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You have less than twenty-four hours to meet me at Roosevelt Island Abandoned Tramway Station with the video. I gave this to your daughter, think of what more I can do. Don't come with your men. I won’t hesitate to show the world your picture.
I clasped the paper between my fingers. The thought of Sophie being anywhere near this witch made my skin burn with fury.
The thought of her releasing the pictures made me want to drive a fucking bullet through her skull.
“Where were you when it happened?” I managed to curtail my anger.
“I—I was… she was in front of me one minute and the next... she...” Rubbing the bridge of my nose, I fisted the paper tighter.
It probably wasn't her fault. If Laura had successfully been evading us then it was inevitable that her gimmicks had worked to get Sophie.
“Did you see who gave it to her?” I interrupted her rants.
“No.”
“Did Sophie see?”
“She didn’t say.”
I fished for my phone and moved to call Philip when her words halted me.
“I'm scared, Ethan. Who's trying to hurt Sophie? What's going on?”
I had two options: finally tell her the truth— the whole truth— or tell her to stay out of it. But she needed to know. She’d sacrificed more than enough for me.
“Laura Nova was my late wife’s best friend.”
She gasped. I could see the confusion in her eyes.
“Why would she want to do all of this?”
“The night she died, we had an argument. Like always, it was about how I wasn't doing enough, but this time she was drunk... I was angry.” My hands found my hair in a thick clench. “We exchanged words, and… somehow, after moments of arguing, she kept moving backward. I noticed her about to fall and moved to grab her, but just then she fell…”
Evie’s expression turned from sympathy to horror.
“She fell just when I reached to grab her. There were cameras… because of Sophie and I knew the first thing the cops would ask was to check them. So I did something drastic; I tampered with the evidence.”
Her gasp was loud. The horror on her face intensified. I couldn't decipher whether she was judging me… seeing me as the monster I was.
“I— I was taking anger management classes.”
“Anger management?” she echoed.
I fisted my hair.
“I couldn't leave Sophie. I— I just started breaking through into the robotics fields I'd always dreamt of. My reputation was growing. I was climbing the success ladder… I couldn't let Olivia’s death ruin everything I worked so hard for.”
Images of that night flashed through my mind. The guilt thickened in my chest, but I continued.
“I rewatched the CCTV footage that night, over and over again…it looked like I pushed her, so I took drastic measures. I couldn't take any chances.”
“You couldn't have explained to them? You had money. You could have hired good lawyers. You could have won.” Her voice broke.
“Could, Evie. I could, but what if I lost? The odds were against me. I was taking anger management therapy because of the numerous fights with Olivia. She constantly worked me up, and the therapy was the only way to control myself... to save myself.”
She shook her head, her eyes widening with each word.
“Her family knew we had issues, her best friend too. And though they didn't have much money, the odds were strongly against me. Even if I ended up winning the case, the rumors that I killed my wife out of anger would have spread. The damage would have been done. I had deals I was eyeing… I wanted to expand.”
