Chapter 2 β A Camera Never Blinks
Restaurant manager Harold Benson rushed across the ballroom with two security officers behind him.
"What happened here?"
Victoria answered before anyone else could speak.
"This waitress assaulted my husband and destroyed a private event. Call the police."
Emily remained silent.
Blood continued dripping onto the polished floor.
Daniel looked between the broken martini and the frightened waitress.
"You said you saved my life."
Emily nodded once.
"The olive."
Victoria rolled her eyes dramatically.
"This is insane."
Emily slowly pointed toward the green olive resting beside the shattered glass.
"Nobody touches it."
Harold frowned.
"Why?"
Emily took a deep breath.
"Because I watched Mrs. Mercer replace it."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Victoria burst into laughter.
"Oh, that's adorable."
She folded her arms confidently.
"So now I'm poisoning my own husband?"
Emily answered calmly.
"I watched you open a tiny silver capsule."
Daniel's expression changed.
Victoria noticed immediately.
"You believe her?"
"No," Daniel replied carefully.
"But I want to hear everything."
Victoria stepped closer.
"She's lying."
Emily didn't argue.
Instead, she slowly raised one shaking finger toward the ceiling.
"Cameras."
Several guests instinctively looked upward.
The ballroom security cameras covered nearly every angle.
Victoria smiled again.
"Perfect."
She turned toward Harold.
"Then we'll prove she's lying."
Emily quietly shook her head.
"Not those cameras."
She slowly faced the crowd.
"Your phones."
Nearly every guest had recorded Victoria striking her.
Dozens.
Maybe hundreds.
Tiny glowing screens were still pointed toward the scene.
A businessman near the front swallowed hard.
"I... I started recording before she hit the waitress."
Another woman lifted her phone.
"So did I."
May you like
One after another, more guests raised their devices.
Victoria's confident smile disappeared for the first time that night.
