CHAPTER 2: THE PHONE CALL
Julia slowly lifted her head.
The sting on her cheek was nothing compared to the pain of seeing her husband standing between his mother and his own child.
Mia buried her face against Julia's side, trembling.
"Daddy..." she whispered.
David couldn't even meet his daughter's eyes.
Instead, he muttered, "You embarrassed my mother."
Julia stared at him for several long seconds.
Then something inside her quietly broke.
Not loudly.
Not dramatically.
Simply... permanently.
She reached into her purse.
Margaret laughed bitterly.
"Oh, wonderful. She's calling someone to make another scene."
Julia ignored her.
She pressed one number.
"Hello?"
A calm male voice answered immediately.
"Ms. Carter?"
"It's me."
"We're outside."
Julia looked toward the ballroom entrance.
"You can come in now."
She ended the call.
Margaret folded her arms.
"Who exactly do you think is coming?"
Julia finally looked directly at her.
"My attorney."
The room became silent again.
David frowned.
"Attorney? For what?"
Julia smiled sadly.
"For this."
She slowly turned her phone around.
The screen was still recording.
Everything.
Margaret shoving Mia.
Margaret screaming.
The plate flying.
David raising his hand.
The slap.
Every second.
Rachel, the bride, gasped.
"You recorded all of it?"
"I didn't."
Julia looked toward the flower arrangement beside the dance floor.
"My phone has been livestreaming since Rachel asked me to film the reception."
The photographer suddenly froze.
"So... everything was backed up?"
Julia nodded.
"Cloud storage."
The ballroom doors opened.
Three people entered.
A gray-haired attorney.
A family law specialist.
And a uniformed police officer working security for the hotel.
Margaret's confident smile disappeared.
"What is this?"
The attorney spoke first.
"My name is Michael Carter."
He opened a leather folder.
"I represent Julia Miller."
David frowned.
"Since when?"
Julia answered quietly.
"Since three months ago."
His face lost color.
"Three months?"
She nodded.
"I hoped we could save our marriage."
She looked at him with heartbreaking calm.
"Tonight showed me there was nothing left to save."
The officer stepped forward.
"Ma'am."
He looked toward Margaret.
"We have multiple witnesses stating you physically assaulted a child."
Margaret laughed nervously.
"It was an accident."
Then someone spoke.
"No."
It was Rachel.
The bride walked forward still wearing her wedding dress.
"I saw everything."
"So did I," another guest added.
"And me."
One after another...
People stood.
Not for Margaret.
May you like
For Mia.
The silence had finally chosen a side.
