All Chapters of Reborn to Destroy Him: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

The next morning, I arrived at the hospital with coffee and Emma's drawing for Brock. I was playing the devoted wife perfectly. Brock was sitting up in bed, looking stronger but still pale. The nurse was checking his vitals when heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway.Vincent appeared in the doorway first. His scarred face was unreadable. Behind him came Salvatore, dressed in another expensive suit, looking like he was visiting a business associate rather than a hospital patient."Mr. Hamilton." Salvatore's voice was cold and smooth. "You're alive. How... unexpected."Brock's face went white. His hand reached for the call button but Vincent moved to block it."Please, there's no need for alarm," Salvatore said. He pulled up a chair and sat down like he had all the time in the world. "We're just here to talk. About business.""Mr. Salvatore," I said, stepping forward with concern painted on my face. "My husband just woke up yesterday. He's still very weak. Surely this conversation can

On my fifth visit to the hospital, Brock had been moved out of ICU into a regular room. He had a roommate now—an elderly man named Mr. Chen who'd had hip surgery. The curtain between their beds was usually pulled back because Mr. Chen liked company.I arrived with soup from Brock's favorite restaurant and fresh flowers for his bedside table. He was sitting up, looking stronger every day. The color was back in his face. The tubes were mostly gone except for the IV."Beth!" He smiled when he saw me. "You didn't have to bring food. The hospital meals aren't that bad.""They're terrible and you know it." I set the soup container on his tray table. "Chicken noodle. Just how you like it."Mr. Chen peered around the curtain. "Is that your wife, Brock? The one from the photos?"I saw Brock's expression change. Something flickered in his eyes. Something dark."What photos?" I asked, setting down the flowers."Oh, you know." Mr. Chen waved his phone. "The internet. My granddaughter showed me th

The next morning at exactly 10 AM, Marcus called Brock's hospital room. I knew because Brock called me immediately after."Beth, you'll never guess what just happened. A photographer reached out. Marcus Rivera. Says he specializes in image rehabilitation. He wants to help tell my story."I made my voice surprised. "Marcus called you? That's... that's wonderful.""You know him, right? You said you went to college together?""Yes. He's very talented. Very professional." I paused. "But Brock, can you afford a photographer right now? With everything that's happening?""He said he'd work out a payment plan. He believes in my story. He thinks the public needs to see the real me—the victim who survived, the man fighting to clear his name." Brock's voice was excited. More animated than I'd heard in days. "This could be exactly what I need. A way to rebuild my reputation before I even leave the hospital.""That's amazing. When does he want to start?""As soon as I'm released. The doctors say m

The next morning, I created an anonymous email account. Untraceable. Routed through multiple servers. Marcus had shown me how.Then I started drafting the first message to Tatiana.I kept it simple. Just enough information to plant doubt without revealing how much I knew."Tatiana,You should ask Brock about Magnificence Fashion House. Ask him why his business partner wasn't included in the plans. Ask him who the Creative Director is listed as. Ask him why you're not mentioned anywhere in the investor documents.Someone who thinks you deserve to know the truth."I read it three times. Made sure there was nothing that could be traced back to me. Then I hit send.The email went to the address Tatiana had given me years ago when we were still friends. When I still thought she was someone I could trust.Then I waited.It took two days for her to respond. Not to the anonymous email, but in action.Marcus texted me from Brock's apartment: "Tatiana just showed up. She's furious. I can hear t

I stared at Shaw's message for the rest of the drive home. My mind raced through possibilities, strategies, ways to turn this meeting to my advantage.But first, I needed to deal with Brock. And Marcus had the perfect plan."Before you meet with Shaw," Marcus said as he pulled up to my house, "we need to accelerate our timeline. We need to hit Brock where it hurts most.""His money.""Exactly. If we can drain his resources, make him desperate, he'll make mistakes. He'll show his hand. And when Shaw sees that Brock is unstable, that his investment is at risk, Shaw might pull out entirely.""How do we do that?""Remember my friend David? The actor? The one who can play anyone?"I nodded slowly. "You want to run a con on Brock.""Not just a con. A sophisticated investment fraud that will drain whatever liquid capital Brock has left." Marcus pulled out his phone and showed me photos of David in various roles. Business executives. Politicians. Wealthy investors. "David can be whoever we ne