Chapter 152 152

Chapter 152 152
EMILY

Cecelia stood across from me with her chin lifted in the same proud manner she had worn for as long as I had known her. She looked at me as though I had personally betrayed everything she believed she had built, and, judging from the way her hands trembled ever so slightly at her sides, she was struggling to accept that she no longer controlled what would happen next.

Her eyes never left mine.

"I should have known this was your doing," she said, her voice sharp enough to cut through the quiet room without ever becoming a shout. "Tell me where Vivian is because I know she's behind this, and I promise every single one of you will regret thinking you could humiliate me."

A humorless laugh escaped before I could stop it because, somehow, even now she was convinced this entire situation revolved around someone else's actions instead of her own.

"There is no way you're actually serious right now," I replied, unable to hide the disbelief in my voice. "If this is your strategy, then I genuinely don't know what to tell you because this isn't about Vivian, and it isn't about me trying to ruin your life."

She scoffed loudly enough that one of the detectives glanced in our direction.

"You expect me to believe that?"

Her expression hardened.

"You've always been easy to manipulate."

I stared at her for a long moment before slowly shaking my head.

"No," I said quietly. "I was easy to manipulate because I trusted you, and there's a very big difference between those two things."

For the first time since we'd entered the room, something flickered across her face that wasn't anger.

It was irritation.

Before Cecelia could answer, another voice interrupted from behind me.

"Can somebody please tell me what's going on?"

The sound of Ryan's voice sent an unexpected ache through my chest.

I closed my eyes for the briefest moment before turning toward him.

He looked completely lost.

His eyes moved from me to Cecelia and then back again, searching our faces for answers that neither of us seemed capable of giving. I had prepared myself for many things before coming here today, but standing in front of Ryan while all of this unfolded wasn't one of them.

For a second, guilt washed over me.

None of this was easy for him.

Cecelia wasted no time taking advantage of his confusion.

"Ask your ex-wife," she said bitterly, pointing in my direction without taking her eyes off him. "Go on, Ryan. Ask the woman you chose why I'm standing here today."

Ryan frowned.

"What are you talking about?"

"She's trying to destroy me."

One of the detectives stepped forward before the conversation could go any further, his calm expression never changing despite the obvious tension filling the room.

"Mrs. Thompson," he said evenly, "this interview is part of an ongoing investigation, and everyone involved will have the opportunity to speak through the proper legal process. Right now, I'd ask that we keep the discussion focused and avoid making accusations across the room."

The request barely seemed to register with Cecelia.

She continued staring at me, her breathing becoming noticeably heavier with every passing second.

Before she could talk, the attorney standing beside her finally stepped forward.

"My client has consistently denied any wrongdoing," she said, addressing the detectives rather than either of us. "She intends to cooperate fully, but before any further questioning takes place, I'd like the opportunity to review the materials that form the basis of today's proceedings so I can properly advise her."

The lead detective nodded politely.

"That won't be a problem. We'll provide everything we're legally permitted to disclose at this stage once we've completed the initial procedural requirements."

The lawyer inclined his head.

"I appreciate that."

Another detective approached Cecelia and gestured toward the adjoining interview room.

"Mrs. Thompson, if you'll come with me, we'll continue from there."

She didn't move immediately.

Instead, she held my gaze with the same cold determination that had followed me for years, as though she wanted me to remember this moment for the rest of my life.

"This isn't over, Emily."

I didn't answer.

There was nothing left to say that hadn't already been said, and whatever happened from this point forward was no longer something either of us could settle by standing across a room and arguing.

As the detectives escorted Cecelia and her lawyer toward the adjoining room, Ryan remained exactly where he was, watching the door close behind them before slowly turning back to face me. 

He looked at me for several long seconds without saying a word, as though he was trying to reconcile the woman standing in front of him with the one he'd spoken to over the phone days earlier. 

"Emily..." he began carefully, his voice softer than it had been outside the station. "Will you please tell me what's going on because I honestly don't know what I'm supposed to think anymore."

I lowered my eyes to the floor for a moment, drawing in a slow breath that did little to steady the emotions threatening to spill over.

"I'm not sorry," I said quietly. "But I'm so sorry it had to happen this way."

His brows drew together.

"What do you mean?"

"I never wanted you to walk into this completely unprepared, and I certainly never imagined that the first time we'd see each other again would be inside a police station. If I could've found another way to keep you out of the middle of all this, I would've taken it without thinking twice."

He stepped a little closer, his expression remaining patient despite the obvious confusion written across his face.

"Emily, you're apologizing, but I still don't understand what you're apologizing for."

I swallowed against the tightness in my throat before looking back up at him.

"There were things that couldn't stay hidden forever."

He didn't interrupt.

"I know she's your mother," I continued, my voice beginning to shake despite every attempt to keep it steady. "Believe me when I say I know exactly what that means because, for a long time, I thought she was my family too. I defended her more times than I can count, and every single time someone warned me that something wasn't right, I convinced myself they simply didn't understand her the way I did."

A humorless smile tugged at my lips before disappearing almost as quickly as it had appeared.

"I wanted so badly to believe there was still good in her."

Ryan remained silent, giving me the space to say everything I'd been carrying for far too long.

"But the more I learned..." I whispered, "...the harder it became to ignore the damage that had been left behind."

A tear slipped down my cheek before I could wipe it away.

"I've been trying for so long," I admitted, my vision blurring as more tears followed. "Every time I thought I'd reached the end of it, something else happened, and every time I started putting my life back together, somebody came along and tore it apart all over again."

I laughed weakly through the tears.

Ryan didn't answer.

He simply reached for me.

His arms wrapped carefully around my shoulders, giving me more than enough room to pull away if I wanted to, yet the moment I felt the familiar warmth of his embrace, every wall I'd spent weeks desperately trying to rebuild collapsed around me.

The sob that escaped my chest came without warning.

I buried my face against him, no longer caring who walked past us or who happened to witness the moment because I was simply too exhausted to keep pretending I was okay.

"She's done so much to me," I whispered between broken breaths. "Sometimes I don't even know where to begin anymore."

Ryan's hand moved slowly across my back, his touch gentle enough to calm the frantic rhythm of my breathing without forcing me to speak before I was ready.

For the first time in what felt like forever, the crushing weight inside my chest eased, if only by the smallest amount.

Then a deliberate cough echoed through the corridor.

"Really, Ryan?"

The words dripped with sarcasm.

My heart sank because I recognized that voice immediately.

Slowly, I lifted my eyes to meet hers.

Miranda.