Chapter 7 - The Reckoning
The explosion of shattering glass echoed through the grand room like a bomb. Victoria gasped, dropping her glass of scotch onto the Persian rug. Margaret shrieked, dropping to her knees, while Caleb scrambled backward over the couch, his face pale as a sheet.
"Clara?!" Caleb stammered, staring at me as I stepped over the broken glass, my dad and Marcus following right behind me, blocking the exit.
"Look at me, Caleb," I said, my voice steady, ringing with absolute authority. "Look at the daughter you sold."
"Clara... please, you don't understand—" Caleb began, stammering as he tried to stand.
"Shut up!" I roared, stepping closer. "I heard every word. I heard you negotiating the price of our daughter's life! I heard your mother offering to hunt us down for a check!"
Victoria Sterling quickly regained her composure, smoothing down her designer blazer. "Ms. Miller, this is breaking and entering. I can have federal marshals here in five minutes."
"Call them," I said, pulling the documents from inside my coat and throwing them onto the glass coffee table. "Call them right now. Let’s show them the illegal biological harvesting contracts signed by Vanguard. Let's show them the wire transfers to Caleb’s offshore account in the Caymans. Let's call the Boston Globe and the New York Times while we wait."
Victoria’s calm demeanor cracked for the first time. Her eyes darted down to the papers, recognizing Dr. Reed’s signature and official medical seal.
"Where did you get those?" Victoria whispered, her face draining of color.
"From someone who actually has a conscience," I replied. "You wanted Nora because of her genetic match to your dying son. But the moment these papers hit the press, the Vanguard Foundation will be dismantled, your family assets will be frozen by the federal government, and you, Caleb, and Margaret will spend the rest of your lives in a federal penitentiary."
Caleb fell to his knees, sobbing hysterically. "Clara, please! I was in debt! They were going to break my legs! I thought we could just have another baby later!"
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I walked over to Caleb, looked down at him with utter disgust, and slapped him across the face with all the strength left in my body. The sound echoed through the high-ceilinged room.
"You are a coward, a traitor, and a disgrace," I spat. "You are no father to this child."
