Chapter 66 The Plan
"We need to trap her," Sebastian said the next morning over coffee neither of them had slept enough to enjoy.
Harper looked up from the pregnancy book she'd been staring at without reading. "Trap who?"
"Claire. She's under house arrest but that doesn't mean she's stopped planning. She has six months until trial. She'll use that time to build her defense and possibly coordinate another attack."
"She has an ankle monitor. She can't leave her apartment."
"She doesn't need to leave. She can hire people. Make calls. Orchestrate from confinement the same way she orchestrated everything else." Sebastian set down his coffee cup. "We need to make her think she's winning. Get her to incriminate herself further before trial."
"That sounds dangerous and possibly illegal."
"It's strategic. And legal if we coordinate with Detective Morrison and Thomas." Sebastian pulled out his laptop. "Think about it. Claire's under house arrest, isolated, desperate to regain control. What if we gave her an opportunity she couldn't resist?"
Harper felt uneasy. "What kind of opportunity?"
"We let her think Marcus is willing to help her. That he's planning to testify on her behalf. Say the whole attack was justified because I'm an unfit CEO." Sebastian pulled up documents. "Marcus hates me almost as much as Claire does. She'd believe he'd betray me to help her."
"But Marcus wouldn't actually help her. Would he?"
"No. But we make Claire think he would. Set up a meeting. Record her admitting to everything without the duress defense. Get her on tape planning further attacks."
Harper thought about it. The plan had merit but the risks were enormous. "If Claire figures out it's a setup, she could use it against us at trial. Claim we're harassing her."
"Not if we do it properly. With legal oversight. Detective Morrison monitoring. Everything admissible in court."
Harper walked to the window, her hand on her small bump. The baby was active this morning, responding to her stress. "I don't like it. It feels like we're playing games when we should be focused on staying safe and preparing for the baby."
"We can't prepare for the baby if we're constantly worried Claire will strike again. This ends it, Harper. Permanently. She goes to trial with zero defense."
"Or it backfires and makes everything worse."
Sebastian crossed to her, turning her to face him. "I know you're tired. I'm tired too. But Harper, we can't just wait six months hoping Claire behaves. We need to be proactive."
"By manipulating your uncle into manipulating your sister?"
"By using their hatred of me to protect our family. Yes." Sebastian's voice was firm. "I won't apologize for that."
Harper studied his face. Saw the determination beneath the exhaustion. The protective instinct that had made him jump in front of a bullet.
"Okay," she said finally. "But we do this completely legally. With Morrison's approval. And if it gets dangerous, we stop immediately."
"Agreed."
They spent the morning coordinating with Detective Morrison and Thomas. Both were skeptical initially but came around when Sebastian explained the strategy.
"We need Marcus's cooperation," Morrison said during a video call. "He needs to agree to wear a wire and meet with Claire."
"Marcus hates me," Sebastian said. "But he also hates being used. When we explain Claire manipulated him for five years, he might be angry enough to help."
"Or he might refuse out of spite," Thomas cautioned. "Marcus isn't known for being cooperative."
"Then we appeal to his ego. Tell him this is his chance to prove he's smarter than Claire. That she played him and he can turn the tables."
Morrison nodded slowly. "It might work. But Sebastian, if Marcus agrees and Claire takes the bait, you need to stay far away from the actual meeting. She sees you anywhere nearby and the whole setup collapses."
"I understand."
They brought Marcus in that afternoon. He arrived at Morrison's office angry and defensive.
"Why am I here?" Marcus demanded. "If this is about testifying against Claire, forget it. I'm not helping you."
"We're not asking you to testify against her," Sebastian said calmly. "We're asking you to help expose her."
"What's the difference?"
Sebastian explained the plan. Showed Marcus the evidence of how Claire had used him. How she'd manipulated his resentment of Sebastian to further her own agenda.
"She played you," Sebastian said bluntly. "Made you think you were helping take down a CEO you hated. But really, you were helping her get revenge for something our father did twenty years ago. She used you, Marcus. The question is whether you let her keep doing it."
Marcus's face reddened as he reviewed the evidence. Communications between Claire and Morrison discussing how to "keep Marcus motivated" and "redirect his anger usefully."
"That manipulative little..." Marcus stopped, his jaw working. "She made me look like a fool. A pawn in her game."
"She made you look like exactly what you are," Sebastian said. "Smart, capable, but blinded by resentment. She exploited that."
"So what do you want me to do? Wear a wire and trick her into confessing?"
"Essentially, yes. Meet with her. Let her think you're still on her side. Get her to admit everything on record."
Marcus was quiet for a long moment. "What's in it for me?"
"Revenge. Against someone who manipulated you for years." Sebastian leaned forward. "And Marcus, this is your chance to prove you're better than her. Smarter. More strategic. Everything you've always claimed to be."
The ego appeal worked. Marcus's expression shifted from anger to calculation.
"Fine. I'll do it. But I want immunity for anything I might have said or done while she was manipulating me."
"Already arranged," Thomas confirmed. "Full immunity in exchange for your cooperation."
They spent two hours preparing Marcus. What to say. How to draw Claire out. How to get her to incriminate herself without becoming suspicious.
"She's smart," Marcus warned. "If I push too hard, she'll know something's wrong."
"So be subtle. You're good at subtle." Sebastian's voice had an edge. "You've been subtly undermining me for years."
"And you've been subtly reminding me why Dad chose you. We're both good at games, Sebastian. Let's see who plays this one better."
The meeting was set for two days later. Claire's apartment. Marcus would wear a wire. Morrison's team would monitor from a van outside.
Sebastian and Harper would wait at home, listening to the audio feed, hoping Claire took the bait.
"I don't like this," Harper said the night before the meeting. "Too many things could go wrong."
"I know. But it's the best chance we have to end this before trial."
They lay in bed, both too anxious to sleep. The baby kicked, a reminder of what they were fighting to protect.
"Sebastian?" Harper said into the darkness. "What if it works? What if Claire admits everything and gets convicted and goes to prison for decades?"
"Then we finally get to live. Really live. No more looking over our shoulders."
"Do you think we'll know how? After six months of survival mode, do we remember how to just exist?"
"We'll figure it out. The same way we've figured out everything else." Sebastian pulled her closer. "Together."
The next morning, Marcus arrived at Claire's apartment building at exactly ten AM. Morrison's team was positioned. The wire was active. Sebastian and Harper listened from their penthouse as Marcus knocked on Claire's door.
"Marcus," Claire's voice came through, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk. About Sebastian. About what happens next."
There was a pause. Then Claire said, "Come in."
The door closed.
The trap was set.
Now they just had to hope Claire was desperate enough to fall into it.
And that Marcus was smart enough to make her believe she was still in control.
Sebastian reached for Harper's hand as they listened.
Whatever happened in the next hour would determine everything.