Chapter 3 - THE WEIGHT OF BETRAYAL
The paper rattled in Victor’s hand.
Fourteen months of grief, fourteen months of guilt, fourteen months of blaming himself for Claire’s sudden death while he was away closing a logistics merger—it all collapsed into a single, blinding moment of realization.
Claire hadn’t suffered a natural cardiac arrest.
She had been murdered.
“Victor…” Serena’s voice was completely stripped of its arrogance now. It was thin, shrill, and dripping with raw terror. “Listen to me. That’s… that’s not what it looks like. Claire had medical complications! I was just helping her family handle the estate affairs!”
Victor slowly raised his eyes. There was no rage in them anymore. Only a deep, bottomless void of arctic coldness.
“You paid the coroner two million dollars two days after my wife died,” Victor said. Every syllable dropped like lead. “And the signature on the authorization for her private cremation… is yours.”
“She requested it!” Serena cried, backing toward the double oak doors. “Claire knew she was dying! She asked me to take care of you! She wanted me to be Ethan’s mother!”
At that moment, the heavy oak doors swung open. Dr. Gregory Hayes, the Blackwood family’s private physician, rushed in carrying his medical kit, followed by two armed private security guards in black tactical gear.
“Victor! I got your emergency ping—what happened?” Dr. Hayes stopped dead in his tracks, taking in the scene: the bruised nanny, the crying child, the trembling housekeeper, and the heir of Vance Global cornered against the wall.
“Gregory,” Victor said, his tone terrifyingly level. “Examine Ethan. Immediately.”
The doctor immediately took the baby from Victor’s arms, laying him gently on the padded settee. Dr. Hayes’s seasoned hands carefully palpated the toddler’s wrist.
“Greenstick fracture,” Dr. Hayes announced grimly, his face darkening. “Caused by severe, downward compressive force. This wasn’t a fall. Someone stepped on him. And his pupils are sluggish—Victor, has he ingested anything?”
Victor handed the amber bottle of Clonazepam to the physician.
Dr. Hayes looked at the label and gasped. “This dosage could induce respiratory arrest in a child this size! Who gave him this?!”
Victor turned his eyes slowly toward Serena.
“Marcus. Leo,” Victor called out to the two security guards standing at the door.
“Yes, Mr. Blackwood,” the lead operative answered, stepping forward.
“Lock every gate on the perimeter,” Victor commanded. “Confiscate her phone, her purse, her car keys. If she attempts to leave this room before the state police arrive, use whatever force is necessary.”
“You can’t do this to me!” Serena shrieked as Marcus stepped in front of her, blocking the exit. “My father is Senator Vance! He will have your entire security firm dismantled by sunrise! Victor, you are making the biggest mistake of your life!”
Victor ignored her completely. He walked over to Lily, who was still trembling on the floor. He knelt beside her, reaching out and gently touching her shoulder.
“Can you stand?” he asked softly.
Lily looked up, her eyes wide with shock. “I… I think so.”
Victor helped her to her feet, supporting her weight as she swayed slightly from dizziness. “You risked your life to protect my son today, Lily. You took a beating meant for him.”
“He’s an innocent baby,” Lily whispered, clutching her side where Serena had kicked her. “I couldn’t let her hurt him anymore.”
“You will never have to answer to anyone in this house again,” Victor said firmly. “Martha, take Lily to the master guest suite. Have Dr. Hayes treat her injuries as soon as Ethan is stabilized.”
“No!” Serena screamed from across the room. “She doesn’t belong in the main house! She’s garbage! Victor, look at her! You’re choosing a peasant over me?!”
Victor turned his head slowly toward his former fiancée.
“You’re right, Serena,” Victor said, his voice sending a chill down everyone’s spine. “She doesn’t belong in the guest suite. She belongs in this family. And you belong in a maximum-security cell.”
He turned back to the guard. “Take her to the wine cellar. Lock the iron gate. Do not give her water until the detectives get here.”
“You can’t lock me up!” Serena yelled, clawing at Marcus’s tactical vest as the guard grabbed her arms and wrenched them behind her back. “Victor! My father has the governor on speed dial! You’ll never convict me! You have no proof Claire didn’t die of a heart attack!”
As Marcus dragged the thrashing, screaming woman down the hallway toward the basement stairs, Lily touched Victor’s sleeve tentatively.
“Mr. Blackwood…” Lily whispered.
Victor looked down at her. “What is it, Lily?”
Lily reached into the pocket of her oversized cardigan and pulled out a small, silver thumb drive attached to a broken keychain.
“Claire gave this to me,” Lily said, her voice barely audible. “Three days before Ethan was born. When I was just a temp cleaner at her art studio.”
Victor stared at the drive. “Claire gave you this?”
May you like
Lily swallowed hard, glancing at the locked doorway where Serena had just disappeared.
“She told me that if anything ever happened to her… I had to wait until Ethan was one year old, and give it directly to you. Because she knew Serena was trying to poison her tea.”
