Chapter 2: Every Lie Had Already Been Recorded
Chapter 2: Every Lie Had Already Been Recorded
Ruiz connected a tablet to the living room television.
The security footage began playing.
First...
Vanessa pacing alone on the staircase.
Then checking both hallways.
Making sure no witnesses were nearby.
Finally...
Waiting.
Exactly forty-three seconds later, Eleanor appeared.
She smiled politely.
Before she could even speak—
Vanessa shoved her.
Hard.
The impact echoed through the speakers.
Gasps filled the room.
Mrs. Dawson covered her mouth.
"I... I thought..."
"You thought she fell," Eleanor finished softly.
"Because that's what Vanessa wanted everyone to believe."
Ruiz played another recording.
Vanessa's voice.
Crystal clear.
"If you lose this baby, maybe Richard will finally love me instead."
Silence.
Even the officers looked horrified.
Mrs. Dawson slowly stepped away from Vanessa.
"You... wanted the child dead?"
Vanessa shook violently.
"No! That's out of context!"
Ruiz wasn't finished.
He opened another file.
Financial records.
Insurance transfers.
Anonymous payments.
Private messages.
Every one connected to Vanessa.
She had bribed two former employees to spread rumors about Eleanor.
She had forged medical documents.
She had secretly withdrawn nearly two million dollars from family accounts using fake signatures.
The staircase wasn't the beginning.
It was simply the final mistake.
Vanessa suddenly lunged toward the television.
Ruiz stopped her immediately.
"It's over."
"No!"
She screamed louder than before.
"You can't prove everything!"
Eleanor reached into her handbag one final time.
She placed a thick envelope on the table.
Divorce papers.
Alongside them...
A DNA report.
Richard Hale entered the room just as everyone stared in confusion.
"What is this?"
Eleanor looked him directly in the eyes.
"I finally know why Vanessa fought so hard to destroy me."
Richard opened the report.
His hands began shaking.
Vanessa whispered,
"Richard..."
He looked at her in complete disbelief.
"The child..."
Ruiz quietly answered for him.
"...is yours."
Mrs. Dawson nearly collapsed.
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Vanessa had not only betrayed Eleanor.
She had secretly been having an affair with Eleanor's husband for years.
