Everyone present had heard stories about Leonard''s methods. But witnessing them firsthand was another matter entirely-it made people''s skin crawl.


    Worse still, the person he tormented was one of their own. The Williams family wore identical expressions, each face clouded with rage and disgust.


    Aurora frowned at the sight, unable to bear it any longer. She turned her head away, refusing to look at the footage ying on the screen. Only Simone watched, her satisfaction clear-finally, justice felt within reach. Abby''s eyes glistened with unshed tears. Old hatred for Leonard red anew, her fists clenching so tightly her knuckles turned white. It took every ounce of self-control not to leap up and curse him to his face.


    Time seemed to crawl and race at once. For everyone in the room, every second was pure agony.


    The video ended, the screen fading to ck. Silence fell over the home theater, heavy as a shroud.


    Out of the quiet, a man''s calm, clear voice rang out. "Now, do any of you still think Star wronged him?"


    No one spoke. Even the air felt frozen.


    The Williams family cycled through shock, disbelief, anger, and a tangled mess of other emotions. Joshua didn''t care what they were thinking. He simply


    announced, "ording to the terms of our agreement, starting today, all coboration between the Williams family and the Lerman family is terminated. Leonard, you''ve lost. What do you have to say for yourself?"


    Leonard''s face was so dark and twisted it was almost frightening. He locked eyes with Joshua, voice cold and sharp. "How did you get your hands on that footage?"


    Memory flickered-he remembered Sellers ordering his men to record the scene. But Sellers had since vanished, along with every one of his associates. By all logic, Joshua shouldn''t have had ess to any of this.


    What Leonard didn''t know was that after Foreman kidnapped Sellers, he had all of Sellers'' men "taken care of”—eliminating any leaks.


    Joshua''s lips curled into a faint,


    mocking smile. "Mr. Lerman, did you really think Sellers was eager to be your partner in crime? He only ended up in Sandford because you tricked him. He had no choice. Everyone knows about Mr. Burton and Star''s rtionship. And tell me, Sellers never even lifted a finger-why should he take the fall for you? You and Sellers were rivals in love, not friends."


    Leonard''s eyes grew colder, darker. "What are you getting at?"


    Joshua''s smile grew sly, almost taunting. "Take a guess-why do you think Sellers


    insisted on having the whole thing recorded?"


    Leonard''s gaze turned dangerously dark. Even knowing Joshua was deliberately sowing discord, trying to pit him against Sellers, he couldn''t help but admit there was some truth behind the words. Did Sellers really just want to relish Ste''s pain? A man sharp enough to be head of the Burton family wouldn''t be so childish. And clearly, the leak had started with Sellers.


    Suddenly, Skyler shot to his feet, fury zing in his expression. "Leonard, you cold-blooded bastard! How dare you treat Star like that don''t think I won''t make you pay!"


    The three Williams brothers


    snapped out of their shock, all


    turning to Leonard with icy stares. He''d gone too far-he''d daredy hands on one of their own. Even if they''d only wanted to teach Ste a lesson, to frighten her, p her around, or even target her friend Abby, they could never feel this level of rage. But to cripple Ste, to do it so brazenly-and have it recorded, no less-was beyond forgiveness.


    He''d thought he was untouchable. Now, he''d finally gone too far.