The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 324

I noticed Eva, sitting with her head high before I even reached my seat.

For the first time since the proceedings began, she had arrived before me.

She sat beside her legal team, looking composed and impeccably dressed. Her hair fell in soft waves around her shoulders, and her makeup was flawless.

If I hadn’t known what she had done, I might have mistaken her for a woman who had never caused anyone harm.

Then she looked up and our eyes met.

Eva smiled.

It was small enough that nobody else might have noticed it.

But I did.

There was no nervousness in her expression. No uncertainty, no trace of the desperation she had displayed when Hart’s testimony began unraveling her carefully constructed lies or when she had approached me with the hope that I could somehow convince Lucian to withdraw the charges.

Today, she looked pleased with herself. Triumphant, even.

My fingers curled around the strap of my bag.

She did this.

The thought came so suddenly that it felt like a certainty.

I had no proof, and Nathaniel’s warning was still echoing in my mind, reminding me that suspicion wasn’t evidence.

But the timing was too perfect of the allegations was simply too perfect.

And now Eva was sitting in court, smiling at me as though she knew something I didn’t.

I forced myself to look away, refusing to give her the satisfaction of seeing me react. Not here. Not today.

I took my seat between Jonathan and Laurel, then began arranging my documents on the table.

Nathaniel settled a short distance behind us. Before sitting down, he gave me one last reassuring look.

I nodded, then turned toward the judge’s bench.

Today’s proceedings concerned Eva’s fabricated pregnancy and the accusations she had made against Lucian afterward.

It was one of the most damaging parts of her smear campaign against him.

For months, she had claimed to be carrying his child. She had allowed him to believe he was going to become a father. She had accepted his attention, his concern, and the support he offered because he believed she was pregnant. In fact, she had insisted on receiving all of those benefits.

Then, when the truth emerged and Lucian discovered the pregnancy had never existed and threatened to take legal action against her, Eva retaliated.

She went public with allegations that he had assaulted her and caused her to miscarry.

The story had spread rapidly. People who had never met Lucian condemned him and Dhark Holdings found itself facing public scrutiny. Business relationships that had taken years to establish became strained under the weight of the scandal.

I remembered it all too well. The damage wasn’t limited to headlines. There had been real consequences.

And today, we intended to establish those consequences before the court.

When the proceedings began, I rose to address the judge.

“Your Honor, today’s evidence concerns the fraudulent pregnancy at the center of this case and the false public allegations that followed its exposure.”

I kept my voice steady, loud and clear. “The evidence will show that the defendant, Eva Sterling knowingly misrepresented herself as pregnant with Mr. Dhark’s child. When that deception was discovered, she made public allegations that he had assaulted her and caused a miscarriage. Those allegations were false, and they caused substantial harm to his reputation, his personal life, and his business interests.”

I paused briefly.

“The plaintiff is not asking this court to punish Ms. Sterling for the breakdown of a relationship. He is asking the court to examine her pattern of deliberate deception and the consequences of using false allegations to damage another person’s life.”

I returned to my seat.

The judge nodded toward the defense.

Eva’s attorney rose confidently.

“Your Honor, the defense acknowledges that questions surrounding Ms. Sterling’s pregnancy have been raised by the evidence. However, we would like to dispute the plaintiff’s attempt to treat every public controversy as a direct consequence of my client’s conduct.”

I listened carefully.

It wasn’t difficult to recognize the tactics being employed. The defense intended to separate the lies from the damage they had caused.

“The plaintiff and the defendant were both public figures, involved in a highly publicized relationship,” the attorney continued. “The public response to that relationship cannot automatically be attributed to my client, nor can every business difficulty experienced by Dhark Holdings be treated as a loss caused by her statements.”

I wrote a note.

It was a predictable argument, but that didn’t mean it would hold. The court needed to distinguish between general publicity surrounding Lucian’s relationship with Eva, and the specific harm caused by the false allegations.

I understood that.

But the distinction did not excuse Eva’s conduct.

When the judge invited me to respond, I stood again.

“Your Honor, the plaintiff is not claiming that every negative headline concerning his relationship with Ms. Sterling constitutes a separate injury. The evidence that will be presented will establish the specific statements at issue, the circumstances in which they were made, and the harm that followed.”

I glanced briefly at Eva, who was now watching me with sheer focus.

“The fact that Mr. Dhark was a public figure does not give the defendant permission to knowingly make false statements about him. That is exactly what constitutes defamation. Nor does the existence of a complicated personal relationship erase the consequences of fabricating a pregnancy and then publicly accusing him of causing a miscarriage.”

Several members of the jury nodded.

I continued. “We intend to demonstrate the connection between the defendant’s conduct and the harm claimed. The evidence should be examined on its merits, not obscured by the suggestion that public attention somehow absolves the person responsible for false allegations.”

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