hey everyone! just a heads up to let you know that tomorrow's update is going to be quite late since i'm going to be travelling.
in other news, last night's swiftogeddon was hella fun altho i wanted to scream sing WCS, i had to leave before the end bc trains > ubering home so i dont know if they did play it 😔 sad BUT shouting ATW in a room full off swifties??? so cathartic (tbf it was much more cathartic live with taylor but u know, after my exams, i needed this 🙏 )
anyway, how are you guys hanging? how are your exams? are you drinking enough water? DRINK WATER RIGHT NOW. TAKE A SIP. NO CHAPTER FOR YOU IF YOU DONT DRINK WATER.
did you have water?
no?
no chapter!
drink.
water
NOW.
okay...
... You may proceed...
but if i find out you're lying, there will be severe consequences...
that is a warning...
DRINK WATER
STAY HYDRATED
love, lou<3
———
Margot rolled out of bed to her phone ringing. She had already been awake for a while but she couldn't get herself to get out of bed.
It was the day of the deposition. She was going to be sitting across a table from the woman she had found in bed with her husband almost two years ago. She had not seen her since and she was not looking forward to those horrible, disgusting images violating her thoughts again for the rest of the day. Probably even longer.
First thing in the morning, she had to be at Hart & Lloyd. Well, she didn't have to be but William thought it might work in her favour to be there, across from the woman who helped her husband cheat on her. It might humanise her and testify to Margot's benefit under oath.
Margot was not looking forward to it. She was anxious and she had been suffering from a persistent stomach ache ever since she had returned to New York.
She padded downstairs to make herself some coffee while holding her phone to her ear to answer whoever was calling her.
"It's seven o'clock in the morning," she grumbled, hoping whoever it was would just apologise and hang up.
"You're up!" Taylor exclaimed enthusiastically on the other end of the call. "And I'm right outside. Can you open the door for me? I have breakfast."
"Oh... Are you?" Margot replied, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion as she came to a stop outside her kitchen. "What are you doing here?"
"Freezing my ass off outside your door! Can you let me in?" Taylor replied instead. "Why is there a draft in your hallway?"
Margot started making her way to the front door instead and opened it to find Taylor standing there with a brown paper bag in her hands, grinning widely at her. She ended the call and tucked her phone in the pocket of her robe, giving Taylor a small smile.
"Hi...? Were we supposed to be meeting this early in the morning and I somehow completely forgot about in which case I'm really sorry?"
Taylor laughed softly and pushed past Margot into the apartment, closing the door behind her. Then, she pressed a kiss on Margot's cheek before starting to make her way toward the kitchen.
"No, I just thought I'd surprise you with some homemade pancakes!"
Margot raised her eyebrows in surprise just as Kennington came running into the kitchen, moving around Taylor in circles before rolling on his back, demanding belly rubs. Taylor put the paper bag on the counter and crouched down to the dog's level, scratching his exposed chest and belly while he wagged his tail and kicked his leg excitedly.
"You made homemade pancakes?" She asked, chuckling softly. "You woke up early to make pancakes and bring them over here?"
"Yes, because I know you're going to have a long day today and I want to make sure you have a good breakfast to get through it," Taylor told her, standing back up and emptying the Tupperware containers out of the bag.
Margot was still confused. She didn't understand why anyone would do that. She expected these kinds of things from her family, especially Thalia who just generally liked to feed others, but never a partner. Harry was never one to do random acts of service as such.
"Why?" She asked, letting out another chuckle while brushing her hair back and putting it up in a ponytail.
"What do you mean why?" Taylor asked, leaving the containers open on the kitchen island and grabbing two plates from the cupboard. "Because I care about you, idiot."
Margot's heart did the thing even when Taylor called her an idiot. It was an affectionate insult. And she cared about her.
Still, she pointed a playfully threatening finger in Taylor's face and pretended to be mad. "Don't call me an idiot."
"Yes, ma'am!" Taylor replied and then placed a kiss on Margot's finger. "Come on. Let's sit and eat."
"I don't have a lot of time, so, I'm going to get changed first," Margot said. She also wanted to wash her face and brush her teeth so she could actually kiss Taylor good morning.
"As long as you're not trying to get out of it," Taylor hummed and went to fill the coffee maker with some coffee grounds. By that point, she knew where Margot kept everything in her practically empty kitchen. She didn't use it much besides when making coffee in the morning and keeping the occasional piece of fruit.
