Chapter 52 Court

Chapter 52 Court
The courtroom doors had barely closed behind us when my phone started vibrating. I ignored it and kept my hand on Tehila's back as we walked down the corridor.

Her face was pale and she was breathing too fast. I could feel her shaking under my palm even through her coat.

"Just keep walking," I said quietly.

She nodded but did not speak. I think she was afraid if she opened her mouth she would start screaming and never stop.

The hallway was packed with reporters who had spilled out of the courtroom after Judge Beaumont adjourned. They saw us coming and surged forward like a wave.

"Ms. Blackwood, how do you feel about the dismissal?"

"Is it true Victoria Blackwood paid Sienna Reyes to kill you?"

"Will you be pressing charges against your former mother-in-law?"

The questions came from every direction and camera flashes went off in our faces. I put my arm around Tehila and pulled her closer to my side.

"No comment," I said.

I shouldered through the crowd and used my body to shield her from the worst of it. Someone shoved a microphone in my face and I knocked it away harder than I meant to.

Laurent appeared beside us with two Swiss police officers clearing a path. We made it to the elevator and I jabbed the button three times before the doors finally opened.

We got inside and I pressed the button for the ground floor. The doors closed on a sea of shouting reporters and then it was quiet except for the hum of the elevator descending.

Tehila leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. Her hands were pressed flat against her belly and I could see her chest rising and falling too quickly.

"Breathe," I said.

"I am breathing."

"Slower."

She opened her eyes and looked at me. There were tears on her cheeks but her jaw was set in that stubborn way I remembered from before everything fell apart.

"Victoria," she said. "Your mother tried to have me killed."

I wanted to tell her it was not true. That Sienna was lying. That my mother would never do something that evil.

But I could not make myself say the words because I was not sure they were true.

The elevator reached the ground floor and the doors opened. More reporters were waiting in the lobby and I cursed under my breath.

Laurent stepped out first and spoke rapidly in French to the hotel security staff. They formed a line and pushed the reporters back enough for us to get through.

A black car was waiting at the curb with the engine running. I opened the door and helped Tehila inside and then climbed in after her.

The driver pulled away from the curb before I even got my seatbelt fastened. I looked back and saw reporters running after us with cameras raised.

Tehila was staring out the window but I did not think she was seeing anything. Her hands were still on her belly and her breathing had not slowed down.

"Talk to me," I said.

"What do you want me to say?"

"Anything."

She turned to look at me and her eyes were red. "Your mother hated me from the first day we met. Do you remember?"

I did remember. The family dinner when I had brought Tehila home for the first time. My mother had spent the entire meal making subtle digs about Tehila's background and asking questions designed to make her feel small.

I had told myself it was just my mother's way. That she was protective and needed time to warm up to the idea of me getting serious with someone.

But Tehila had seen it for what it was. Cruelty dressed up as concern.

"She never thought I was good enough for you," Tehila continued. "She told me that once. After we got engaged. She said I was going to ruin your life and drag down the family name."

My throat felt tight. "You never told me that."

"Because I thought I could prove her wrong." Tehila's voice cracked. "I thought if I just tried hard enough and was perfect enough she would eventually accept me. But she never did."

The car turned onto a quieter street and the driver slowed down. We were heading back to the hotel where Tehila was staying.

"If Sienna is telling the truth," Tehila said, "then Victoria did not just want me out of your life. She wanted me dead."

"We do not know if it is true yet."

"Do not defend her to me right now."

I was not defending her. I was trying to hold onto some shred of hope that my mother had not sunk that low. But the hope was slipping through my fingers like water.

My phone buzzed again and I pulled it out. Morrison's name was on the screen.

I answered. "What have you got?"

"Swiss prosecutors are moving fast," Morrison said. Her voice was clipped and professional but I could hear the tension underneath. "They have requested access to Victoria's financial records and the US Attorney's office is cooperating."

"How long will that take?"

"They already have preliminary access through international banking protocols." Morrison paused. "Cole, there is something you need to know."

My stomach dropped. "What?"

"They found a transfer. Two million dollars from one of Victoria's personal accounts to a shell company registered in the Cayman Islands. The company is owned by Sienna Reyes."

The inside of the car felt too small. I could not get enough air.

"When?" I managed to ask.

"Six weeks after Tehila announced her pregnancy."

Tehila was watching me and I knew she could read the expression on my face. She reached over and took the phone from my hand.

"Morrison, it is me," she said. "What else did they find?"

I could hear Morrison's voice through the speaker but could not make out the words. Tehila listened without interrupting and her face went hard.

"Thank you," she said finally. She ended the call and handed the phone back to me.

"She did it," Tehila said. Her voice was flat. "Victoria paid Sienna to get rid of me."

I wanted to argue but the evidence was right there. Two million dollars transferred six weeks after Tehila had announced she was pregnant with my child.

The timing made it clear. My mother had not been trying to break us up or make Tehila's life difficult. She had been trying to have her killed.

The car pulled up in front of the hotel and the driver got out to open Tehila's door. I followed her into the lobby and up to her room without saying anything because I did not trust myself to speak.

Inside the room Tehila sat down on the edge of the bed and stared at the wall. I stood by the window and looked out at the city below.

"I am sorry," I said.

"For what?"

"For her. For everything she did."

Tehila laughed but there was no humor in it. "You are not responsible for your mother's choices."

"I should have seen it. Should have known she was capable of something like this."

"How could you have known?" Tehila's voice was gentle now. "I did not know. And she hated me more than she hated anyone."

My phone buzzed again. I looked at the screen and saw my mother's name.

I rejected the call.