Chapter 115 THE THREAT

Chapter 115 THE THREAT


PRIVATE DINING ROOM — CASTILLO RESTAURANT — NIGHT

Vanessa sat across from Rafael Castillo, holding baby Thomas close to her chest. The baby had finally stopped crying and was sleeping softly.

Vanessa looked nervous.

Rafael sat calmly, watching her.

“You testified at Alexander’s trial,” Rafael said. “And you worked closely with Sophia during her revenge plan.”

Vanessa frowned. “Yes… but what does that have to do with anything?”

Rafael leaned forward slightly.

“It means you know things,” he said quietly. “Secret things. Things that could damage Sophia’s reputation even more.”

Vanessa stiffened. “What are you saying?”

“I’m filing a civil lawsuit against her,” Rafael said. “And I want you to testify.”

Vanessa blinked. “Testify… against Sophia?”

“Yes.”

Rafael folded his hands calmly. “I want you to tell the court that Sophia threatened you. That she pressured you. That she manipulated you into helping her destroy Alexander.”

Vanessa shook her head immediately.

“But she didn’t—”

“Didn’t she?” Rafael interrupted, smiling slowly.

Vanessa fell silent.

“Think carefully,” Rafael continued. “Didn’t she pressure you? Didn’t she threaten to expose your affair with Damien if you refused to cooperate?”

Vanessa stared at him. “You want me to lie,” she said quietly.

Rafael leaned back in his chair. “I want you to look at things from a different point of view.”

Vanessa frowned.

“Sophia Hart destroyed your life, didn’t she?” Rafael continued calmly.

“You lost your husband. You lost your home. You lost your financial security.”

He shrugged.

“And all of that happened because you helped her.”

Vanessa looked down at the table.

When he said it like that… it almost sounded true.

“Doesn’t that sound like manipulation?” Rafael asked softly.

Vanessa didn’t answer. Finally she looked up.

“What do I get in return?”

Rafael smiled. “A lot.”

He raised one finger. “Five million dollars placed in a trust fund for your son.”

Vanessa’s eyes widened.

“A trust fund?” she whispered.

“Yes,” Rafael said calmly. “Money for his future. School. College. Anything he needs.”

He raised a second finger.

“My lawyers will also help you get child support from Damien Laurent.”

Vanessa looked shocked.

“Damien would never—”

“My lawyers specialize in making irresponsible fathers pay,” Rafael said smoothly.

Then he raised a third finger.

“A job at one of my companies. Salary: two hundred thousand dollars a year.”

Vanessa’s mouth slowly fell open.

“And finally,” Rafael added, “a penthouse apartment in Manhattan. Rent-free for five years.”

Vanessa felt dizzy. Five million dollars. A good job. A home. A real future for her son.

She looked down at the sleeping baby in her arms.

“All I have to do…” she said slowly, “is testify against Sophia?”

Rafael nodded.

“All you have to do is tell your story,” he said calmly.

“Tell the court how Sophia manipulated you. How she used you. And how she abandoned you once she no longer needed you.”

He pushed a contract across the table toward her.

“Sign this,” Rafael said quietly.

“And everything I promised will be yours.”

He looked directly into her eyes.

“Tomorrow.”

MLH CONFERENCE ROOM — DAY

Vanessa stared at the contract on the table.

Then she looked down at Thomas, sleeping peacefully in his carrier.

His tiny chest rose and fell slowly. His small hand rested near his cheek.

Vanessa swallowed. Her son deserved more than this.

More than cheap apartments. More than worrying about money every month.

More than the life she could give him right now.

She slowly looked back at Rafael.

Her voice was quiet. “Where do I sign?”

Rafael smiled.

MLH HEADQUARTERS — CONFERENCE ROOM — ONE WEEK LATER

Sophia sat at the long conference table, reading the lawsuit Rafael had filed.

Her face slowly darkened with disbelief.

“Civil suit for fraud… defamation… and interfering with business relationships,” she read quietly.

Marcus stood across from her with a serious expression.

“It gets worse,” he said.

Sophia flipped the page.

Her eyes stopped on one name. Star Witness: Vanessa Laurent.

Sophia looked up sharply. “Vanessa?”

Marcus nodded grimly.

“She’s claiming you threatened her,” he said. “She says you forced her to testify against Alexander.”

Sophia stared at him in shock. “That’s not true! Vanessa came to me herself!”

Marcus sighed. “She also says you used her affair with Damien as blackmail.”

Sophia stood up suddenly.“That’s a lie!”

Marcus looked at her carefully. “Can you prove that?”

Sophia froze.

“Do you have recordings of your conversations?” Marcus asked.

Sophia slowly shook her head.

“No.”

“Emails? Text messages? Any written agreement?”

Sophia rubbed her forehead. “No… we talked in person.”

“Where?”

“Coffee shops. Her apartment.”

Marcus sighed again.

“I didn’t record anything,” Sophia admitted quietly. “I trusted her.”

Marcus leaned back in his chair. “Then right now it’s your word against hers.”

Sophia looked at him. “And unfortunately… your reputation isn’t exactly clean right now.”

He pulled up a news article on the screen.

“It gets even worse.”

Sophia looked at the headline.

Vanessa Laurent — Exclusive Interview Tonight.

“She’s doing a press tour,” Marcus said. “CNN interview tonight.”

Sophia’s stomach dropped. “She’s going to tell everyone how you manipulated her.”

SOPHIA’S PENTHOUSE — EVENING

Sophia sat on the couch watching the interview on television.

Her stomach was large now. She was nine months pregnant.

Her daughter, Victoria, could arrive any day.

On the TV screen, Vanessa sat across from a well-dressed interviewer.

Vanessa looked simple and vulnerable. She wore jeans and a white blouse.

Almost no makeup.

She looked like a tired single mother. Which she was.

The interviewer leaned forward with a sympathetic expression.

“Vanessa, you’ve said that Sophia Hart manipulated you,” she said gently. “Can you explain what you mean?”

Vanessa nodded slowly. Her voice sounded soft and emotional.

“Sophia knew about my affair with Damien Laurent.”

Sophia’s jaw tightened.

“Once she found out,” Vanessa continued, “she threatened to expose me.”

Sophia shook her head in disbelief. Vanessa continued speaking.

“She said she would tell Alexander… destroy my marriage… ruin my life… unless I helped her.”

The interviewer looked shocked. “You’re saying she blackmailed you?”

Vanessa nodded. “I was scared,” she said quietly.

“I had nowhere to go. I didn’t know what to do.”

Sophia clenched her fists. “So I did what she asked.”

“What did she ask you to do?” the interviewer asked.

Vanessa took a deep breath. “She wanted me to spy on Alexander,” she said.

Sophia whispered under her breath, “Liar…”

Vanessa continued. “She asked me to give her information about his business deals.”

“And later… she told me to testify at his trial.”

Vanessa’s voice cracked. “Even though I wasn’t completely sure about the things I was saying.”

The interviewer looked concerned. “That must have been terrifying.”