CHAPTER 3 – THE FIRST LIE
CHAPTER 3 – THE FIRST LIE
Khloe woke shortly after midnight.
The first thing she heard was the slow rhythm of a fetal monitor.
The second was Marcus’s voice.
“I’m here.”
She opened her eyes.
He sat beside the bed, still wearing his bloodstained tuxedo shirt. His jacket and tie were gone. His hair, normally immaculate, had fallen across his forehead.
Khloe tried to move.
Pain stopped her.
“The baby?”
“Stable.”
She closed her eyes again.
A tear slipped down her cheek.
Marcus reached for her hand.
She allowed him to hold it, but she did not return his grip.
That hurt him more than he expected.
“Khloe…”
“Did you believe her?”
He knew exactly who she meant.
“No.”
“You hesitated.”
“I walked into a room and saw—”
“You saw me on the floor.”
“Yes.”
“You saw her standing over me.”
“Yes.”
“And you still asked what happened.”
Marcus looked away.
The truth was ugly.
For months, Isabella had whispered that Khloe was insecure, controlling and emotionally unstable.
Marcus had not openly believed her.
But he had allowed the doubt to remain.
That doubt had been visible in the hospital suite.
Khloe had seen it.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
She stared at him.
“For which part?”
The question struck harder than an accusation.
“For not protecting you.”
“You didn’t know.”
“I should have.”
Khloe removed her hand from his.
“I warned you.”
Marcus remembered every warning now.
Isabella showing up uninvited at business dinners.
Isabella calling late at night with supposed emergencies.
Isabella leaking private photographs that made her relationship with Marcus look intimate.
Khloe had asked him to create distance.
He had accused her of jealousy.
“You told me she wanted to destroy our marriage,” Marcus said.
“And you told me I was imagining it.”
“I was wrong.”
“Yes.”
No comfort.
No forgiveness.
Only truth.
Marcus leaned back.
“The suite recorded everything.”
Khloe’s eyes opened wider.
“What?”
“The emergency camera activated when the glass broke.”
For the first time since waking, relief crossed her face.
“She can’t lie.”
“She already tried.”
Marcus explained the deletion attempt.
Khloe listened quietly.
Then she asked, “Did you hear what she said?”
“Yes.”
“About the heir?”
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t the first time.”
Marcus stared at her.
“When did she say it before?”
“Three weeks ago. At your mother’s house.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I did.”
Marcus searched his memory.
Khloe had called him after lunch with Eleanor and Isabella. She had sounded upset. He had been preparing for a board meeting and ended the conversation quickly.
He remembered saying, Isabella makes jokes. Stop taking everything personally.
Shame tightened his chest.
“What else did she say?”
Khloe looked toward the window.
“She said your family only needed me until the baby was born.”
“Why?”
“She said your mother had already decided I was unsuitable.”
Marcus stood.
“My mother?”
Khloe remained silent.
“Did Mother threaten you?”
“Not directly.”
“What did she do?”
“She asked me to sign a trust amendment.”
Marcus stopped breathing.
“What amendment?”
“One that would place control of our child’s inheritance under her authority.”
Marcus moved closer.
“Did you sign it?”
“No.”
“Where is it?”
“My attorney has a copy.”
“Why didn’t your attorney contact me?”
“Because I told her not to.”
“Why?”
Khloe looked at him.
“Because I didn’t know whether you were part of it.”
Marcus stepped back as though she had struck him.
“You thought I wanted to take our child away from you?”
“I didn’t know what to think.”
“Khloe—”
“You stopped sleeping at home.”
“I was working.”
“You took Isabella to New York.”
“She attended the investor conference.”
“You let the newspapers photograph you together.”
“I didn’t arrange that.”
“You never corrected them.”
Marcus had no defense.
Khloe continued.
“Your mother pressured me to sign a document. Isabella told me I would disappear after giving you an heir. You dismissed every warning.”
Her voice shook, but she did not look away.
“So tell me, Marcus. What was I supposed to believe?”
Before he could answer, the door opened.
Adrian entered with a woman in a gray suit.
“Khloe, this is Detective Lena Morales.”
The detective approached slowly.
“I can return later.”
“No,” Khloe said. “Ask me now.”
Marcus moved toward the door.
Khloe stopped him.
“Stay.”
He turned.
“I want you to hear everything.”
Detective Morales opened a notebook.
“Mrs. Thorne, did Isabella Rossi make any threats before tonight?”
Khloe told her about the charity events, the private comments and the trust amendment.
Marcus listened without interruption.
Each detail revealed how thoroughly he had failed to notice what was happening inside his own family.
“Did Ms. Rossi ever give you medication?” the detective asked.
Khloe frowned.
“No.”
“Food or drinks?”
Khloe thought carefully.
“At the gala, she brought me champagne.”
Marcus interrupted.
“Khloe doesn’t drink during pregnancy.”
“It was sparkling water,” Khloe said. “At least that’s what she told me.”
“Did you drink it?”
“A few sips.”
Detective Morales wrote something down.
“Do you still have the glass?”
“It broke in the suite.”
Adrian looked at her.
“The crystal glass?”
“Yes.”
“The forensic team collected every fragment.”
Marcus understood immediately.
“You think she put the sedative in the drink.”
Detective Morales closed the notebook.
“We think someone did.”
Adrian’s phone vibrated.
He glanced at the screen.
His expression changed.
“What is it?” Khloe asked.
“The remote-access trace is complete.”
“Who tried to delete the footage?”
Adrian looked at Marcus.
“The request came from an account belonging to your mother.”
Silence filled the room.
Marcus shook his head.
“That’s impossible.”
“The login credentials were Eleanor Thorne’s.”
“She may have been hacked.”
“Possibly.”
Khloe looked away.
Marcus noticed.
“You’re not surprised.”
She said nothing.
“Khloe.”
“Your mother knew there was a camera.”
“How?”
“She told me.”
“When?”
“Before the gala.”
Adrian stepped closer.
“What exactly did she say?”
Khloe’s voice became quieter.
“She said private rooms weren’t always private. She warned me not to make a scene if Isabella provoked me.”
Marcus stared at her.
His mother had known.
His mother had expected a confrontation.
Perhaps she had expected something worse.
A knock sounded at the door.
A nurse entered carrying a sealed plastic bag containing Khloe’s personal belongings.
“We found this inside the lining of Mrs. Thorne’s evening bag.”
Inside the evidence pouch was a small black device.
Adrian recognized it immediately.
“A transmitter.”
The detective examined it.
“It may have been tracking her location.”
Marcus looked at Khloe.
“Who gave you the bag?”
May you like
Khloe’s face went pale.
“Your mother.”
