The gatehouse conference room sat three hundred yards from the main residence, near the towering wrought-iron front gates of the estate.

When Marcus stepped through the heavy security door, Vanessa was pacing wildly across the hardwood floor.

Her hair was disheveled, her expensive blouse wrinkled, and the bright red imprint of Marcus’s slap had swollen into a sharp, puffy welt along her left cheekbone.

The moment she saw him, her posture shifted from nervous panic to arrogant indignation.

"Marcus! Tell these animals to let me go!" she shrieked, gesturing furiously toward the two stone-faced guards flanking the doorway. "Do you have any idea what kind of lawsuit I can file against you for having your hired thugs lay hands on me?"

Marcus didn't blink.

He pulled out a heavy wooden armchair from the conference table, sat down, and folded his hands calmly over his knee.

"Go ahead and file it, Vanessa," Marcus said in a quiet, deadly voice. "Because every officer who responds will be handed the four-K footage from the kitchen ceiling cameras."

Vanessa froze mid-stride, her jaw dropping open.

"What... what cameras?" she stammered, the color rapidly draining from her face.

"I installed full commercial surveillance systems throughout the main floor three months ago when the art collection was appraised," Marcus said smoothly. "Every single frame of you pinning my six-year-old daughter to the marble floor is saved on three redundant off-site servers."

Vanessa swallowed hard, her throat bobbing as her arrogance began to crumble into naked fear.

"Marcus, you're blowing this completely out of proportion," she pleaded, dropping onto the edge of the conference table and leaning toward him. "I lost my temper. Parents lose their temper every day! Lily has been impossible since Sarah died. She constantly defies me, she acts out—"

"She is six years old, Vanessa," Marcus interrupted, his voice dropping into a razor-sharp whisper. "You put a dog bowl in front of her. You shoved her head toward it."

Vanessa crossed her arms, her eyes darting frantically toward the floor.

"It was a scare tactic! I wasn't actually going to make her swallow it! I just wanted to show her that actions have consequences!"

Marcus let out a short, hollow laugh that sent a shiver down the guards' spines.

"Dr. Evans has already filed a medical report detailing deep tissue bruising on both of her arms," Marcus said, watching her eyes widen in horror. "And an emergency affidavit has already been transmitted to the state district attorney."

Vanessa gasped, stepping backward until her spine hit the wall.

"You reported your own wife to the police?"

"You stopped being my wife the second you treated my child like a dog," Marcus replied, standing up and towering over her. "You are a criminal who entered my house under false pretenses. And before the sun rises tomorrow, you will learn exactly what consequences feel like."