CHAPTER 2 Twenty Slaps. Twenty Years of Lies.
Nobody expected what happened next.
Least of all Lucy.
My hand moved before anyone could react.
Crack.
The sound echoed across the ballroom.
Lucy's head snapped sideways.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Before anyone recovered...
Crack.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Each slap landed with controlled precision.
Not wild.
Not hysterical.
Measured.
Intentional.
Lucy stumbled backward, struggling to remain balanced in her expensive heels.
Her cheeks turned crimson.
Several guests instinctively moved forward.
Then stopped.
Because I never once looked angry.
Only certain.
Lucy finally found her voice.
"Have you lost your mind?"
Crack.
Another slap.
"No."
Crack.
"I found the truth."
Another strike.
Someone whispered,
"Call security."
Nobody moved.
Because security had already gathered around the ballroom.
Waiting.
Watching.
Not protecting Lucy.
Protecting me.
Lucy finally realized something was wrong.
"What is this?"
I answered without raising my voice.
"One slap."
Crack.
"For every year..."
Another slap.
"...you lied about my mother."
Crack.
"For every year..."
"...you stole my father's family."
Again.
Again.
Again.
The ballroom echoed with nothing except the sharp sound of my hand meeting her face.
By the fifteenth slap...
Lucy's breathing became ragged.
Mascara began running beneath her eyes.
Still...
she refused to cry.
She refused to admit defeat.
By the twentieth...
she staggered backward several steps.
A champagne tower trembled nearby.
One executive instinctively reached out to steady her.
Then withdrew his hand.
Nobody wanted to interfere anymore.
Lucy looked directly at me.
Breathing hard.
"...Are you finished?"
I slowly lowered my hand.
"Not yet."
May you like
Then I looked toward the enormous LED screen behind the stage.
"Play it."
