Chapter 30 THE DAY TRUTH BECAME A WEAPON (Demilia’s POV)
I arrived like a queen entering her empire at Ethan's Mansion, to the point the maids whispered, guards straightened, and Demilia… oh, sweet Demilia… froze at the sight of me.
She looked tired, emotional and confused.
That was just too perfect.
“Good morning,” I said warmly, brushing her cheek with my gaze like a blade. “Did you sleep well?”
“Why are you here again?” she muttered.
“I’m helping Ethan with some board matters,” I said breezily. “He trusts me.”
Her eyes flashed, burning like coal.
“Really?” she whispered. “Funny, I didn’t think he trusted anyone.”
“Oh, darling…” I stepped close, smirking. “He used to trust me with everything.”
She stiffened, and that gave me the go ahead and I press lower.
“Tell me something…” I tilted my head. “Did he kiss you because he wanted to? Or because he was hurting?” Her breath hitched, making her cheeks burn.
“And when he kissed you…” I continued softly, cruelly, “…did his body feel hungry? Or guilty?”
She swallowed hard, not having the answers I needed.
Of course, I smiled.
“Thought so.” Then Ethan walked in almost immediately.
And when he looked at Demilia… The softness in his eyes confirmed everything I suspected.
He was falling indeed, without knowing it. And that meant...he was vulnerable.
Finally, what we have been waiting for ages. Time for the kill.
>>>>>>>>>
I slid into his office chair while he stood beside the window, at Ethan's office.
“You need to control yourself,” I said lightly.
“I don’t need your advice.”
“You do. Or she will see everything you’re trying to hide.” His fists clenched, like he would punch me any moment.
“Vanessa,” he warned.
“Relax. I’m not here to expose you.” I folded my legs elegantly. “I’m here to protect what’s mine.”
“I’m not yours.”
“But parts of you still are,” I said softly. “And Demilia will never understand those parts.”
He stiffened, becoming even weaker.
I leaned forward dramatically “Let me help you. All you need to do is trust me again.”
He looked at me… just for a second… and I knew the old Vanessa-and-Ethan history still lingered.
Though it wasn't love, not even desire, just history. And history can be weaponized.
The moment I left his office, I quickly dialed Adrian again.
“It’s working,” I whispered.
“How soon?” he asked.
“Oh… very soon,” I smirked, staring at the mansion gates. “Demilia already feels the shift. Ethan is already losing balance. And once the cracks widen…”
“Yes?”
“I will slip in like smoke,” I said. “And destroy their perfect little nightmare from the inside.”
Adrian chuckled. “Remind me to never betray you.”
“Smart man.”
I ended the call and leaned back against the leather seat.
Demilia thinks she’s strong, and for Ethan, he thinks he’s the one in control, but they forget one thing: The most dangerous enemy is the one who smiles while watching you fall.
And I was smiling, and worst of all, beautifully in his face.
Demilia’s POV
I didn’t plan to overhear anything, never.
I didn’t even plan to walk into her corner of the garden, the place that still smelled faintly of Vanessa’s expensive jasmine perfume...as if she sprayed her presence into places long after she left them.
But life has a cruel timing of its own, and pain… always finds me first.
I was searching for my sketchbook. The one thing that helped my mind breathe these days. The one thing Ethan hadn’t stolen, locked away, or controlled. And Lena had sworn she left it “near the balcony steps.”
Except… when I reached the hedge curve by the fountain, I didn’t find the sketchbook.
I found voices, that were mostly whispers. Vanessa’s voice...was low, elegant, dripping of poison like warm honey.
“…she really doesn’t know,” she said, sounding amused. “How adorable of her She’s still walking around this house thinking she’s hiding it from him.”
That earned a pause, then followed by a soft laugh.
“He knew before he married her.” My heart stopped.l beating for a second.
I didn’t move, not even an inch. Couldn’t move found the strength to do so. My fingers dug into my dress, nails biting fabric. Lena’s voice shot back sharply, furious and protective:
“Shut your mouth, Vanessa.”
“Oh please,” Vanessa purred, “you’re angry because she’s stupid enough to believe Ethan didn’t see it. The symptoms were right there. She didn’t even hide it well.”
My vision blurred immediately, still trying to comprehend what was happening.
My knees trembled weakly, as I tried to get hold of myself.
The world began spinning in quiet, deadly circles.
I pressed my palm to my stomach instinctively...protective, terrified...feeling the faint sense of life that had brought me more fear than joy these past few weeks.
Vanessa wasn’t done.
“She really thought she could hide a pregnancy from Ethan Blackwell?”
Then she let out a loud laugh, too sharp, and cruel.
“That man studies everything he owns.”
“I said SHUT UP!” Lena screamed angrily.
Vanessa continued, voice like a blade dipped in silk.
“He knew before she even moved into this mansion. He knew before they signed the marriage contract. Why do you think he rushed the paperwork, hm?”
My lungs collapsed immediately. Did I just hear before the marriage? He knew… before the marriage? Before the contract was signed? Before he claimed I had no choice?
My hand flew to my mouth as a broken sound escaped me.
Lena snapped back, “You’re trying to break her! I swear, Vanessa, if this is another of your twisted lies...”
“Oh, it’s the truth,” Vanessa hummed. “He made sure the doctor said nothing to her. He had access to every report. Every scan, very symptom. Your poor little friend is living in a fantasy.”
There was rather a long silence. Too long that I wondered if anything had happened again.
Then....
“Why do you think he’s been acting strange? Always watching her. Always hovering. He’s just making sure she doesn’t lose the baby. It would ruin everything.”
Ruin everything, how? My knees buckled weakly. I grabbed the cold stone rail to steady myself.
Lena must have seen me from the corner of her eye because she suddenly gasped.
“Demilia.” I felt her hands on me a second later...warm, frantic, shaking.
“Demilia, look at me. LOOK at me.”