Page 74 of Shattered By Grace

She froze, her eyes scanning the page again.

“Wait… I don’t remember there being an actual court case,” she murmured, more to herself than to Taylor. Her brows pulled together as she traced a name with her finger. “I mean, I knew he was gathering evidence, but no one ever said anything about it going to trial.”

She frowned, sitting up straighter. Something wasn’t adding up.

"Am I drunk, or is this name the same as this name here?" she muttered, pointing at the judge’s name in the court documents before dragging her finger across the notebook’s pages.

Taylor, who had been dramatically lounging against the couch, perked up at the tone in Victoria’s voice. “Wait, what?” She scooted closer, squinting at where Victoria was pointing.

Victoria’s pulse kicked up. It was the same name. The same damn judge.

“Tell me I’m not crazy,” she said, her voice sharper now, urgency cutting through the wine haze.

Taylor’s lips parted as her gaze flicked between the testimony and the ledger, realization dawning. “Holy shit.”

Victoria’s grip tightened on the notebook. “The judge from my father’s case… was on Cassian’s payroll.”

Taylor swirled the last bit of wine in her glass, scanning the scattered pages. “I wonder if he’s still practicing. That would explain why the ledger is so important.”

Victoria blinked, processing the thought. She grabbed the nearest document, eyes darting between the judge’s name and the matching entry in her father’s notes.

“There’s more.”

She flipped through the pages, fingers tracing over the scrawled entries. “I overlooked this.” She pointed to a section labeledJudges Being Paid.“There are at least three judges listed.”

Taylor’s eyes widened. “Oh my god.” She snatched the notebook, scanning the names. “I need to see if they’re still practicing.”

“I’ll grab my laptop,” Victoria said, pushing herself up, only to sway slightly. “I’m good,” she muttered, gripping the back of the couch for balance.

She glanced at the microwave clock. “Taylor… umm, it’s one in the morning.”

Taylor took another sip of wine, completely unbothered. “Yeah, and?”

“Do you have a shift? I don’t.” Victoria sighed.

Taylor waved her off. “No, silly, it’s Thursday. We go dress shopping today.”

Victoria blinked. “Right.”

“Girl, go get the damn laptop.” Taylor smirked, her voice low and teasing.

Victoria’s laugh was soft, a little too breathless, as she swayed toward her room. The wine had already started to buzz through her veins, making everything feel hazy, a little too alive. She pushed open her door, her eyes immediately drawn to the mess of her bed, to the scattered sheets—flashes of Tristan invading her thoughts like a slow, aching burn.

Her body stilled, pulse quickening. Tristan. Sprawled out on her bed, muscles rippling under his skin, every inch of himglistening with sweat. The way his body had moved, how he’d felt against her. God, he was all heat, all raw power.

Her chest tightened, and she fought to focus, tried to ignore the way her skin flushed at the thought of him. But the memory was too strong, too vivid. She could almost feel his breath on her neck, low and dark, whispering promises in a voice she could still hear,“I’m not going to ask you what you want.”

Her hands clenched, her body responding to the memory of him, aching for him.

Fuck.

I want him.No, I needed him. She needed everything that came with him. His darkness. His heat. His control.

Without a second to even think of what she was doing, Victoria went straight to the long mirror in the corner of her room, furthest from the door. Her breath quickened as she pulled down her tank top, lifting her breasts to get the perfect, satisfying push-up. She stared at herself in the mirror, her eyes locking onto her reflection with a predatory gleam. She ran her fingers through her hair, making sure it had that perfect “just fucked” look. She pushed her breasts back into position, making sure everything was exactly how she wanted it, and began snapping photos.

“Did you get lost?” Taylor’s voice called out from the other room, pulling her back to reality.

“Coming,” Victoria quickly replied, grabbing the laptop and filtering through the photos. When she found the one she wanted, the one that made her pulse race, she hesitated for a split second before scrolling through her phone to find his name.

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