Chapter 6 - THE JUDGE’S SECRET
Adrian stared at the photograph as if he had been struck. “Sterling?”
“You know him?” Detective Miller asked.
“I know him,” Adrian said slowly. “He was my father’s attorney. He handled my parents’ divorce. He’s been a family friend for decades.”
“And Vanessa knew him?”
“Of course. She’s known him since she was a child. Their families were close.” Adrian ran a hand over his face. “So she paid him. To grant her bail. To make sure she was released immediately.”
“It appears so,” Detective Miller said. “But we need proof. The money trail is complex. The account is under a different name. We are working to untangle it.”
“While Vanessa walks free,” I said bitterly.
Detective Miller looked at me. “She is walking free, yes. But she is also being watched. We have her under surveillance. If she makes contact with Sterling, or if she meets with anyone suspicious… we will know.”
“She already met someone,” I said. “Last night. Outside my window. A man in a dark suit.”
I described him as best I could. Detective Miller took careful notes.
“We will cross-reference this description with known associates,” she said. “And we will also speak to Judge Sterling. But I must warn you—he is a powerful man. And he will not admit to anything easily.”
Adrian stood up, his face hard with resolve. “I will speak to him myself.”
“Adrian, no—” Detective Miller began.
“He is using his position to protect a woman who tried to kill my child,” Adrian said. “I will not sit back and wait while he protects her.”
“Be careful,” Detective Miller warned. “Sterling is dangerous. If he is taking bribes to help Vanessa… he may be involved in more than just bail.”
“Exactly,” Adrian said. “Which means I need to know how deep this goes.”
On the drive back to the house, Adrian was silent. His mind seemed far away.
“Adrian,” I said gently. “What aren’t you telling me?”
He glanced at me, then back at the road. “Sterling was my father’s closest advisor. He helped build my family’s business empire. But there were always… rumors. Whispers about money. About deals made in secret. My father never spoke of them. He trusted Sterling completely.”
“And you?”
“I trusted him too,” Adrian said quietly. “Until now. If Vanessa is paying him… if they are working together… it means the conspiracy goes back years. Long before I married her.”
“Which means,” I said slowly, “Vanessa didn’t just marry you because she wanted you. She married you because Sterling told her to.”
Adrian gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. “I have been a pawn in their game from the very beginning.”
We arrived home to find Olivia and Emma safe in the care of Adrian’s oldest friend, Elena. Elena was warm and capable, and I breathed a sigh of relief to see her.
Adrian went straight to his study and closed the door. I put Emma down for a nap and sat with Olivia in the living room.
“Did you find out anything?” Olivia asked quietly.
I told her about the judge. About the money. About the possibility that this had all been planned long before Vanessa came into our lives.
Olivia listened in silence, her face thoughtful. When I finished, she said something that made my blood run cold.
“Vanessa used to talk to someone on the phone late at night,” she said. “She would go into the closet in her room and speak in a whisper. Once I heard her say: Everything is going according to plan. Soon it will all be ours.”
May you like
I stared at her. “Did she say who she was talking to?”
Olivia shook her head. “No. But she called him Judge. Just like that. Judge.”
