Chloe scrambled up from the cold floor, her white silk dress rumpled and stained with spilled champagne.
Chloe: Julian! Why are you taking her side?! Who is this crazy old woman?!
Julian: Shut your mouth, Chloe! Stop talking right now!
Chloe: I won't stop talking! This is our engagement party! My father paid for half of this ballroom!
Evelyn: Your father hasn't paid a single bill in this building, little girl.
Evelyn took a slow, deliberate step forward, her black heels clicking softly against the marble.
Evelyn: In fact, your father's catering business owes this venue sixty thousand dollars in back rent.
Chloe: That's a lie! My dad is a major partner in the Sterling Hotel Group!
Julian: Chloe, please... just stop speaking. You're digging a hole you can't get out of.
Chloe: No! I want her out of here! Security! Where is the security guard?!
Two tall guards in black suits quickly walked over from the main doors, stopping beside Julian.
Head Guard: Is there a problem here, Mr. Sterling?
Chloe: Yes! Throw this old woman in black out right now! She attacked me!
The guard looked at Evelyn, then immediately bowed his head in deep respect.
Head Guard: Good evening, Mrs. Sterling. We were not told you would be attending tonight.
Chloe's jaw dropped as she looked back and forth between the security guard and Evelyn.
Chloe: Mrs... Sterling? What are you calling her?!
Julian: She is Evelyn Sterling. My mother. And the sole owner of the Sterling Estate.
Chloe's face drained of all color, her hands shaking violently as she backed away.
Chloe: Your... your mother? But you told me your mother died five years ago in France!
Julian: I told you that because I knew how you treated people who didn't hold money or status.
Chloe: Julian, you lied to me?! You let me think you were the only heir!
Evelyn: He isn't the heir, Chloe. He is an employee on a three-month probation period.
Evelyn pulled a silk handkerchief from her small clutch bag and dabbed gently at the scratch on her cheek.
Evelyn: An employee whose position in my company is currently under extreme review.
Julian: Mother, please... let's talk about this in your private office upstairs.
Evelyn: We have nothing to discuss in private, Julian. You allowed your guest to shove me in my own hall.
Chloe: I didn't know who she was! She was wearing a plain black dress! She looked like a server!
Evelyn: Wealth doesn't need to scream, my dear. Only insecurity requires a hundred carats of cheap diamonds.
The surrounding guests chuckled quietly, sipping their champagne as Chloe's face burned red with humiliation.
Chloe: Julian, tell her to stop insulting me! You proposed to me last month with a three-carat ring!
Evelyn: Speaking of that ring... Julian, did you use the corporate expense account to purchase it?
Julian swallowed hard, avoiding his mother's sharp, piercing gaze.
Julian: It was... a temporary withdrawal, Mother. I was going to replace the funds after the quarterly audit.
Evelyn: There will be no quarterly audit for you, my son.
Chloe looked between the mother and son, realizing the nightmare was far worse than she thought.