Chapter 3 - THE VIPER IN THE SHADOWSThe atmosphere in the grand ballroom shattered. The armed city constables spread out, their hands hovering near their batons.
"An escaped lunatic!" Lady Beatrice shrieked, clutching her pearls. "He hypnotized her!"
"Silence!" Alexander Vance rose to his feet. "Richard, how dare you breach my home with armed men during my daughter’s gala?"
"I am saving your daughter from a fraud, Alexander!" Richard’s eyes glinted with cold malice. "That creature escaped from the isolation ward of St. Jude’s this morning after assaulting an orderly! He is delusional and dangerous!"
"He isn't mad!" Clara screamed, holding onto Leo’s chest. "He made me step, Uncle Richard! I felt my legs!"
"A psychological illusion, my dear child," Richard said smoothly. "Constables, drag him away!"
Two constables rushed forward. One grabbed Leo by his slender upper arm, twisting it back. Leo let out a gasp of pain, but his fingers remained locked with Clara’s until the force ripped them apart.
"Leo!" Clara shrieked. Without Leo’s support, her legs buckled, and she collapsed onto the floor with a heavy thud.
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"Drag him out!" Richard commanded with a subtle smile. "Lock him in the lowest cell at St. Jude’s. No bail."
Leo was dragged backward across the floor, his bare feet leaving dark streaks on the white marble. As the heavy doors slammed shut, Leo kept his eyes locked on Clara until the very last second.
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