Chapter 11 - THE WEAPONIZED BLOTTER
At 9:15 AM on Thursday morning, three days after Victoria was thrown out of the house, Daniel’s office phone rang at his corporate headquarters in Hartford.
His lead corporate attorney, Marcus Vance, spoke before Daniel could even say hello.
"Daniel, don't open any news sites, and don't check your personal email," Marcus warned, his voice tight. "Victoria didn't sign the separation agreement."
Daniel stood up from his leather executive chair, looking out over the city skyline. "What did she do, Marcus?"
"She went to the local precinct in Greenwich late last night with a celebrity divorce lawyer named Arthur Sterling," Marcus said. "She filed a formal police report for domestic battery, complete with high-resolution photos of the bruise on her cheek from your strike. And thirty minutes ago, Sterling leaked the police blotter to the local tabloids and corporate blogs."
Daniel’s jaw tightened. "She's trying to push the board into suspending me."
"It’s worse than that," Marcus continued. "They're framing it as a pattern of explosive, unprovoked violence. Sterling is claiming that Victoria was stepping in to protect Emma from your anger, and that you struck Victoria to cover up your own instability. She's filing for an emergency temporary restraining order—not just against you, but to gain temporary sole custody of Emma and temporary possession of the house."
A cold, lethal silence filled the office line.
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Victoria knew she couldn't win on the facts of child abuse once the internal video footage hit a courtroom. But she didn't need to win a trial—she just needed to create enough public scandal and legal chaos to force Daniel into a massive financial settlement to protect his company’s stock price and his daughter from a public mudslinging match.
"Call the forensic digital team, Marcus," Daniel ordered, his voice dropping into a dangerously calm register. "And tell my security detail to double the guards around Emma’s school immediately. We are going to court."
