Chapter 1: The Witnesses Arrive
Chapter 1: The Witnesses Arrive
The mansion fell silent the moment the front door burst open.
Two uniformed officers entered first.
Behind them came Detective Ruiz.
He didn't run.
He walked with the calm confidence of someone who already knew what he was about to find.
The blonde woman immediately pointed toward the pregnant woman still lying at the bottom of the staircase.
"She attacked me first!" she cried. "I only defended myself!"
Ruiz didn't answer.
His eyes swept across the room.
The scattered vase.
The fresh scrape marks on the polished railing.
The position of both women.
Then he looked directly at the pregnant woman.
"You called at exactly 3:14," he said quietly.
She nodded.
"It happened exactly as we expected."
The blonde woman's face lost its color.
"What... what are you talking about?"
Ruiz removed a small evidence bag from his coat.
Inside was a tiny wireless microphone.
"We've been investigating anonymous reports of repeated assaults inside this house for nearly four months."
The caretaker stared in disbelief.
"You mean..."
"The victim isn't who everyone thinks she is."
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For the first time, the people surrounding the blonde woman slowly stepped away from her.
No one noticed her trembling hands.
