The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 329

The drive to the police station gave me more time to think about Caroline.

I didn’t like coincidences, especially when they involved people who had already demonstrated a willingness to hurt someone.

Claire sat beside me, staring through the window.

“You’re thinking about her again,” I said.

She glanced at me. “Who?”

“Caroline.”

She sighed. “Is it that obvious?”

“Only because you’ve been staring at the same building for the last three minutes.”

She turned away from the window.

“I don’t know what to think about her anymore. We were best friends for years, Margot. I knew her family. She knew mine. We shared a room, studied together, and talked about our futures as though we’d be part of each other’s lives forever.”

“And then she betrayed you.”

“Yes.”

“People don’t always stop being dangerous simply because we once loved them.”

Claire was quiet.

I didn’t want to make her more suspicious than the evidence warranted, but neither could I afford to let her nostalgia cloud her judgment.

“If Caroline has nothing to do with this, we’ll establish that,” I continued. “But if she does, we need to know before she has another opportunity to hurt you.”

Claire nodded slowly.

“There’s something else.”

I turned toward her.

“The photograph.”

“Go on.”

“Professor Williams dropped me off at my dorm after an academic event. The picture was taken inside his car, from the back seat. Whoever took it was close enough to make it look as though we were doing something inappropriate.”

“And Caroline could have been there?”

“I don’t remember seeing her that evening. But she knew my schedule back then. She knew where I lived, where I studied, and who I spent time with.”

“That doesn’t establish that she took the photograph.”

“I know.”

She rubbed her forehead.

“But I keep thinking about it. If she had the picture all this time, she could have been waiting for the right moment to use it.”

I considered that.

It was possible.

It was also possible that someone else had taken the photograph and later passed it to Eva.

Until we had evidence, Caroline remained a possibility rather than an answer.

“Try contacting her,” I suggested. “Don’t accuse her of anything. See how she responds. If she’s involved, she may give herself away. If she isn’t, we don’t want to turn a potential witness into an adversary without cause.”

Claire nodded.

“I’ll try.”

The car slowed as we approached the police station.

“Whatever we discover,” I told her, “we’re going to handle it carefully.”

She gave me a small, determined smile.

“Together.”

“Together.”

⸻

We were escorted through the station and into the room where Hart Sullivan was waiting.

Hart looked tired, his expression drawn, but he greeted us without the hostility I’d once expected from him.

“Ms. Sinclair.”

“Hart.”

His gaze shifted to Claire.

“Claire.”

Claire nodded.

We took our seats across from him.

“I understand you’ll be returning to court for the next hearing,” I began.

“Yes.”

“Then we need to discuss the information you provided about Eva’s supposed pregnancy. Specifically, the messages suggesting she planned to obtain a baby abroad and claim she’d given birth to Lucian’s child.”

Hart leaned back in his seat. “I remember.”

“Good. Because the defense will challenge your testimony. They’ll question your credibility, your motives, and whether you actually knew what Eva intended to do. I need you to explain the plan clearly, including what you heard directly from her and what you merely assumed.”

“I understand.”

“Then tell us what happened.”

Hart looked down at his hands before answering. “Eva’s plan was to leave the country and film a movie where she was supposed to play the lead character, and the production would give her a reason to remain abroad for several months without attracting too much suspicion.”

“How long?” I asked.

“Up to six months, depending on how long the production took.”

Claire leaned forward. “And during that time?”

“She intended to keep pretending she was pregnant.”

I exchanged a glance with Claire.

Hart continued.

“She’d already started telling people about the pregnancy. She knew she couldn’t keep up the story forever without something to show for it. So she planned to leave before Lucian discovered the truth.”

“She claimed to be approximately four months pregnant when the deception began to unravel,” I said.

“Yes. She was supposed to leave shortly before he caught on. Once she was abroad, she planned to wear a fake bump for the rest of the supposed pregnancy.”

“And after that?”

Hart hesitated briefly.

“She intended to come back with a newborn.”

Claire stared at him.

“A baby?”

“Yes.”

“She planned to adopt a baby abroad and pretend she’d given birth to it?”

“That was the plan.”

For a moment, neither Claire nor I spoke.

I had spent years working with people who lied, manipulated, and concealed information. I had seen fraud committed with astonishing confidence and cruelty disguised as charm.

But this?

This was an entirely different level of deception.

“Did she tell you where she intended to obtain the baby?” I asked.

“Not specifically. She talked about arranging everything while she was abroad. She wanted the baby to be presented as hers and Lucian’s. She thought that once she returned with a newborn, people would accept the pregnancy as real.”

“Did she discuss the legal process of adopting a child?”

“She mentioned arranging it through contacts, but I don’t know the details. I didn’t ask.”

“Did you know whether she had already made arrangements?”

“Not for certain. I knew she’d been looking into it. I saw messages about the plan, and she spoke to me about what she intended to do.”

I made a note.

We would need the original messages, their dates, and any supporting evidence Hart could identify. His testimony would be important, but I wanted to ensure that we had corroboration wherever possible.

Claire was still staring at him.

“She was going to bring a baby into this?”

Hart nodded.

“She wanted Lucian to believe the child was his. She thought that if she could give him a family, he’d never leave her.”

“And she was willing to deceive him for months, then involve an innocent child in the lie?”

“I told you. Eva was determined to get what she wanted.”

I looked at Claire.

She had gone very still.

I knew what she was thinking. She was carrying Lucian’s child now, and the idea of someone treating a baby as a tool for manipulating another person was particularly disturbing to her.

“Why didn’t you tell anyone about this before?” she asked.

Hart’s expression hardened with shame.

“Because I was helping her. I knew what she was planning, and I didn’t stop it. I didn’t care what happened to Lucian or you as long as Eva was happy with me.”

He swallowed.

“At the time, I convinced myself that everything she did was justified. I thought Lucian had taken her from me, and I wanted him to suffer. I didn’t care how many other people got hurt.”

He looked at Claire.

“I should have stopped it.”

“But you didn’t,” I said.

“No.”

There was no attempt to excuse himself.

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