"I wouldn't dream of it," Margot replied, leaning in to press a kiss on Taylor's cheek before turning to leave. "Sure, make yourself at home, dear."
"I'm making you coffee! Don't be sarcastic with me!"
"Wow, you're in a mood today!" Margot called back and chuckled as she climbed the stairs to get to her room.
She was really glad that Taylor had come all this way to check on her though. She really appreciated it and though she had been pretty anxious all morning long, just her presence helped make her feel a little better.
She put on a pair of dark trousers and tucked in a simple white blouse after freshening up and applying a light layer of makeup that made it look like she had gotten a full night's sleep. She kept her hair up in the ponytail but she made sure there were no stray hairs out of place and then grabbed her purse and her heels just as her phone started ringing when she was about to make her way back downstairs.
Her mother's contact blinked on her screen and after a moment's thought, Margot picked it up. She sat down at the foot of her bed and started slipping her heels on while holding her phone up to her ear with one hand.
"Hi, mom! What are you doing up so early? Is everything okay?" Margot asked, slightly concerned considering it was about five in the morning in Los Angeles.
"Oh, I'm all right, darling. I'm just calling to check up on you."
Margot blinked, switching her phone to the other hand so she could slip on the second shoe.
"Oh... Why? I'm okay," she replied, chuckling in confusion. "Did Sebastian say anything?"
"Well, he's a bit concerned, and rightfully so," Amanda replied. "I know that deposition that might change the whole course of this divorce settlement is today. How are you feeling about that?"
Margot sat back up when she had both heels on and used her free hand to comb her fingers through her ponytail.
"I'm okay, mom," Margot quipped. Short and simple. She didn't want to get into it.
"Are you sure?" Amanda asked. "Honey, I can be there in a few hours. You just say the word."
"No, Mom, I don't need you to just drop everything and fly across the country for this," Margot replied, letting out a small huff. "It's not worth it. It's going to be a quick and easy thing. Just a few questions, we get a testimony under oath, and we send that to the judge reviewing the divorce case. I get my divorce on my terms. Plain and simple."
Amanda was quiet for a while after that which irritated Margot.
"What, Mom?"
"Nothing, bug. Nothing," she replied dismissively.
"Mom, come on."
Amanda let out a heavy sigh. "Look, I'm just worried he's got some other dirty plan up his sleeve. I don't want to watch you lose everything because of a mistake you made when you were far too young to be making sound decisions."
"Gee, thanks, Mom!" Margot exclaimed, clicking her tongue. "Anything else you wanna accuse me of?"
"What? I'm not accusing you of anything! I'm just saying—"
"You're just saying that this is all my fault," Margot cut her off abruptly. "Well, the good news is, mother, that you don't have to say that. I already know it's all my fault."
"I can't believe you would think that I think that!" Amanda exclaimed. "I do not think it's your fault, Margot! I'm saying you were too young and impressionable when he took advantage of you. He's the villain here. It's not your fault, honey."
The fact that her mother was calling her so naive was still a bit painful though. Margot knew that already. She was young, dumb, and naive. But it still sucked to hear someone else accuse her of it.
"Well, it sure feels like it."
"Well, I'm sorry it does," Amanda said softly. "Can I do anything to help?"
Margot closed her eyes and started rubbing her forehead. "No, mom. It's fine. There's nothing we can do for now. I'll just— look, Taylor's here, and I have to get going soon anyway. I'll call you later, okay?"
"Okay," Amanda said after a pause. She didn't want the conversation to end so abruptly but she was also trying not to trigger Margot which was usually very easy. Margot appreciated it this time. "Say hi to Taylor for me. I love you, bug."
Margot breathed out a soft chuckle, her lips twitching in a smile. "Love you too, mom. Thanks for calling."
Margot ended the call and let out a sigh before getting back up and making her way downstairs to the kitchen. She ran her hand along Taylor's back before sitting next to her where a plate full of pancakes was already set up with the syrup next to it and a cup of coffee.
"Your best friend Mandy called. She says hi," Margot said, picking up her mug to start with the coffee. "Thank you for breakfast, sweetheart."
"Aww, you're welcome!" Taylor replied, leaving a kiss on Margot's cheek. "How's your mom doing?"
"She's okay, she was just checking on me," she explained, picking up her knife and fork next. "Are these chocolate chip pancakes?"
"Banana chocolate chip," Taylor corrected her, her smile widening.
