Chapter 4 - What Ryan Was Hiding
Ryan left after Officer Brooks told him the interview would continue at the station.
He didn't kiss me.
Didn't touch my stomach.
Didn't ask about our daughter.
He simply looked at me and said, “You don't understand what you're doing.”
Maya nearly went after him.
I stopped her.
“No.”
She turned.
“He threatened you.”
“He's scared.”
“Good.”
An hour later, my contractions began slowing.
Dr. Patel said that was encouraging.
I should have felt relief.
Instead, I kept thinking about Thomas's warning.
Six months of footage.
At 11:40 p.m., David arrived carrying his laptop and two coffees.
“For Maya,” he said.
“What about me?”
“You get hospital water and responsible medical care.”
“Cruel.”
It was the first joke I'd made all day.
It hurt.
But in a good way.
David opened his computer.
“Police preserved the server.”
“And?”
“Thomas gave a statement. Apparently Ryan has been accessing cameras late at night.”
“For what?”
“That's what we need to figure out.”
I remembered something.
“Ryan changed the office safe code two months ago.”
Maya looked up.
“You knew?”
“I thought it was because of work documents.”
“What else changed?”
I thought.
“He started keeping two phones.”
David stopped typing.
“Two?”
“He said one was for international clients.”
“Do you know where the second is?”
“No.”
Maya crossed her arms.
“Vanessa probably does.”
My phone rang.
Mom.
I couldn't answer.
Not yet.
I couldn't say, Hi, Mom. Baby's alive, husband cheated, mistress shoved me down the stairs, and apparently that's not the whole story.
Instead, I stared at the ceiling.
“Ryan has access to everything,” I said quietly. “Accounts. House. Insurance.”
David looked at me.
“Insurance?”
Something inside me tightened.
“Life insurance.”
Maya frowned.
“What about it?”
“Ryan increased my policy.”
“When?”
“Four months ago.”
“How much?”
I swallowed.
“Five million dollars.”
Nobody spoke.
David slowly closed the laptop halfway.
“Why did he say he increased it?”
“The baby. Estate planning.”
Maya whispered, “Emily.”
“No.”
I knew what she was thinking.
“No. Ryan is a liar and a coward, but he wouldn't—”
My phone buzzed.
A message from Vanessa.
I almost dropped it.
Maya read over my shoulder.
You should have left quietly when you had the chance.
David grabbed his phone.
“Don't respond.”
Another message.
Ryan can't protect you forever.
I stared at the words.
Then the typing bubble appeared again.
A third message arrived.
Ask your husband why he really increased your life insurance.
My mouth went dry.
Maya whispered, “Oh my God.”
I looked at David.
May you like
And suddenly five million dollars felt less like responsible planning...
and more like a price someone had placed on my life.
