Chapter 10 - The Handwriting
I knew the handwriting.
I wished I didn't.
The sharp R.
The way the lowercase g curled backward.
The long line through every t.
I had seen it on birthday cards, grocery lists, and sticky notes left beside my coffee.
"Ryan wrote that," I said.
Maya stared at me.
"You're sure?"
"I've been married to him for seven years."
Detective Ortiz photographed the note.
"We'll have it examined. Don't assume authorship until we compare samples."
But she asked for examples of Ryan's handwriting before she left.
By morning, the story had leaked.
A local gossip site posted: DEVELOPER'S PREGNANT WIFE IN DOMESTIC INCIDENT AT FAMILY ESTATE.
Another headline said I had suffered "an emotional episode."
Ryan's spokesperson released a statement asking for privacy and describing the situation as "a painful family matter involving significant stress."
No mention of Vanessa.
No mention of the video.
No mention of the shove.
"He's still writing the story," I said.
Claire nodded. "Then we stop letting him be the only person with a pen."
She advised me not to go public yet. The evidence mattered more than headlines.
So we worked.
Maya helped build a timeline.
Noah turned over full backups.
My doctor documented the medication tampering and injuries.
Claire obtained the fake psychiatric records.
Then Detective Ortiz called with something unexpected.
Peter Sloan had been found.
He was not hiding in a hotel or fleeing the state.
He was sitting in the emergency room of a hospital forty miles away after crashing his car into a ditch.
"Was he hurt?" I asked.
"Minor injuries. But he asked for police protection."
"Why?"
Ortiz's answer chilled me.
"He says the brake line on his car was cut."
Maya slowly sat down.
"Does he say who did it?"
"He says he helped Ryan with the forged documents, but claims he never agreed to hurt anyone."
"Is he willing to testify?"
"He says he will tell us everything."
I looked down at my stomach.
My daughter moved beneath my hand.
A strong kick.
For the first time in days, I smiled.
Then Ortiz added, "Emily, Sloan says the plan wasn't supposed to end with a divorce."
My smile disappeared.
"What was it supposed to end with?"
"You leaving the state under a medical guardianship order."
May you like
She paused.
"And your baby staying with Ryan."