"Tay... You didn't have to go all out..."
"Maggie..." She countered with the same use of a nickname, grinning toothily while Margot rolled her eyes. "I wanted to. I know you like 'em, so enjoy 'em."
"You know what I like better?"
"Please tell me it's not blueberry pancakes...? That was also an option but I thought these would be sweeter."
Margot laughed, shaking her head as she leaned in, switching her cutlery to one hand so she could free up the other one to hold Taylor's face. "I like you better."
Taylor blushed softly and scrunched her nose before leaning in. "You're such a sap."
"I know," she hummed and kissed her lips softly. "But then again, you're the one who woke up at the crack of dawn to make me breakfast. So, who's the bigger sap here?"
"Still you," Taylor replied, kissing her again and patting her cheek before pulling away. "I am starving though. So, stop distracting me with your sweet kisses and eat! You don't wanna be late either!"
Margot chuckled to herself, playfully shoving Taylor's shoulder.
They ate while talking about everything but the one important thing happening later that morning and Margot was grateful to have something else on her mind for a while.
They put the dishes in the sink together and when it was time to go, Taylor accompanied Margot to her car and didn't leave before giving her one last embrace.
"Good luck," she murmured, giving Margot's hands a squeeze. "It's going to be fine, okay?"
Margot nodded, sighing softly. "Yeah, it shouldn't take long either."
"Call me afterwards?"
"Okay," Margot promised and dropped a kiss on Taylor's forehead just as they heard multiple camera clicks in quick succession.
They both turned at the same time to find a photographer standing a few feet away, at the entrance of the building right next door, holding his camera up to his eyes.
"Christ," Margot muttered, letting out a frustrated sigh while Taylor chuckled softly. "Just what I needed today."
"Hey..." Taylor said, smiling up at Margot. "Don't mind him. Just focus on staying calm. It's going to be okay."
"Yeah," she mumbled, squeezing Taylor's hand one last time before sliding into her car and Taylor went to step into her own SUV.
The whole drive to the law firm, Margot sat in the back of the car, twiddling her thumbs anxiously, and when she arrived, she shouldered her purse and made her way up to the Hart & Lloyd offices where she was greeted by William right at the entrance.
He gave her a smile and shook her hand warmly.
"How are you feeling?" He asked.
"I just want to get this over with."
He breathed out a chuckle and nodded before pointing in the direction of a meeting room. "Everything's all set in there. We're just waiting for Bianca Mariano to show up. We can wait in my office. Would you like some coffee?"
Margot shook her head, quietly rejecting the offer. She was starting to feel queasy. Maybe eating those pancakes weren't such a good idea. She appreciated the thought and effort that Taylor put into making her breakfast but it just wasn't sitting well in her belly.
"Right, well... Let's just go ahead and–"
The elevators dinged and they both turned around, expecting to find the deponent walking out but instead, a certain familiar nepo baby did.
William raised his eyebrows in surprise, taking a step toward his daughter. "Thalia... What are you doing here?"
"I thought it was Bring Your Daughter To Work Day?" She replied with a little crooked grin shot in Margot's direction.
"What?"
"Relax, Dad, I'm only here to support Maggie," she responded, standing on her tiptoes to kiss her dad's cheek before walking over to Margot and hugging her tightly. "How are you feeling?"
"Like I might puke my breakfast on you if you squeeze me any tighter!"
Thalia made a disgusted sound, pulling away but keeping her hands on Margot's shoulders. "It's a new sweater vest. Don't you dare!"
Margot managed a little smile. "You didn't have to come."
"I know," she replied softly.
"Thals, you can't be in there, though."
"I know, I'll just wait in your office and play Minesweeper on your desktop," she replied, sending him a little lopsided grin.
"Just like you did when you were ten," William laughed.
The elevator dinged again and this time, the actual witness stepped out with her own lawyer.
As soon as Margot met her gaze, she felt bile rise up her throat. Her stomach was uneasy and her throat burnt. She didn't look away though. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and stood taller, even if she was going a little crazy inside.
All she could see was that woman, on her knees, in her bedroom, with Harry, looking back at her, completely horrified to have been caught. On a loop in her brain.
"Bianca, thank you for coming all this way," William said politely.
"Jackson Frost. Nice to meet you, Mr. Hart. I'll be representing Miss Mariano today."
