Chapter 1: The Footage Nobody Expected

The shrill alarm from Emma's medical bracelet echoed through the private dining room.

For one frozen second, nobody moved.

Then chaos erupted.

"Call an ambulance!" someone shouted.

Emma staggered backward, one hand clutching her throat as the bracelet continued flashing red.

Jonathan Reed leaped from his chair.

"Emma!"

He caught his daughter before she collapsed.

Across the room, Vivian's confident smile finally vanished.

"What is that noise?" she demanded.

A security officer rushed forward.

"Sir, her medical monitor is detecting a severe reaction."

Jonathan's face turned white.

"What reaction?"

Before anyone could answer, another security guard approached carrying a tablet.

"Mr. Reed... you need to see this."

The screen displayed footage from a dining room camera.

The guests gathered around.

The recording showed Emma sitting quietly moments earlier while the string quartet played.

Then Vivian appeared beside her.

Holding a wine glass.

Smiling.

Talking.

And when Emma briefly turned her head toward another guest...

Vivian's hand slipped toward her sleeve.

Something tiny dropped into the wine.

Something almost invisible.

The room gasped.

The footage replayed.

Again.

And again.

Each time revealing the same horrifying detail.

Vivian had put something into Emma's drink.

Jonathan stared at the screen in disbelief.

"No..."

Vivian immediately shook her head.

"That's ridiculous."

Her voice sounded less confident now.

"Someone edited the video."

The security officer looked stunned.

"The footage is directly from the internal system. It can't be altered."

Emma suddenly began coughing violently.

A medic who happened to be attending the event rushed forward.

He grabbed the glass from the table.

"Nobody touch this."

His expression darkened.

"We need this tested immediately."

For the first time all evening, genuine fear appeared in Vivian Reed's eyes.

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Because she knew exactly what was inside that glass.

And she knew what the test would reveal.