Chapter 98
$25 POTRUS
98
Irvin seemed genuinely baffled, almost annoyed, by my sudden path for him to be with Julianne. His frustration spilled over es he snapped,
“Emilia, how many times do I have to tell you? There’s nothing between Julianne and me. There’s never been anything like that, and there never will be. Why do you keep dragging me into this nonsense with her? ”
I almost laughed at his words.
I wanted to tell him it was because he was in love with her. Truly, deeply, stupidly in love. So much so that he didn’t even care about her history, wasn’t that what true love was all about?
It was just like how Mom thought–if celebrities could marry their ex’s parent, why couldn’t Irvin ?
If Irvin really wanted to clear Julianne’s name, he’d stop pretending and just marry her. That would do far more for her reputation than forcing me to publicly take the fall for something I didn’t do.
But I didn’t bother saying any of that.
Irvin wouldn’t admit it. He refused to acknowledge what was obvious to everyone but him . He was too busy convincing himself that his twisted, self–righteous affection for me was love and that everything he did was somehow for my own good
I didn’t want to waste another second arguing with him.
I turned to the officer standing nearby and signaled that I was ready to end the meeting
Irvin noticed, and his frustration boiled over. His expression turned cold and sharp, his voice hard.
“Emilia, keep this up, and there really won’t be any way to save you. No more chances. No more opportunities.”
I ignored him and followed the officer out without looking back.
But as I walked away, I heard the loud crash of his fist slamming against the table. The sound was deafening, the kind of impact that shook the walls and echoed like a warning.
I didn’t flinch, didn’t stop, didn’t care.
Not long after Irvin stormed out, Mr. Stern arrived.
Mr. Stern wasn’t just any lawyer. Originally, he was a legal advisor for one of Irvin’s media companies, and we’d crossed paths during one of my work–related cases. His professionalism and skill impressed me, so I hired him as my personal lawyer.
Since then, he’d handled everything for me–my recovery, my legal matters, and even my private investigations into things I couldn’t trust anyone else with.
When he walked in, his expression was calm and professional, but I could tell he wasn’t thrilled about the situation.
After I explained the events leading up to my arrest, he nodded, processing everything. Then he finally spoke.
“Ms. Quill,” he began, his tone steady, “the video itself doesn’t directly prove you spiked Julianne’s drink with anything illegal. It doesn’t show you handing her the drink, either. But.., anyone watching it will naturally assume that’s what happened. It paints you in a very unfavorable light.”
He leaned forward, his voice slightly lower. “This will make proving your innocence difficult, especially since you can’t recall what happened that day. That’s a big problem.”
I nodded. I’d already figured as much.
The real problem wasn’t just the video–it was my memory.
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98
I couldn’t remember any part of the incident. I couldn’t explain why I was there or why I’d been holding that cup , let alone what I’d put into it.
It didn’t make sense. My memory was clear on everything else that had happened frt my life, even after my injury. How could this one event be a total blank?
And the way I looked in the video–something about It didn’t feel right. It felt off.
All of it only made the truth harder to uncover, but I wasn’t about to give up. No matter how difficult it got, I wasn’t going to plead guilty to something I didn’t do.
Mr. Stern was able to read riy determination because he continued “ The good news is, while it’s hard to prove your innocence, the prosecution won’t be able to convict you based on this video alone. It’s circumstantial evidence–it raises suspicion, but it doesn’t prove guilt.”
He paused, then added, “For now, we’ll focus on can strategize our next moves.
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I nodded. “That’s exactly what I want. Let’s get
getting you out of here. I’ll file for bail immediately, and once you’re out, we
started.”