Chapter 5
Chapter 5: The Snake’s Last Strike
By the time I entered my seventh month of pregnancy, the neighborhood whispers had completely shifted. The "unfaithful wife" narrative had vanished, replaced by the juicy, undeniable scandal of Diego’s financial ruin and public disgrace.
But Paola wasn't finished. When a parasite loses its host, it becomes desperate.
It started with a series of anonymous reviews posted to my boutique interior design business page, claiming I was using blood money to fund my projects. Then came the physical packages—creepy, unsigned baby blankets delivered to my doorstep with notes like: “A bastard child deserves a cheap shroud.”
My security team, funded entirely by the newly seized Blackwell Logistics capital, traced the deliveries back to a courier service paid for by a prepaid debit card. The surveillance footage from the courier office showed Paola, her face hidden under a large brimmed hat, her expression twisted with venom.
I didn't call the police. I called Alejandro Vance.
"We have enough for a permanent restraining order," Vance told me over the phone, his pen clicking rhythmically. "But more importantly, Laura, our deep-dive into Paola’s maiden-name accounts yielded something fascinating. The offshore account Diego was funneling money into? It wasn't just funded by Diego."
I frowned, rubbing my swollen belly. "What do you mean?"
"Someone else was depositing large sums of money into that exact same account for the past three years. Regular, monthly payments of fifty thousand dollars."
"Diego’s mother?" I guessed.
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"No," Vance said, his voice dropping an octave. "The deposits came from a shell corporation owned by Julian Blackwell. Diego’s estranged older brother. The one who disappeared to New York five years ago after a massive falling out with the family."
My breath caught. Julian. The golden boy of the Blackwell family who had walked away from the entire empire without a word. Why was he paying Diego's mistress?
