Chapter 146 Vanessa Doubles Down
JASON'S POV
Two days after the press conference I woke up to my phone blowing up again. My stomach dropped. I thought we were done with this. Thought Vanessa being arrested would end it.
But I was wrong.
I checked my phone and there was a new article. From the same tabloid that published Vanessa's original story. The headline made me sick.
"Vanessa Cory Fights Back: Claims Evidence Against Her Was Fabricated"
"No," I said out loud. "No no no."
"What is wrong?" Caitlyn asked. She was feeding Emma.
"Vanessa is not admitting she lied," I said. "She is doubling down. Claiming the evidence against her is fake."
"What?" Caitlyn took my phone and read the article. Her face went pale. "How can she say that? Rourke has proof. Documents. Bank records. Everything."
"I know," I said. "But she is claiming it is all fabricated. That Rourke and Walsh made it up to protect you."
The article quoted Vanessa extensively. She said the financial records were doctored. That the alibis were falsified. That the whole press conference was a cover-up. She was calling Rourke and Walsh corrupt. Saying they were part of a conspiracy to protect a criminal.
"This is insane," Caitlyn said. "Who would believe this?"
"People who want to believe it," I said. "People who already decided you are guilty. They will cling to anything that confirms what they think."
I kept reading. It got worse. Vanessa claimed she had more evidence. Evidence that she was going to release. Evidence that would prove she was telling the truth.
"What evidence could she possibly have?" Caitlyn asked. "She made everything up. There is no evidence."
"I do not know," I said. "But we need to call Rourke. Tell him what she is saying."
I called Rourke. He already knew about the article.
"I saw it," Rourke said. "She is desperate. Trying to save herself. But it will not work."
"Are you sure?" I asked. "What if she does have something? What if there is something we missed?"
"There is nothing," Rourke said. "I checked everything. Multiple times. She is bluffing."
"But what if she is not?" I asked.
"Then we deal with it," Rourke said. "But I am confident she is lying. Again."
That afternoon another article came out. This one was worse. Much worse.
Vanessa had leaked private information about Caitlyn. Things from her past. Embarrassing things. Mistakes she made when she was younger. Nothing illegal but personal. Private. Things that were nobody's business.
"Oh god," Caitlyn said when she saw it. "How did she get this information? How does she know these things?"
"I do not know," I said. I was furious. "But this is harassment. This is criminal. We can sue her for this."
The article included photos too. Old photos of Caitlyn from before we met. At parties. Drinking. Looking young and reckless. The kind of photos everyone has from their past but does not want made public.
"These are from college," Caitlyn said. She was crying now. "These are private. How did she get them?"
"She must have hacked your social media," I said. "Or paid someone to. This is illegal Caitlyn. We can press charges."
But the damage was done. The photos were out there. The information was public. And people were commenting. Judging. Saying terrible things.
"Look at this," one comment said. "She was a party girl. Probably did drugs. Probably knew exactly what Hayes was doing."
"She looks drunk in these photos," another said. "How can we trust someone like that to tell the truth?"
"This is character assassination," I said. "Pure character assassination."
Caitlyn was sobbing now. "Why is she doing this? Why will she not stop? She is in jail. She is being charged. Why keep attacking me?"
"Because she is angry," I said. "Because she knows she is going to prison and she wants to hurt you as much as possible before she goes."
My phone rang. It was DA Walsh.
"I saw the articles," Walsh said. "Vanessa is out of control. I am filing a motion to revoke her bail. To keep her in jail until trial."
"She is out on bail?" I asked. "After everything she did?"
"The judge granted bail yesterday," Walsh said. "I argued against it but the judge said she is not a flight risk. But after this, I think we can get bail revoked."
"Good," I said. "She needs to be locked up. She is dangerous."
"I agree," Walsh said. "And Jason? Tell Caitlyn not to read the comments. Not to engage. This is exactly what Vanessa wants. She wants Caitlyn to break down. To look unstable. Do not give her that satisfaction."
"I will tell her," I said.
After I hung up I tried to take Caitlyn's phone away. But she would not let me.
"I need to see what people are saying," Caitlyn said. "I need to know how bad it is."
"It is bad," I said. "Really bad. But reading it will only make you feel worse."
"I already feel terrible," Caitlyn said. "How could I feel worse?"
She kept scrolling through comments. Each one made her cry harder. Making her more upset. I hated seeing her like this. Hated that Vanessa had this much power over her.
"Caitlyn please," I said. "Give me the phone. Stop reading."
"Look at this one," Caitlyn said. She showed me a comment. "This person says I deserved everything Collin did to me. That I probably asked for it."
"That person is an idiot," I said. "They do not know you. They do not know what happened."
"But everyone is going to see these photos," Caitlyn said. "Everyone is going to think I am some kind of party girl who knew about crimes and looked the other way."
"No they will not," I said. "The people who matter know the truth. Rourke knows. Walsh knows. The judge knows. The jury will know. That is what matters."
"Does it?" Caitlyn asked. "Because right now it feels like public opinion is the only thing that matters. And public opinion hates me."
"Public opinion is fickle," I said. "Yesterday everyone was apologizing to you. Today they are attacking you again. Tomorrow they will move on to the next story. None of it matters."
"It matters to me," Caitlyn said. "It matters that people think I am a bad person. They think I am lying. That they think I deserved to be abused."
"Those people are wrong," I said. "And their opinions do not define you. You know who you are. I know who you are. That is what matters."
Caitlyn put her phone down and buried her face in her hands. Emma started crying sensing her mother's distress. I picked up Emma and tried to calm her while also trying to comfort Caitlyn.
"I cannot do this anymore," Caitlyn said through her tears. "I cannot keep fighting. Keep defending myself. I am so tired Jason. So tired."
"I know," I said. "But we are almost through this. Vanessa is going to be put back in jail. She will not be able to hurt us anymore."
"But the damage is done," Caitlyn said. "Those photos are out there. That information is public. I can never take it back."
"You do not need to take it back," I said. "You did nothing wrong. Having photos from college is not a crime. Making mistakes when you were young is not a crime. Everyone has a past."
"But my past is being used against me," Caitlyn said. "To make me look bad. To make people think I am not credible
e."
"Only by people who were already against you," I said. "The people who believe in you are not swayed by old photos."