"Please, I don't want any trouble."
For a moment, the ballroom seemed to hold its breath.
Then Victoria made a decision that would change the entire evening.
She shoved Emily.
The young waitress stumbled sideways, and the tray slipped from her hands.
Glasses crashed against the marble floor.
The sound was so sudden and violent that the entire ballroom fell silent.
People turned.
A waiter froze near the champagne fountain.
A musician stopped playing halfway through a note.
Emily caught herself against the edge of a nearby table.
Her hands trembled.
Victoria stood in front of her, breathing heavily.
"Perhaps now you'll understand," she snapped.
Emily looked at the broken glasses scattered across the floor.
Then she slowly raised her eyes.
For the first time that evening, her expression was no longer simply embarrassed.
It was hurt.
Deeply hurt.
"Why did you do that?" she asked.
Victoria stared at her.
"What?"
"Why did you push me?"
Victoria gave a disbelieving laugh.
"Are you seriously questioning me?"
Emily remained where she was.
"I was only doing my job."
"Then do it properly!"
A hotel supervisor hurried toward them.
"What's happening here?"
Victoria immediately turned.
"Finally! Someone responsible. Your employee has been incredibly disrespectful."
The supervisor, a middle-aged man named Daniel Brooks, looked at the broken glasses and then at Emily.
"Emily, are you all right?"
Victoria interrupted.
"Don't start questioning me. I expect this employee to be removed immediately."
Daniel looked confused.
"Madam, I need to understand what happened."
"What happened is that your waitress has ruined my evening."
Emily quietly spoke.
"Mr. Brooks, I was carrying the tray when she—"
"Don't you dare lie!" Victoria shouted.
Her voice echoed across the ballroom.
And then something unexpected happened.
A young female employee stepped forward.
Her name was Sophie.
She had been standing near the service station and had witnessed the entire confrontation.
"That's not true," Sophie said.
Everyone turned toward her.
Victoria narrowed her eyes.
"What did you say?"
Sophie swallowed.
"I saw what happened. Emily didn't do anything wrong."
Victoria stared at the young woman.
"Who are you?"
"I'm one of the hotel employees."
"Then you should be careful about what you say."
Sophie looked frightened, but she did not move backward.
"I watched you push her."
A murmur spread through the crowd.
Another guest stepped forward.
"I saw it too."
Then a man near the staircase raised his hand.
"So did I."
Victoria looked around.
For the first time that evening, she realized that the people watching her were not necessarily on her side.
But she still believed her money could protect her.
"Richard!" she called.
Her husband, who had been speaking with several investors across the ballroom, finally turned toward the commotion.
"What's going on?"
Victoria pointed toward Emily.
"Your hotel is employing people who have absolutely no respect for guests!"
Richard approached.
He looked at the broken glasses.
Then at Emily.
Then at his wife.
"Victoria, what happened?"
"She was rude to me. She deliberately made a scene and dropped the tray."
Emily shook her head.
"Sir, that's not what happened."
Victoria threw up her hands.
"Unbelievable! Now she's lying to your face!"
Richard looked increasingly uncomfortable.
"Please. Let's calm down."
But Victoria was beyond calming down.
She turned toward the guests.
"I refuse to be treated this way. I have spent years supporting establishments like this, and I will not tolerate being humiliated by someone who should be grateful to have a job."
The words landed heavily.
Emily's eyes filled with tears, but she fought to keep them from falling.
Then she said something that nobody expected.
"Having a job doesn't mean I deserve to be treated like that."
The ballroom became completely silent.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Victoria stared at her.
And before she could respond, a deep voice came from behind the crowd.
"She's absolutely right."
Everyone turned toward the entrance.
A tall man in a black tuxedo was walking toward them.
His expression was calm, but there was something unmistakably serious in his eyes.
His name was Alexander Reed.
He was the chairman of Windsor Hospitality Group, the company that owned the Grand Windsor Hotel and several other luxury properties.
He had arrived earlier that evening without making a public announcement.
Most guests knew his name.
Some had spent years trying to secure a meeting with him.
And a few people in the ballroom had built their businesses around the hope of earning his approval.
But Victoria had no idea how closely he had been observing the situation.