Chapter 4 - THE MISCARRIAGE PERFORMANCE
Detectives arrived at the hotel at 1:40 in the morning.
Nathan had told them Claire threatened Vanessa during the gala and later entered the library carrying a glass of champagne. Vanessa claimed Claire shoved her, causing a miscarriage.
“That never happened,” Claire said.
Ethan produced hotel security footage showing Claire arriving twenty-three minutes before Vanessa allegedly fell.
The detectives exchanged a look.
“Mrs. Moretti,” one said, “we still need a formal statement.”
Claire gave it calmly.
By sunrise, Vanessa’s story had changed twice. First, Claire pushed her in the library. Then she claimed the stress of Claire’s words caused the loss. Finally, Doctor Mercer issued a private statement saying Vanessa suffered a “pregnancy-related medical crisis” but refused to release hospital records.
Nathan posted a statement online accusing Claire of cruelty.
Within hours, headlines called her jealous, unstable, and dangerous.
Moretti Global’s board scheduled an emergency meeting to discuss whether Claire should be removed from the family foundation.
Ethan watched the smear campaign spread with military precision.
“They prepared this before the gala,” he said.
Claire looked exhausted but not broken. “Then we stop defending and start hunting.”
They began with the mansion’s internal server. Ethan had installed the system years earlier, including a hidden backup that security staff did not know existed.
At 10:16 a.m., he recovered a deleted garage clip.
The footage showed Julian Hale crouching beside Claire’s car, cutting a wire near the rear wheel.
At 10:18, Vanessa entered the garage without a pregnancy belly.
She carried the prosthetic under one arm.
Claire gripped the desk.
“There it is.”
“Not all of it,” Ethan said.
The video continued.
Doctor Mercer appeared beside Vanessa and handed her a sealed blood bag.
Then Nathan walked into frame.
He looked directly at them.
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And instead of calling security, he closed the garage door.
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