Chapter 6 - The Invalid Bride
I spent an hour practicing my performance in the mirror before heading to the luxury hotel.
I needed to look like a broken, desperate woman who had finally accepted defeat.
I knocked softly on the door of Garrett's penthouse suite, hiding a specialized lifted tape pad perfectly in my palm.
Garrett opened the door, wearing a plush white robe and holding a glass of expensive scotch.
He looked surprised to see me, but a smug, victorious smile quickly replaced his confusion.
"Have you finally come to your senses, Claire?" he asked, leaning casually against the doorframe.
"I just want my son's body back, Garrett," I cried, forcing fake tears to stream down my cheeks.
"I will sign whatever corporate papers you want, just please let me bury my little boy."
Garrett laughed softly, absolutely thriving on my fabricated misery.
He reached out and smugly wiped a tear from my cheek with his thumb.
"I always knew you would break," he whispered arrogantly.
As his hand dropped, I quickly grabbed his wrist, pretending to cling to him in pure desperation.
In one smooth, practiced motion, I pressed the specialized tape pad firmly against his index finger.
I pulled away quickly, slipping the newly acquired fingerprint safely into my coat pocket.
"I will have my lawyers send over the surrender documents tomorrow," I sobbed before turning to leave.
I walked rapidly down the plush carpeted hallway, my heart hammering fiercely against my ribs.
I had the key to destroying him.
"Leaving so soon, Claire?" a sharp, mocking voice called out from the shadows.
Melissa stepped out from an adjacent alcove, wearing a stunning red dress and a wicked smile.
"I have exactly what I came for," I snapped, refusing to let this terrible woman intimidate me.
Melissa chuckled, shaking her head as she blocked my path to the elevators.
"You really think you are fighting for your marriage and your family name," she said mockingly.
"But you never actually had either of those things in the first place."
I froze, feeling a sudden chill race down my spine.
"What are you talking about?" I demanded.
Melissa pulled a certified, stamped legal document from her designer clutch and held it up to my face.
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"Garrett and I were legally married in Las Vegas two years before he ever met you," she revealed with a cruel laugh.
"He never filed the divorce papers because he needed your father's money, which means your entire marriage to him is completely void."
