooden beds Arthur had bought for them. It was a golden cage, and right now, the bars were closing in.
Suddenly, Maya’s phone buzzed in her pocket. It was an unknown number.
She hesitated before answering, pulling the phone up to her ear. "Hello?"
"Hello, little maid," a sweet, venomous voice echoed through the speaker.
Maya’s blood ran cold. It was Victoria.
"What do you want?" Maya demanded, her voice dropping to a low, defensive whisper so Lily wouldn't hear.
"Oh, just checking in on my favorite little charity cases," Victoria purred, the sound of ice clinking in a glass audible in the background. "Are you enjoying the cameras outside? The reporters? It’s quite a spectacle, isn't it?"
"Leave Arthur alone," Maya hissed. "He did nothing to you!"
"Arthur destroyed his own life the moment he chose you two little rats over me," Victoria spat, her tone instantly hardening into pure malice. "But I’m feeling generous, Maya. I’m going to offer you a deal. A way out."
Maya went still. "What kind of deal?"
"You and your sister pack your trashy little bags and leave tonight," Victoria said softly, like a snake whispering in the grass. "Call a cab, disappear back to whatever gutter you crawled out of, and sign a statement saying Arthur was abusive to you both. Do that, and I’ll drop the lawsuit. I’ll give Arthur his company back, and I’ll make sure you get fifty thousand dollars in cash to start over. Refuse... and I will make sure the state takes Lily away from you forever. You'll never see her again, Maya. I have the money, the judges, and the power. What do you have?"
May you like
Maya held the phone tightly, her knuckles turning bone-white. She looked over at Lily, who was smiling, holding up a drawing of a colorful house with three people standing in front of it—Arthur, Maya, and Lily.
"Well?" Victoria prompted, her laughter cold and mocking. "What's it going to be, little maid?"
