"What do you mean?" I breathed.
Elias didn't blink. "Someone wanted him to believe you cheated."
I stared at him, my back pressed against the cold wall of the clinic. It felt like the walls themselves were closing in, the sterile smell mixing with the metallic taste rising in my throat. My hands curled protectively over my stomach.
"No. No, Damien said those things because he wanted to believe them. Because it was easier to blame me than look at himself." I said trying to deny the fact.
"Aria…"
"No!" My voice cracked midair, but I didn't care. "You don't understand. He didn't just doubt me, Elias. He accused me like he knew. Like he'd seen something real. What did he see?"
Elias hesitated.
My eyes locked on his. "Tell me," I demanded. "What did Damien see?"
He exhaled slowly and rubbed the back of his neck, the way he always did when something weighed on him. "Photos. Messages. Bank transfers. A paper trail that makes you look like you were having an affair... and got paid to stay quiet."
My blood ran cold.
The breath caught in my lungs and refused to leave. "That's… that's a lie. A sick, fabricated lie."
"I know," Elias said quietly, stepping closer. "But to Damien, it looked airtight. Time-stamped photos of you entering hotels. Text messages with a fake contact saved as 'E'. Even an account under your name receiving deposits from some fake LLC."
I shook my head, chest rising fast. "I never… I didn't… I would never do that."
He nodded. "I believe you."
I sank slowly into the chair behind me, my knees threatening to give way. My fingertips were numb. "Who would do something like that?"
Elias didn't answer.
But his silence said enough.
I narrowed my eyes. "You know, don't you?"
He looked at me then…and nodded slowly. "Miranda."
I blinked. My lips parted but no words came out. "Miranda? His head of PR Miranda?"
"The same." he said grimly. "His childhood friend. His ride-or-die. The one who's been in his ear since before you came into his life."
"But... why would she...?" My voice trailed off, trying to stitch together the broken pieces.
Elias's gaze darkened. "Because she's in love with him. And she thinks you ruined him."
I stood up so fast the chair scraped backward.
"All of this… this hell… because of her?"
"She's smart," Elias said. "Clever. Strategic. She didn't just frame you, Aria. She made sure the story looked like the truth. Built it slowly. Carefully. She planted doubts in Damien's mind over time. She made you look... unstable. Secretive. Distracted."
I shook my head, heart pounding like a war drum. "She played the long game."
"She did."
"And he believes her over me." I said bitterly, voice tight.
Elias didn't answer.
Didn't need to.
The silence was louder than any confirmation.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and paced the small room. The fluorescent lights buzzed above us, cold and indifferent.
"What do I do?" I murmured, more to myself than to Elias. "How do I fight someone who already won?"
"You don't need to fight." he said softly. "You hit harder. You finish it."
I stopped in front of him. "Then take me to him."
Elias blinked. "Aria…"
"I need to see him. One last time."
He frowned. "You're not going to convince him overnight."
"I'm not trying to," I said, steel lacing my voice. "I just want him to see my face. Hear my voice. And know what he's throwing away."
LATER THAT NIGHT – SINCLAIR ESTATE
The rain returned like a curse.
It hit my skin in sharp bursts as I stood outside the Sinclair estate. The gates had been unlocked, surprisingly. Maybe Elias had something to do with it. Or maybe fate was just mocking me.
The porch light flickered above me, the dim glow casting my shadow across the wet marble. I stood there drenched…hair plastered to my cheeks, my coat soaked, arms wrapped tight around myself but my pride refused to let me feel small.
I knocked once.
Nothing.
Twice, louder.
Footsteps.
The door creaked open.
Damien stood there.
Wearing a silk shirt, slightly unbuttoned, barefoot, glass of whiskey in hand. The sight of him made my chest ache. Because even now, even with all the betrayal and fury…he still looked like home.
His expression fell the second he saw me.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
I took a breath. "We need to talk."
"We already did." He made to shut the door.
I shoved my foot between it. "Five minutes. That's all."
"I owe you nothing."
I pushed past him anyway.
He didn't stop me. Just stood there, glass in hand, staring at me like I was a ghost walking through his past.
I stood in the hallway dripping water onto the polished floors. Everything still looked the same…the art, the sterile perfection, the cold opulence.
"I saw Elias." I said. "He told me about the photos. The transfers. All of it."
Damien's jaw clenched so hard I heard it click.
"You're being manipulated, Damien. Miranda forged those things. She set me up."
"Of course she did." he said dryly, turning to face the wall.
"She did. I don't know how, but…"
"Stop." His voice was sharp, final. "This is exactly what I expected. You'd blame anyone but yourself."
I stepped forward. "Damien…"
"I trusted you," he snapped, spinning toward me. "I gave you everything. And you turned it into a lie."
"I didn't!" I shouted. "This baby is yours. And you're throwing it away because some bitter woman whispered poison in your ear."
He slammed the glass onto the table. "You think this is about feelings?"
"Yes!" I yelled. "Because if you didn't still feel something, you wouldn't be this angry. You would've shut that door in my face and gone back to your expensive silence."
He stormed closer, eyes blazing. "You think I'm angry because I love you?"
I didn't answer.
Because I saw it in his face. The war. The heartbreak. The guilt.
"You stood on that stage," he said, "and told the world you'd fight beside me. And the second things got hard…"
"I fought harder!" I said. "I took the campaign job to help. To prove I wasn't just some trophy wife."
"You weren't," he said coldly. "You were a target. And I warned you."
"I never asked to be protected, Damien. I asked to be believed."
That silenced him.
I moved closer, my voice dropping to a whisper. "You said you loved me."
His eyes flickered. "That was before I realized what loving you cost me."
The words felt like a knife plunged into my ribs.
I stepped back. The storm behind me howled louder than my thoughts.
"I won't come back," I said, voice shaking. "Not even when the truth destroys everything you think you know."
"Don't threaten me, Aria."
"It's not a threat," I said, looking him in the eye. "It's a promise."
He didn't move.
Didn't blink.
Didn't say anything.
I walked out.
This time, I didn't look back.
LATER, IN A CHEAP MOTEL
The room was dim and damp. The sheets smelled like bleach and broken dreams.
I sat on the edge of the bed, a towel wrapped around my shoulders, shaking hands clutching the ultrasound photo like it was the only anchor in my world.
My baby.
The only part of me Damien didn't destroy.
A knock.
I froze.
No one knew where I was.
Except…
I opened the door slowly.
Elias stood there, rain streaking his shoulders, his tie loosened, expression unreadable.
He didn't speak. Just held out a small flash drive.
"What's this?" I asked.
"Everything," he said. "Miranda's lies. The files. The proof. All of it."
I stared at the drive.
A single sliver of truth in a world full of lies.
"And now?" I whispered.
Elias met my eyes, his voice steady. "Now, we destroy her."