William glanced at the young lawyer before shaking his hand. "If you're ready, we've already got everything ready for the deposition. Would you like anything, perhaps some coffee or some water?"
Margot looked at Jackson Frost again and she felt a chill run through her body. He looked familiar and she realised it was because his father must have been Marcus Frost. Harry's lawyer.
Those pancakes were starting to feel like a really bad idea.
"Excuse me one moment, I have to use the ladies' room," Margot managed to say and dashed in the direction of the toilets.
Thalia followed her all the way in there but when Margot hunched over the sink, nothing came out. She was only dry heaving which was worse for the burn in her throat.
"Are you okay?" Thalia asked gently, her hand moving in circles on the small of her back.
Margot shook her head, the cold edges of the sink that dug into her arms feeling rather comforting. "That kid works for Harry's lawyers. He's Marcus Frost's kid."
"Shit... You don't think he had anything to do with this, do you?" Thalia asked, frowning deeply.
"I don't know," Margot muttered, closing her eyes a little and taking in a couple of deep breaths. "She has no reason to be working with him."
"I wouldn't be surprised if he interfered as soon as he learned that my dad subpoenaed her," Thalia mentioned.
"Yeah, but what good would that do? She's going to have to answer every question William asks her under oath," Margot responded. "Sorry, I've just been on edge for a while."
"It's understandable, here..." Thalia opened her tote bag and pulled out a water flask. She opened it and handed it to Margot, urging her to take a sip.
Margot smiled in thanks after a few sips. It did help a little.
"I know it can't be easy seeing her again, but, it's only a few minutes and then you'll never have to see her or your douchebag ex ever again," Thalia said reassuringly.
"Yeah, yeah. You're right," Margot agreed, handing her friend her water bottle back. "At least she's wearing actual clothes this time."
"Might as well have been naked," Thalia replied. "Did you see the skirt she's wearing? What is it made of? Sandpaper?"
Margot snorted, managing a little smile. "Right, and why would she ever think that it would match with those red ballerinas?"
"Do you think the diamond earrings were fakes?"
Margot grimaced. "No, they looked real. We should really stop judging people and their outfit choices."
"Right... But where's the fun in that?"
Thalia made a face that had Margot laughing.
"Thanks for being here, Thals. I should probably head back," Margot said, giving Thalia's arm a squeeze before walking back outside.
She found everyone else in the meeting room already and sat down next to William and his associate, behind the camera and across the table from Bianca Mariano and her lawyer.
Margot kept her eyes trained on the woman, her diamond earrings blinking as sunlight streamed past the blinds on the windows. They looked awfully real and awfully expensive. She wondered how a hotel manager could have ever afforded those unless they were gifted to her by a certain hotel owner and former employer.
"Okay, Miss Mariano, before we begin, do you understand that you are under sworn oath and must tell the whole truth?" William's associate, Gabriel, asked.
Bianca Mariano glanced at Margot for a second before returning her gaze to the two lawyers, shifting in her seat. "I do."
Margot narrowed her eyes at her.
"Have you ever had a deposition taken in the past?"
She shook her head, crossing her fingers together in her lap. "No."
"Are you prepared to answer all questions and give us your full attention?"
She nodded this time, letting out a small, "yes."
"If you need a break, or clarification on a certain question, you may stop us and let us know. Are you on any medication that may interrupt this deposition in any way?"
"I am not."
"And is there anything else we need to know before we begin?"
She shook her head again.
Margot crossed her arms over her chest.
"Okay, please state your full name, date of birth, and social security number for the record," Gabriel instructed, looking down at a folder in front of him that most likely had the information on there already.
"Bianca Lucia Mariano. March 27th, 1995," she responded, followed by her social security number.
"And what is your current address?"
She lived in Queens on her own apparently.
"And are you married?"
"I'm not."
"Have you ever been married?" Gabriel asked but she shook her head again. "Any children?"
"Does a rabbit count?"
Ah, jokes! Margot couldn't even get herself to smile.
"So, that's a no," Gabriel muttered before continuing with the basic background questions including her education and her legal history.
"Miss Mariano, assuming you've prepared for this deposition with your attorney, have you spoken to anyone else or consulted anyone at all besides your legal team about this case?"
She hesitated. Margot caught it. It was very subtle and fast, but she did. She hesitated before shaking her head.
"No. Only Jackson."
Margot glanced at her own legal team but they only continued asking questions as usual.
