Chapter 6 - The Confrontation
Evan’s face turned from pale to an ash gray. He clutched the hospital blanket, his knuckles white.
"Claire... baby... listen to me," he stammered, his mind racing to construct a lie fast enough to save him. "It's not what it looks like! I was kidnapped—no, I was on a business retreat! Madison was assigned as my assistant!"
"Save it, Evan," I said, walking over to the foot of his bed. "I've already seen the dashcam video from the Range Rover. I heard her ask if you brought my card. I watched you hand it to her with a smile."
Evan’s mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. The charming, smooth-talking salesman had completely run out of script.
"You took my money," I continued, my voice steady and cold. "You brought your mistress to Switzerland, bought her fourteen thousand dollars worth of watches, and then when she got buried in an avalanche, you registered her under my name at the hospital."
"I did that to protect you!" Evan blurted out, tears of panic welling up in his eyes. "I didn't want the media to catch wind of a scandal! I knew it would ruin your book release! I was thinking about your career, Claire!"
I stared at him, genuinely astonished by the sheer audacity of his delusion.
"You lied to the Swiss police, Evan," I said. "And do you know what else happened while you were playing hero in the snow?"
He shook his head weakly.
"The embassy called my home at 3 a.m. because they thought I was dead," I said. "And when they called your mother to confirm my identity, she told them to let me rot in the snow because I wasn't worth the cost of a rescue helicopter."
Evan flinched as if I had slapped him across the face. "My... my mother said that?"
"She knew about Madison, Evan," I said. "She helped you cover it up. She thought if I died, you would inherit my estate, my royalties, and my real estate. But she forgot one tiny detail."
I pulled a thick stack of legal documents from my leather briefcase and dropped them onto his lap.
"The prenuptial agreement," I said. "Clause 14, Section B: Any act of financial fraud, infidelity, or criminal misconduct forfeits all spousal support, division of property, and shared accounts."
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Evan stared at the papers in his lap as if they were covered in poison. "Claire... please... don't do this to me. We can go to counseling! I'll break it off with Madison! I'll never see her again!"
"You won't see her again anyway," I smiled coldly. "Because she's currently two doors down, facing a massive fraud charge from the Swiss authorities."
