Derek’s mouth opened, but no words came.
The ambulance doors closed between him and Olivia.
At the hospital, doctors treated her for severe hypothermia while trying to delay the premature labor.
Her temperature rose slowly, but the contractions continued.
One twin’s heart rate stabilized.
The second remained dangerously erratic.
Ethan waited outside the trauma room with Margaret and two detectives.
He still wore the dark overcoat he had wrapped around Olivia in the warehouse.
Frost had melted into the fabric, leaving irregular stains.
A detective named Lena Ortiz stepped away from a phone call.
“Mr.
Hale is in custody,” she said.
“Attempted murder, unlawful imprisonment, insurance fraud, and weapons charges are only the beginning.”
Margaret stared at the floor.
“Will Olivia have to testify tonight?”
“Not tonight.”
“He’ll say she imagined it.”
Ortiz’s expression remained steady.
“He can say whatever he wants.
We have the video, the audio, the ledger, the firearm, and the altered temperature controls.
We also found her phone locked inside his car.”
Ethan looked toward the trauma room doors.
“And the old case?”
“The district attorney is reviewing it.”
Seven years earlier, Derek had been the chief financial officer of a logistics firm negotiating a merger with Ethan’s company.
Secretly, Derek had diverted funds through shell accounts, then inserted Ethan’s authorization codes into the records.
When auditors discovered the missing money, the evidence pointed directly at Ethan.
The scandal nearly cost him control of his company.
His father suffered a fatal heart attack during the investigation.
Although Ethan eventually cleared his name, the key financial records vanished before Derek could be charged.
Derek moved on, rebuilt his reputation, and later met Olivia at a charity event.
Ethan never forgot him.
But he had not known Olivia existed until she mailed copies of the contracts from Derek’s locked drawer.
Her note had been brief.
I believe my husband framed you.
I do not know what he is capable of.
Please contact me without alerting him.
Ethan’s legal team had tried to reach her through a secure number.
Derek intercepted the message by cloning her tablet notifications.
Believing Ethan had ignored her, Olivia continued living beside a man who now knew she had discovered his secret.
From that moment, Derek began planning her death.
At 2:18 a.m., a doctor entered the waiting room.
“Mrs.
Hale needs an emergency cesarean delivery,” she said.
“One baby’s heart rate is falling.”
Margaret covered her mouth.
Ethan stood.
“Does she have anyone who can be with her?”
The doctor hesitated.
“She asked for you.”
He looked surprised.
“She said she doesn’t want to be alone.”
Minutes later, Ethan entered the operating room wearing hospital scrubs.
Olivia lay beneath bright lights, trembling despite the warmed blankets around her.
Her face was exhausted, but her eyes were clear now.
