Chapter 2 - THE PHOTOGRAPH THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
The photograph had been taken two days before my accident.
Vanessa stood outside a warehouse beside a man wearing a gray delivery uniform.
They were smiling.
Behind them sat a white commercial van.
The license plate matched the vehicle that struck my car.
I stared until the numbers blurred.
"Claire," Olivia whispered, "we need to call the police."
I nodded.
But first, I looked at the photograph again.
Vanessa.
The woman who controlled every appointment in my husband's life.
The woman who reminded me that marriage didn't give me unlimited access to Vincent Moretti.
The woman who smiled as he walked away from me in the hospital.
Why had she met the driver?
Olivia called the detective assigned to my accident.
His name was Marcus Bell.
He arrived shortly after midnight.
He examined the messages and asked me to describe the collision.
"A delivery van ran the red light," I said.
"Did you recognize the driver?"
"No."
"Did the van slow down?"
I closed my eyes.
I remembered the headlights.
The engine.
The terrible moment before impact.
"No," I whispered. "It accelerated."
Marcus exchanged a look with his partner.
He didn't make promises.
He simply explained that they would investigate the photograph and preserve the original message.
After he left, Olivia helped me upstairs.
My phone was still off.
For the first time in years, I wasn't afraid of missing Vincent's call.
I was afraid of what might happen if I answered.
Across Chicago, Vincent stood inside our mansion staring at my wedding ring.
Mrs. Alvarez, our longtime housekeeper, watched silently.
"Where is she?" he demanded.
"I don't know, sir."
Vincent read my note for the third time.
Then he called Vanessa.
"Did Claire say anything else at the hospital?"
Vanessa hesitated.
"She seemed emotional."
"She was injured."
"Yes, but the doctor discharged her."
Vincent looked toward our wedding photograph.
"Why did she call this morning?"
"She said she'd been in an accident."
His jaw tightened.
"Why didn't you tell me immediately?"
"Sir, you instructed me never to interrupt your morning meetings for personal calls."
He remembered his own words.
You followed my instructions.
For the first time, they sounded different.
Then Vanessa added something that made him go still.
"Besides, Mr. Moretti, Claire was already becoming a problem."
Vincent frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Vanessa hesitated.
Then answered:
"She was asking questions about the company accounts."
Vincent lowered his phone.
Because Claire Bennett Moretti had never been involved in his company's finances.
At least, that was what he'd believed.
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But hidden inside his office safe was a document bearing my name.
And it proved I owned something Vanessa desperately wanted.
