Chapter 4
́Veronica stared down at me crumpled on the floor and burst into raucous laughter. She jabbed her
finger in my face and hissed.
“Remember how obsessed Simon used to be with you? He crawled into my bed the second I crooked a finger. And Ian? You married him–so what? He still fucked me right under your roof.”
“God, I used to hate that smug look on your face. Now look at you–a slut everyone’s spitting on.”
“Oh, and you think Ian didn’t know you were pregnant when he set you up?” She sneered. “He knew. He knew, Aurora. But did that stop him? Hell no. While you were bleeding out, he was with me at the golf course. I hit the most perfect shot… Your screams? They echoed so beautifully over the trees…”
I froze.
Her words struck like lightning.
Ian had known about my pregnancy. Destroying me for this vicious woman wasn’t enough–he’d
sacrificed our baby too.
Veronica paced in front of me, her face glowing with smug triumph as she watched me fall apart.
Something in me snapped. I lunged forward and grabbed her by the throat.
But my body was still too weak–I barely touched her before she shrieked.
“Ian! Help me! Aurora’s gone crazy! Ian!”
The bedroom door flew open as Ian burst in. He shoved me roughly to the floor and wrapped his arms around Veronica.
“What happened?” he whispered, brushing the hair from her face. “Why are you two fighting?”
Veronica looked up at Ian with tears streaming down her face.
“I told you,” she sobbed. “I just wanted to help her. I thought maybe, from a professional standpoint, if she could talk about what happened… process it… But I never expect she tried to choke me, Ian.”
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Chapter 4
Her voice broke into sobs. Ian turned to me, his eyes ice cold.
“Ian…” I started.
“Shut up!” he barked. “I don’t know what your problem is with Veronica, She came here to help, and you try to kill her? You’re disgusting. You make me ashamed to call you my wife.”
He scooped Veronica into his arms and stormed out.
Right before the door closed, Veronica flashed me a victorious smile over his shoulder.
Tears soaked through my shirt as I surveyed the home I’d painstakingly built with Ian. I caught my reflection in the mirror–a ghost of myself–and burst into hysterical laughter.
It had all been a lie.
Since they were hell–bent on destroying me, I wouldn’t go down without a fight.
Then I pulled out my phone and dialed the number I knew by heart but hadn’t called in years.
After Ian stormed out, a sliver of guilt started creeping in.
Maybe he’d been too harsh.
Veronica didn’t seem all that injured–especially not when she immediately started begging to hit up Fifth Avenue for a limited–edition bag.
He hesitated for a second, but thinking of how obedient I’d always been, he relaxed. At the mall, while Veronica was distracted at a boutique, Ian pulled out his phone and called Kurt.
“Swing by the house. Check on Aurora. Make sure she’s not being dramatic.”
After hanging up, Ian felt completely at ease. Kurt could handle Aurora just fine.
He spent the entire day with Veronica, shopping like lovesick teenagers. As evening fell, Veronica finally complained she was tired and wanted to head back.
Back in the car, Ian finally exhaled and checked his phone. His stomach dropped–over a hundred missed calls, all from Kurt.
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Chapter 4
His heart sank as he started the car and returned the call. Kurt answered on the first ring, panic evident in his voice.
“Ian–shit, man, it’s bad. She’s gone. Aurora’s gone and that’s not all… the company accounts–all those billions in liquid assets–they’ve vanished too! And someone tipped off the press. They’re all camped outside the company headquarters now!”
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