Chapter 129 Falling Into the Trap
DAVID
The room was heavy with silence, except for the occasional sniffle coming from Mrs. Williams. She sat on the couch, her arms tightly wrapped around Bella, who was still pale from the shock of it all. Her tears soaked Bella’s shoulder, but neither of them seemed to care.
I leaned against the mantle, staring into the flames dancing in the fireplace. My fists clenched at my sides as the words replayed in my mind. The man she trusted, the man who had wormed his way into her life, is the same monster who killed her husband and Bella’s twin sister.
“I’ll make him pay,” I said, my voice cold and unwavering. My eyes snapped to Mrs. Williams. “For your husband, for my uncle he’ll suffer for what he’s done.”
Her red-rimmed eyes lifted to meet mine, filled with a mix of disbelief and raw anger. “How?” Her voice cracked, her fingers trembling as they smoothed Bella’s hair. “How do you even begin to make a man like him pay? I never knew Western could be so evil. If I hadn’t heard the tape, I wouldn’t have believed it. How could he…how could he kill your uncle?”
I held her gaze, letting the weight of my words sink in. “He’s going to fall by his own hand. But to do that…” I paused, walking to the table and pouring myself a drink. “I need you to do something for me. Something dangerous.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Dangerous?”
“You have to pretend you don’t know anything,” I said, swirling the amber liquid in the glass. “Stay close to him. Just like before.”
Her gasp filled the room. She pulled away from Bella, her hands shaking as they fell into her lap. “Stay close to him? To him? The man who killed my husband and my baby? The man who almost killed Bella?” Her voice rose with each word until she was nearly yelling. “You think I can just sit there and…”
“Mrs. Williams.” I stepped forward, my voice cutting through her outburst like a blade. Her lips pressed into a thin line, but she didn’t look away. “If he suspects even for a moment that you know, you’ll be in danger. Real danger. He’s obsessed with you. He’ll claim it’s love, but we both know it’s something darker. Something unhinged.”
Her shoulders sagged as she glanced at Bella, who clung to her hand. The silence stretched between us before she spoke again, her voice barely above a whisper. “Fine. I’ll do it. But only because I can’t let him win. What’s your plan?”
A smirk tugged at the corner of my lips. “We’ll make him confess.”
Bella frowned. “How? He’ll never admit to anything.”
“Elowen,” I said simply. “She said she wants to take her father down. If she’s serious, we’ll use her to get to him.”
As if on cue, Janet walked into the room. Her heels clicked against the polished wood floors, the sound sharp and confident. She froze mid-step when she spotted Mrs. Williams. “Oh,” she said, recovering quickly. Her lips curved into a polite smile as she inclined her head. “It’s an honor to see you here, ma’am.”
Mrs. Williams managed a weak smile. “And good to see you, Janet.”
Janet slid onto the couch beside me, her sharp eyes darting between us. “Am I missing something?”
“Just the beginning of our plan to destroy Western,” I said, downing the rest of my drink.
Her brow arched. “Oh? And how do you plan to do that?”
“We’ll use Elowen against him.”
“His daughter?” Janet’s voice was laced with doubt. “Do you think she’ll actually help us?”
“We’ll find out,” I said, turning to Bella. “Text her. Tell her you’re ready to forgive her. Get her here, and we’ll take the next step.”
Bella hesitated for a moment before pulling out her phone. The screen glowed against her pale face as her fingers flew across the keyboard. A moment later, her phone buzzed. She looked up, her expression tense. “She’s coming.”
“Good.” I crossed the room, my mind already racing with the next move. “Here’s how this will go. We’ll make sure Elowen records every word he says. We need him to admit to killing my uncle, to killing your husband. If we can get that, we’ll bring in the police. He’ll have no way out.”
Janet leaned back, her arms crossed. “And you think Western will just confess like that? Fall into your little trap?”
I smirked, the firelight casting shadows across my face. “That’s why we’re using Elowen. He loves his daughter more than anything. And when push comes to shove, he’ll do anything to protect her. Even if it means incriminating himself.”
Janet nodded slowly, her lips curling into a smirk of her own. “Let’s hope your plan works.”
“It will,” I said with certainty, glancing at Mrs. Williams. “We’ll make him pay. For everything.”