The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 307

I heard a few murmurs behind me.

I ignored them.

“What did Eva ask you to do for her?”

Hart sat up straighter. “Things.”

I sighed. He had been instructed not to give vague answers.

“What things?” I asked.

“Things she didn’t want connected to her.”

I took one step closer. “Be specific, Mr. Sullivan.”

He exhaled. “Threatening people.”

The courtroom became even quieter—except for the sound of reporters typing away on their devices.

“Anything else?”

“Following people.”

“Anything else?”

“Sometimes destroying things.”

I waited.

Hart continued. “Making problems disappear.”

I turned slightly toward the judge, then back to Hart.

“And you did these things?”

“Yes.”

“Because she asked you to?”

He shrugged. “Most of the time.”

“Most?”

He hesitated. “There were things I did because I wanted to.”

That answer caught my attention—as well as everyone’s.

We had planned to show the jury that Hart was a flawed man himself, not just Eva’s puppet—that would be too cartoonish.

“We’ll come back to that.” I said as I walked back to my table and picked up another document.

“Mr. Sullivan, would you say Eva manipulated you?”

His eyes narrowed. “I didn’t think so back then.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

Silence.

Then he said, “Yes.”

“How?”

“She always knew what to say.”

“Explain.”

Again, he hesitated before speaking. “She knew what I was willing to do for her.”

His voice was quieter now. “If I ever questioned something, she’d remind me of everything we’d been through. She’d tell me she needed me. Sometimes she’d make me feel like I was the only person who understood her.”

I nodded slowly. “And you believed her?”

“Every time.” He admitted.

I looked toward the defense table.

Eva was sitting perfectly still, but she hadn’t looked away from Hart once.

I turned back to look at the man on the stand. “Let’s talk about the period when Eva and Lucian Dhark first became involved, about seven years ago.”

Hart’s expression hardened. “What about it?”

I went straight to the point. “Did you know about their relationship?”

“Yes.”

“You knew Eva was dating Lucian?”

“Yes—it was all over the tabloids.”

Indeed.

I remembered seeing articles and gossip columns about Eva and Lucian all those years ago, before I even met the man.

They were the definition of a power couple—an A-list celebrity and a billionaire. Eva Sterling had flaunted that relationship until it came to its tragic end.

I met and married Lucian six months after that.

“And why exactly did you remain in that situation—standing by the side while your partner flaunted a relationship with someone else?”

“I loved her.” There was something about his rawness. His honesty.

“And she said the relationship would boost her status. I went along with whatever made her happy.”

“Did Eva tell you about Lucian?”

He hesitated. “She told me things.”

“What kind of things?”

“Things she wanted.”

“Such as?”

Hart looked at me. “His money. His position. His family.”

A murmur went through the courtroom.

“Objection!” Eva’s attorney rose. “Relevance!”

“Overruled.” The judge said immediately, waving a dismissive hand.

The judge, jury and everyone present was very much interested in the story. Good.

I continued. “Did Eva ever tell you that she intended to marry Lucian?”

“She talked about becoming his wife.”

“Did she ever ask you to stay away from her while she was with him?”

“Yes. I could only see her maybe a couple times a month. She asked me to keep quiet because she didn’t want him knowing about us.”

I nodded. “Did you agree?”

No excuse, no hesitation.

“Did Eva also understand that?”

Hart paused. “That was the goal.”

Whispers spread through the courtroom again.

I nodded at Laurel, and soon enough photographs were passed around the gallery.

I dropped one in front of Hart.

It was a picture of him from surveillance cameras, the day he came to the hospital to try and finish Margot off.

When I was sure the photographs had been appropriately distributed, I took a step back from the witness box.

“Can you tell this court who the man in that photograph is?”

“That’s me.” Hart answered simply.

I nodded. “Can you explain what happened that day?”

“Eva had called, frantic about Margot surviving the crash.” Hart stated. “He wanted me to finish her off in the hospital.”

I nodded. “And what happened there?”

“Lucian Dhark was in the room. We got into…” he thought about the word. “An altercation. I had to leave before security could arrive.”

“And you were working under Eva Sterling’s instructions?”

He nodded. “Yes ma’am.”

I angled my neck towards the defense table to get a better look at Eva.

She simply scoffed and shook her head.

I turned back to Hart. “Let’s move to the Dhark mansion.”

Hart’s face changed immediately.

“The crash.” I said, placing emphasis on every word, so my voice carried loud and clear through the courtroom.

“Did Ms. Sterling also instruct you to interfere with the mansion?”

Hart sighed.“Yes, she did.”

“What exactly did she ask you to do?”

“She asked that I tamper with part of the structure.”

“For what purpose?”

“To cause a failure. A crash.”

“Did she know I would be sitting right beneath that structure?”

Hart nodded. “She told me she was in charge of organizing the guests’ sitting positions.”

“Did she know Margot and I would be seated right beneath the structure?”

“She said she would have you and Margot Sinclair seated there, while I handled the rest.”

My fingers tightened around the file. “In simple terms, Mr. Sullivan, who was the target of the crash you and Ms. Sterling orchestrated?”

Hart looked at me. “You and Margot Sinclair.”

The courtroom erupted in whispers.