Chapter 3 - The Predator’s New SkinNatalie’s sudden betrayal was swift and merciless. She turned her tear-streaked face toward Arthur Sterling, dropping into a theatrical, trembling posture that reeked of calculated desperation.
"Mr. Sterling, please!" Natalie cried, dabbing at dry eyes with the sleeve of my cashmere coat. "I had nothing to do with this! Dominic lied to me! He told me his wife was a cold, abusive gold-digger who drove him to a nervous breakdown! He forced me to wear this coat—he bought it for me, I swear!"
I stared at her, utterly disgusted. "You told me five minutes ago that it was gorgeous and that I wouldn't be needing it anymore."
"Shut up, you bitch!" Natalie shrieked, dropping the innocent act entirely as her true, venomous nature flared. She whirled back to Arthur. "You can't punish me! I'm carrying a Sterling—well, a Vance! I'm pregnant with Dominic's child! If you ruin him, you're hurting your own flesh and blood's future father!"
Chief Vance didn't even flinch. He tapped his tablet again.
"Actually, Miss Wells," Thomas said evenly, "our background profile on you was compiled thirty minutes ago, the moment Miss Sterling called the private dispatch line."
Natalie froze. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water.
"Let's see," Thomas continued, reading aloud. "Former receptionist at Vance Medical Supplies. Fired from three previous administrative jobs for corporate espionage and internal embezzlement. And as for the pregnancy..." Thomas looked up, his eyes deadpan. "Medical records from Saint Aurelia's obstetrics database—which we own—indicate you visited our clinic last week for a routine checkup. The attending physician noted that your estimated conception date lines up precisely with a weekend trip Dominic took to Cabo... while Audrey was six months pregnant with complications."
Dominic snapped his head toward Natalie, his face contorting into an expression of pure, unadulterated shock and rage. "You lied to me too? You told me you were clean, that you loved me for me!"
"Shut up, you broke loser!" Natalie screamed, her voice cracking as she lashed out, her fingernails raking across Dominic’s cheek and leaving three bright, bleeding crimson trails.
Dominic roared, grabbing her wrist. For a brief, chaotic second, the two people who had conspired to destroy my life began tearing each other apart right in the middle of the NICU.
"Security," Arthur said quietly.
Before Dominic and Natalie could inflict any more damage on each other, the four black-suited guards moved in. In a matter of seconds, Dominic was pinned facedown against the polished floor, his designer suit gathering dust, while Natalie was hoisted up by her elbows, sobbing hysterically as her designer handbag spilled its contents across the linoleum.
"Get them out of my sight," Arthur ordered, his voice dropping an octave. "Throw them out onto the public street. Confiscate that coat—it's contaminated."
Two guards immediately stripped the ivory cashmere coat off Natalie’s shoulders, leaving her shivering in a thin silk blouse as they dragged her toward the exit doors.
As Dominic was hauled past my wheelchair, his face pressed against the floor, he caught my eye. His eyes were wide, bloodshot, and filled with a frantic, pathetic terror.
"Audrey..." he choked out. "Audrey, please! We were married! Think of the history! Don't do this!"
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I looked down at him, my expression completely serene.
"You told me I was nothing," I whispered, loud enough only for him to hear. "You were right, Dominic. I am nothing to you anymore. But to the Sterlings... I am everything."
