Chapter 8 - Vanessa Crowe Invited Me to a Dinner Party Where She Planned to Destroy Everything I Loved
Adrian was discharged from the hospital four days later.
He returned home with strict medical instructions and an even stricter security detail.
I stayed beside him.
Not because he asked me to.
Because I wanted to.
But our quiet days ended when Vanessa sent an invitation.
A formal dinner.
At the Crowe family mansion.
She wanted me to attend.
Alone.
Adrian immediately refused.
"Absolutely not."
I folded the invitation.
"Then she'll know we're afraid."
"Clara, this isn't a game."
"I know."
"She's dangerous."
"So are you."
He stared at me.
I regretted the words as soon as they left my mouth.
But I continued.
"If we want to expose her, we need her to believe she still has control."
Adrian was silent.
Then Marcus entered the room.
"We've discovered something."
He placed a folder on the table.
Inside were bank statements, photographs, and a list of names.
The Chicago Children's Foundation had been used to transfer money between several shell companies.
But there was something else.
A payment had been made to a private investigator six years earlier.
The same month my father died.
I felt my stomach tighten.
"Who hired him?"
Marcus pointed to the document.
Vanessa Crowe.
I looked at Adrian.
He nodded slowly.
"Now we have a motive."
But the evidence wasn't enough.
We needed the original documents.
And Vanessa had invited me to dinner.
I knew what I had to do.
I would go.
Adrian hated the idea.
But eventually, he agreed.
He arranged for Marcus to accompany me as a driver and stationed several men nearby.
Before I left, he took my hand.
"Don't trust her."
"I won't."
"Don't accept anything she offers."
"I won't."
"And if anything feels wrong—"
"I'll leave."
He studied my face.
Then he leaned forward and kissed my forehead.
It was a small gesture.
But it made my heart ache.
At the Crowe mansion, Vanessa greeted me with a smile.
"Clara, darling. You came."
"Of course."
She looked me up and down.
"You're looking much better. Adrian must be treating you well."
I said nothing.
She laughed.
"Come. We have so much to discuss."
The dining room was filled with expensive furniture and enormous paintings.
Thirty-seven people were seated around the table.
Businessmen.
Politicians.
Security chiefs.
People whose names appeared in my ledger.
Vanessa introduced me as her guest.
Then she began humiliating me.
She mocked my clothes.
My job.
My family.
And finally, my relationship with Adrian.
"Tell me, Clara. Does he really believe you're worth protecting?"
I looked at her.
"Why don't you ask him?"
Her smile disappeared.
Then one of the men at the table reached beneath his jacket.
Another followed.
And a third stood.
I realized immediately that the dinner had been a trap.
Vanessa leaned toward me.
"You're going to give me the ledger."
I shook my head.
"No."
Her expression turned cold.
"Then perhaps your brother will convince you."
I stood.
"Leave Ethan out of this."
She laughed.
"You're in no position to make demands."
Then the doors opened.
Every conversation stopped.
Adrian Vale walked into the room.
He was still recovering from his injury.
But he stood tall.
His eyes moved across the table.
Then they settled on me.
"Clara."
I turned.
He held out his hand.
"Come here."
I walked toward him.
Vanessa's expression twisted with fury.
"Adrian, this is a private dinner."
"Not anymore."
He placed one hand against my waist.
Then he looked directly at the thirty-seven people watching us.
May you like
"You're sleeping beside me tonight."
And before I could ask what he meant, he kissed me.
