Chapter Forty-Four: The Web Unravels

The hospital's conference room had been converted into an interrogation chamber.

Two tables, two chairs each, positioned far enough apart that Blake and Delilah couldn't see each other. Security cameras recording every angle. Armed guards at both doors.

I sat behind a one-way mirror with Dominic, watching as Jules prepared to question them separately.

Dr. Chen had cleared me twenty minutes ago—the baby and I were both stable despite the night's trauma. But when I'd tried to return to my room, Dominic had intercepted me in the hallway.

"I need you to hear this," he'd said, his voice tight with something I couldn't identify. "Whatever Blake is about to tell us, we need to face it together."

So here I was, my hands still trembling slightly from the evening's events, preparing to learn just how deep this conspiracy against me ran.

"We start with Blake," Jules said through the intercom. "He's more likely to crack first."

Dominic's jaw was tight as he watched Blake through the glass. His former business partner sat slumped in his chair, still wearing his blood-stained dress shirt, his face hollow with exhaustion and defeat.

"Do you think he'll actually tell us the truth?" I asked.

"He's got nothing left to lose now," Dominic replied. "Sometimes that makes people honest."

Jules entered the room where Blake waited, settling across from him with predatory calm. She didn't speak at first, just stared at him until he began to squirm.

"You shot an old woman tonight," she said finally.

"That was an accident," Blake said quickly. "I was trying to stop Delilah from—"

"From what? Killing your pregnant ex-wife?"

Blake's face crumpled. "I never wanted any of this to happen. It got out of control."

"When did it start?" Jules asked, her voice deceptively casual. "When did you first decide to destroy Scarlett's life?"

"I didn't decide anything," Blake said, his voice rising. "I was approached. Someone came to me with a proposition."

Beside me, Dominic went very still.

"What kind of proposition?" Jules pressed.

Blake was quiet for a long moment, staring at his hands. When he finally spoke, his voice was barely above a whisper.

"About a month ago, someone contacted me. Said they knew I was struggling with the divorce, that I was angry about Scarlett moving on so quickly."

"Who contacted you?"

Another pause. Then: "Lydia Blackwood."

The words hit the room like a physical blow. Dominic's hands clenched into fists, but he didn't speak.

Jules leaned forward. "Dominic's mother approached you directly?"

"Not at first," Blake said. "She sent intermediaries. Lawyers, business associates. But eventually, she called me herself."

"What did she want?"

"She said Scarlett was a bad influence on her son. That she was dragging the Blackwood name through the mud with her scandals and her background." Blake's voice grew stronger, as if he was trying to convince himself as much as Jules. "She said Dominic deserved better."

"So you agreed to help her?"

"She offered me information," Blake said. "About Dominic's schedule, his business meetings, his security protocols. She said if I could create enough chaos in Scarlett's life, maybe she'd realize she didn't belong in that world."

My stomach turned. "She was feeding him intelligence about you," I whispered to Dominic.

His face had gone completely expressionless, but I could see the muscle jumping in his jaw.

Jules continued her questioning. "What kind of information did she give you?"

"Everything," Blake said, his voice gaining momentum as the confession poured out. "When Scarlett would be alone, where she'd be vulnerable. She even gave me the layout of their house, told me which security cameras had blind spots."

"And the poison?"

Blake's face went pale. "She said it would just make Scarlett sick. Make her weak enough that she'd want to leave on her own. I never thought—I didn't know it could kill her."

"But you used it anyway."

"Delilah was supposed to put it in her drink at the restaurant," Blake said desperately. "Just a small amount. But when that didn't work, Lydia said we needed to try again at the gala."

"With a stronger dose," Jules said flatly.

"I didn't know!" Blake shouted. "I thought we were just trying to scare her away, not murder her!"

Dominic stood abruptly, pacing to the window. His hands were shaking with barely controlled rage.

"There's more," Jules said, her voice carrying through the intercom.

Blake nodded miserably. "Delilah's release from the psychiatric ward. That wasn't supposed to happen for another two weeks. But Lydia has connections, lawyers who specialize in mental health cases. She arranged for Delilah to be released early."

"Why?"

"Because Delilah was becoming unstable, saying things that could implicate all of us. Lydia thought if she was out, she could be controlled better. Used as a final solution if the poison didn't work."

The final solution. Like I was some kind of problem to be eliminated.

Jules pressed on. "What about the media coverage? The tabloid stories about Scarlett?"

"Lydia's been feeding them information for months," Blake admitted. "Every embarrassing detail, every private moment. She has contacts at all the major gossip magazines."

"And you never questioned why a mother would work so hard to destroy her son's wife?"