Chapter 3 - The Footage
The hospital conference room had no windows.
That was deliberate.
It was designed for private medical reviews, legal meetings, and situations where information needed to stay inside four walls.
Marcus sat at one end of the table.
Samuel sat beside Detective Mills.
Across from them sat Isabella and her attorney, Vincent Caruso.
Isabella had changed.
Her red gown was gone.
She now wore a plain black coat provided by one of her assistants.
Her makeup had been cleaned from beneath her eyes.
The transformation was calculated.
She no longer looked like a wealthy socialite from a gala.
She looked like a frightened woman waiting to be misunderstood.
Vincent folded his hands.
“My client has already explained that Mrs. Thorne initiated the confrontation.”
Samuel placed the tablet on the table.
“Then this should be simple.”
Isabella looked toward the screen.
Samuel pressed play.
The recording began without sound.
Khloe entered the suite alone.
She sat down.
She removed her shoes.
She rubbed her lower back.
Two minutes later, Isabella entered.
Vincent leaned forward.
“Where is the audio?”
Samuel did not answer.
The footage continued.
Isabella moved across the room.
Khloe repeatedly pointed toward the door.
Then Isabella shoved her.
The impact against the table was unmistakable.
Vincent’s face tightened.
Isabella whispered.
“There was more before that.”
Samuel looked at her.
“No.”
He tapped the screen.
“This recording begins four minutes before you entered.”
The video continued.
The crystal glass fell.
Khloe staggered.
Isabella moved closer.
Then the heel struck.
Detective Mills paused the video.
Nobody spoke.
Vincent slowly removed his glasses.
Isabella stared at the screen as though refusing to accept what she had just seen.
“That angle is misleading.”
Marcus finally looked at her.
“Misleading?”
“She grabbed me earlier.”
“The footage shows every second.”
“You don’t understand.”
Marcus stood.
“You kicked my pregnant wife while she was on the floor.”
Vincent raised a hand.
“Mr. Thorne, I strongly advise everyone to remain calm.”
Marcus ignored him.
Isabella’s composure began to unravel.
“She took everything.”
Marcus stopped.
“What?”
“She took the life that was supposed to be mine.”
Samuel quietly activated another file.
This time, sound filled the room.
Isabella’s recorded voice came clearly through the speakers.
“You were never supposed to stand beside him.”
Khloe’s voice followed.
“Leave.”
Then Isabella spoke again.
“You still don’t understand, do you?”
The rest was captured perfectly.
Every threat.
Every insult.
Every deliberate movement.
Vincent leaned toward Isabella.
“Do not say another word.”
But she was already staring at Marcus.
“You told me once that timing was everything.”
Marcus looked genuinely confused.
“That was ten years ago.”
“You said if things were different—”
“I told you I wasn’t interested in marrying you.”
Her face twitched.
Vincent grabbed her wrist beneath the table.
“Stop.”
But Detective Mills had heard enough.
He stood.
“Isabella Rossi, I am placing you under arrest on suspicion of aggravated assault.”
Isabella looked at him.
Then at Marcus.
Then at Samuel.
“You’re making a mistake.”
The detective moved behind her.
She pulled her arm away.
“You think this ends with me?”
Marcus said nothing.
Isabella laughed softly.
That sound was worse than crying.
“You have no idea what she’s been hiding.”
Marcus froze.
“What are you talking about?”
Vincent stood quickly.
“This interview is over.”
Two officers entered.
As they placed Isabella in handcuffs, she kept her eyes on Marcus.
“Ask your wife why someone has been paying investigators to follow you for six months.”
Marcus stared at her.
Isabella smiled.
“Ask her whose name is on the account.”
Then the officers took her away.
Samuel shut off the tablet.
Marcus remained standing.
“What did she mean?”
Samuel’s answer came slowly.
“I don’t know.”
May you like
But the expression on his face told Marcus something else.
Samuel intended to find out.
