All Chapters of The Fall Guy for a Fake Cheating Scandal: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

I didn't go upstairs.I sat in a corner of the lobby with potted plants behind me and the security camera overhead.It was a good spot. The camera could capture me walking in, sitting down, and never going near the elevators.I even made a point of getting up and asking the front desk, "What time is it?"The receptionist hesitated and glanced at her computer. "Twelve-oh-six."I nodded. "Thanks."The look she gave me was a little odd, but I didn't care. I needed someone to remember I'd been here, and to remember that I hadn't checked in or asked for a key card.Clint hadn't hung up the whole time. When he heard me talking to the receptionist, his voice instantly went tight. "What are you doing at the front desk?""Asking the time.""Don't tell the front desk!"I lowered my eyes. "Why not?""What's your problem? Is having my girlfriend cheat on me something to be proud of? Why are you so eager to tell the whole world?""But you said Lainey's in there with another guy. Wouldn'

"Why not?""My parents will find out, my coworkers will find out, everyone will know my girlfriend cheated on me!""Getting cheated on isn't a crime," I said quietly.The line went completely silent.A few seconds later, he said, "Aren't we best friends?"I sighed. "Clint, it's because I'm your best friend that I can tell how strangely you're acting tonight."Clint didn't say anything."You're not an impatient guy, but you're in way too much of a hurry tonight. Everything's rushed. You're acting like you're panicking with nowhere to run..."I was waiting. Waiting for Clint to be willing to come clean. Even if it wasn't what the comments said, as long as he told me, I'd believe him.But he didn't. He just said quietly, "If you really think of me as a friend, go into that room."I fell silent, and then said only, "I'm not going into someone else's hotel room alone."I hung up and got to my feet. Then I walked over to the front desk.The receptionist looked a little wary when

We were both taken to the police station.Clint sat in a separate interview room. Through the glass, I could see he was still crying.He cried for a long time. Every time someone walked by, he looked up like a victim who'd been wronged in every way possible.I sat on a bench in the hallway holding a cup of hot water, but I couldn't bring myself to take a single sip."Are you and Clint close?" Officer James asked me."We used to be," I said."Used to be?"I was quiet for a few seconds. "After tonight, I'm not so sure."He didn't comment. He just had me walk him through everything from start to finish.I told him Clint had called me. That he claimed he was on a train. That he'd sent me the room number and the code. That he'd refused video, refused to share his location, refused the front desk, and refused to call the police. That he and the group chat had kept pushing me to go upstairs.Of course, I didn't mention the comments. All I said was, "I felt like something was off."

The rest of the truth came together piece by piece.By the time Lainey's older sister, Cassidy Wilson, arrived, it was almost dawn.She wore a black coat, her hair pulled back tight. When she heard her sister was dead, she didn't break down sobbing. She just braced herself against the wall and stood there for a long time, her fingernails slowly digging into her palms.When the police questioned her, she gave them some information.Lainey had recently been planning to break up with Clint.Not because of cheating. Because of money.Clint had taken out several online loans using Lainey's identity and transferred over a hundred thousand dollars out of their joint account. When Lainey found out, she demanded he pay it all back within a month and was getting ready to go to the police.On the day of the murder, she'd asked Clint to meet her at the Prescolt Hotel because it was close to her studio. She wanted to show him the evidence face-to-face and end things for good."She texted me

Three months later, Cassidy asked to meet me.We met at the café across the street from the Prescolt Hotel.When I arrived, she was already sitting by the window.She'd lost a lot of weight. Her black coat hung off her as if part of her were missing.She'd ordered me a cup of warm water. "I didn't know if you drank coffee."I sat down. "Thanks."We sat in silence for a long time.Right outside the window stood the Prescolt Hotel.In the daytime, it actually looked pretty ordinary. Glass curtain walls, a revolving door, guests coming and going.No one could have guessed that a few months earlier, someone on the sixteenth floor had slowly stopped breathing in there.Cassidy spoke up. "The verdict should be coming out soon."I nodded. "Yeah."She looked out the window, her voice soft. "I read the full case file."I didn't respond.She went on, "Lainey didn't die on the spot."My fingers went still."She still had time." Cassidy's eyes slowly reddened. "If he'd just called