Chapter 17 The Descent

• Emma’s pulse thundered in her ears as the cold steel of the handcuffs bit into her wrists. Flashes of cameras outside blinded her as officers escorted her from Lucas’s office into the waiting police car. The crowd gathered outside erupted into chaos—journalists shouting questions, bystanders whispering, and flashes of her face appearing on countless phones.
• She had expected Maxwell to retaliate, but this… this was a direct strike meant to humiliate and crush her.
• Lucas pushed through the crowd, his face carved from fury. “You’re making a mistake!” he shouted at the officers. “These charges are fabricated.”