Gabriel cleared his throat and sat back while William opened his own folder and smiled at Bianca.
"Miss Mariano, you were the manager of the Fitzroy hotel here in Manhattan, on Fifth Avenue, up until last year. Is that correct?"
"Yes, that's correct." Again, she shifted in her seat. Margot was starting to feel uneasy, tapping her fingers in succession against the side of her thigh, but she refused to lose her composure. She had to have faith in her lawyers and trust that they knew what they were doing. William had never let her down before. She had no reason to believe otherwise.
"And why did you leave so abruptly?"
Bianca glanced at her lawyer but he was only smirking lightly. She faced William again and cleared her throat. "I didn't want to work at a hotel or in hospitality anymore."
William let out a dry chuckle. "Okay, and what have you been doing since?"
She cleared her throat again. "I'm in between jobs."
"So, you have no source of steady income?"
"Not right now, no."
William pulled out a sheet of paper and slid it across the table to her side.
"Can you explain how you came about this significantly large sum of money, around the time you left your job at the Fitzroy?"
"Inheritance."
She answered way too quickly like she had been expecting that question. She had barely even looked at the document.
"Half a million dollars?" Gabriel asked, scoffing in disbelief.
"My grandmother in Chile passed away."
It was clear no one in the room believed her but they couldn't exactly accuse her of lying just yet. Not without evidence.
"Miss Mariano, let me just remind you that lying under oath is a criminal offence. You can be fined if found guilty and imprisoned for up to–"
"Excuse me, are you accusing my client of lying?" Jackson Frost interrupted, leaning forward with his elbows on the table. He was taking this way too nonchalantly, this smirk on his face way too smug.
Gabriel shared a look with William who gave him a subtle shake of the head.
"Miss Mariano," William continued instead. "Where were you on May twenty-fifth, twenty twenty-two?"
"If it was a weekday, I was most likely at the Fitzroy," she said.
Margot's lips twitched. She held her hands in fists by her sides, her nails digging into her palms. She had a bad feeling. A really, really bad feeling.
"So, you're saying you don't remember where you were that day?"
"It was over a year ago, Mr. Hart. I can't remember what I had for lunch yesterday, let alone where I was a year ago. Six days a week, I was at the Fitzroy from seven o'clock in the morning till five in the afternoon, sometimes later. Sometimes on Sundays. It wasn't as predictable as a nine-to-five, five-days-a-week kinda job. I worked a lot, and I worked overtime sometimes. So, no. I don't remember where I was on the twenty-fifth of May last year, but if I had to take a guess, it's probably going to be the Fitzroy on Fifth Avenue."
"And you'd probably be right," William replied. "But you weren't there on the twenty-sixth. A regular Thursday morning. You called in sick."
"I worked six days a week. Sometimes, I got sick," she replied defensively. The whole time she refused to look in Margot's direction, but Margot could not stop looking at her. She could not stop seeing her face, that look of surprise, and the way she had scrambled up to her feet to try and cover herself. She couldn't even forget that one mole she had seen on her ass though she wished she could.
"But you weren't sick, now, were you?" William continued. "You were busy with Mr. Fitzroy, weren't you?"
"Probably not," she said and then let out a small cough. "Mr. Fitzroy is a busy man, I imagine."
"Not too busy to invite you to his bed," William shot back. Margot's glare got more intense. "And you weren't feeling too sick to decline that offer. You weren't at work that day because you were having an affair with Mr. Fitzroy."
"Speculation!" Jackson Frost exclaimed, pointing a finger at William. "You're making assumptions based on hearsay. Stop badgering my client."
"Are you just using legal terms you learned yesterday from Google, kid?" William shot back, earning a scoff from the other lawyer who actually looked too young to be doing this.
"There you go again, making more assumptions!" Jackson said, waving his hand dismissively. "I graduated top of my class from Harvard."
To Margot, he looked like he had just graduated from a bottle to a sippy cup but she kept the comment to herself. He looked like he could barely even grow a beard with his rosy cheeks.
"Okay, Harvard Boy. Do you mind if I ask your client more questions?"
Jackson waved his hand again and sat back in his chair.
William gave him a sardonic smile before returning his attention to Bianca. Were her cheeks always that red?
"Miss Mariano, it's a simple yes or no question. Did you or did you not sleep with Harry Fitzroy?"
That was the only time she dared make eye contact with Margot. She looked at the brunette for a split second before looking away.
"No, I did not."