Chapter 48
Chapter 48:
June leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them. When she spoke, her voice was low and carried a precise, surgical calm.
“That bag on your arm,” June said, her gaze dropping briefly to the crocodile leather. Four years inside the Compton world had given her an involuntary education in every detail of high-society status — Cole’s mother had seen to that personally. Her photographic memory, normally applied to molecular structures, now served an entirely different purpose. “The stitching on the handles is uneven. The hardware is plated brass, not palladium. The grain of the leather lacks the natural pore pattern of authentic Niloticus crocodile p>
Susan blinked, disoriented by the sudden shift. “What p>
“It’s a fake,” June said clearly, her voice carrying into the quiet around them. “A very good one — likely from the high-end replica dealers on 47th Street — but a fake nonetheless. You are carrying a plastic knockoff to the most significant summit in New York p>
A collective gasp moved through the crowd. Several socialites pressed their hands to their mouths to suppress laughter. The pity that had been directed at June swung, in an instant, into sharp mockery aimed squarely at Susan.
Susan’s face flushed a violent, mottled purple. Her greatest symbol of status had just been publicly dismantled.
“And that thirty-million-dollar contract?” June continued, her voice gaining momentum. “Compton Medical requires a strict compliance audit for all new suppliers. Beasley Inc. has been falsifying its FDA phase-three clinical trial data for six months. When the federal auditors arrive next week, your husband will not be on the golf course. He will be in a federal courtroom p>
T𝘩𝘦 𝗺o𝗌𝘵 р𝗼𝗉𝗎𝗅𝗮𝗿 no𝘃el𝘴 𝗈𝗻
“Shut your mouth p>
Richard Beasley shoved out from the edge of the crowd, his face red and panicked. He pushed past two waiters, reached June, and seized her upper arm. His fingers dug into the muscle hard enough to leave bruises within seconds.
June winced at the pain but did not struggle. She planted her feet and stared directly into his eyes.
“Let go of me,” she said, her voice like cracking ice.
“I’ll teach you to spread lies about my company!” Richard roared.
He did not release her. Instead, he raised his free hand high, balling it into a fist, preparing to strike her across the face.
June’s reflexes took over.
She tore her arm free, planted her feet, twisted from the hip, and swung with everything she had.
Smack.
The sound cut through the ballroom like a gunshot, drowning out the string quartet entirely. Richard’s head snapped violently to the side. His gold-rimmed glasses flew from his face and shattered on the marble floor. A bright red handprint swelled immediately on his cheek.
The entire room froze.
At that exact moment, Cole broke through the crowd.
He had not seen Richard grab June’s arm. He had not seen the raised fist.
What Cole saw was Richard Beasley stumbling backward with his hand pressed to his face, and June standing there, chest heaving, her hand still raised.
Alycia rushed up behind Cole, let out a theatrical scream, and ran to her father’s side.