# Chapter 3: The Public Lie
The glass slipped from Evelyn’s fingers.
It shattered against the hardwood floor.
Water splashed across the tips of her sensible black work shoes.
“Murdered?” Evelyn repeated.
The word tasted like ash in her mouth.
Adrian crossed the room instantly.
He carefully guided her away from the broken glass and gently pressed her into the nearest armchair.
“Twelve years ago,” Adrian said.
He knelt in front of her.
“The official police report stated she lost control of her vehicle on the coast highway.”
He took a deep breath.
“But the brakes were cut.”
Evelyn stared at him.
“My mother died of a heart condition ten years ago,” she whispered.
“At least, that is what the doctors told us.”
Her mind raced back to the sudden illness that had claimed her mother in a matter of weeks.
She remembered the endless medical bills.
She remembered the strange men in dark suits who had visited the hospital.
“Who were those women to each other?” Evelyn asked.
“They were friends,” Adrian said.
He looked at the broken locket.
“They worked together at the old Vale Resort before my father bought it out.”
Evelyn’s heart hammered in her chest.
“Charles Vale,” she said.
The pieces were starting to align in a terrifying picture.
“Charles was the general manager back then,” Adrian confirmed.
His phone buzzed in his jacket pocket.
He pulled it out and frowned at the screen.
“It is Martin,” Adrian said.
He answered the call and put it on speaker.
“Mr. Cross, you need to turn on the news,” Martin’s voice crackled through the speaker.
“What is it?” Adrian asked.
“Bianca Vale just gave an impromptu press conference in the lobby,” Martin said.
Martin hesitated.
“She told the press that your marriage is a sham to cover up a corporate scandal.”
Adrian’s eyes darkened.
May you like
“And there is something else,” Martin added softly.
“She told them Evelyn is not carrying your child.”
