After Rebirth, I Refused to Be Their Scapegoat Chapter 04
felt like I had just taken a sledgehammer to the face. A loud ringing filled my ears.
How was this even possible? Chloe stole the money to buy the car, but put the title in my name?
“I knew it,” Nathan sneered, leaning back slightly with a sickeningly knowing smirk.
And Chloe, sitting barely a few feet away still pretending to sob, had an unmistakable glint of vicious triumph flash through her eyes.
“Now the truth is out! Not only did she steal the money, but she also put on a whole act for us!” Vivian jumped to her feet. If the police hadn’t shouted them down, they looked ready to pounce, snatch my phone, and wire whatever money I had to themselves on the spot.
“The
“Until we can completely verify the authenticity of the signature on the vehicle registration, you need to remain here to cooperate with the investigation.”
detective closed the file without a shred of emotion. ”
You can call your lawyer now.”
The mocking jeers of Nathan and my relatives buzzed like blowflies, leaving me shaking with rage.
I grabbed my phone and furiously redialed the number.
“Where the hell are you?” I hissed into the receiver.
In high school, he had always been late. How could he still be running horribly late now that he had a real job?
Before the echo in the receiver even faded, the heavy
glass doors of the precinct lobby were violently shoved open from the outside.
“Apologies for the wait, everyone. Hit some traffic.”
A tall man with broad shoulders and long legs, sharply dressed in a tailored, all–black suit, strode confidently into the lobby.
“Who the hell are you?” Vivian lunged forward, trying to block the tall stranger’s path.
Ethan completely ignored her. His sharp gaze swept over Nathan and Chloe with pure disdain.
“I’d wait on that if I were you, Detective,” he said, holding up the thick manila folder in his hand.
“First,” Ethan said, sliding a glossy photograph across the table. “High–definition security footage from the ATM on the night the funds were wired. Second, surveillance video from the dealership’s VIP lounge. It clearly shows exactly who sat in that chair and forged Ms. Audrey’s signature to take the vehicle off the lot.”
The hard evidence was sitting right there, undeniable, but Chloe was still thrashing in the deep end. She dug her manicured nails into Vivian’s sleeve, shrieking, No! Audrey forced me! She threatened to throw me
out on the street if I didn’t do it!”
Nathan didn’t miss a beat. He stepped right up to the detective, doubling down on the lie. “It’s true! Audrey
is incredibly manipulative. This whole thing was her grand design, Chloe was just a pawn forced into cooperating!”
Ethan let out a dark, hollow laugh. He slipped a tablet from his briefcase and slid it directly under the detective’s nose.
“Since she was ‘forced‘ into picking up the car, I suppose you’ll argue Audrey forced you two into this, as well?”
He tapped play. It was the backup feed from the
Porsche’s hidden internal dashcam.
Heavy, muffled panting instantly filled the sterile interrogation room. The high–resolution video left absolutely nothing to the imagination—a man and a woman, completely naked, frantically tearing at each
other in the backseat of the brand–new car. The faces
moaning on the screen belonged to the “innocent victim” Chloe and the self–righteous fiancé, Nathan.
Vivian froze. Her eyes nearly bulged out of her skull. Chloe? Nathan? What the hell are you two doing?!”
She had genuinely believed Nathan was just being a noble fiancé, defending both his soon–to–be wife and
her delicate cousin. Instead, she was watching her precious daughter sleep with her future son–in–law in a luxury car bought with stolen money.
The lies shattered into a million pieces. Faced with the undeniable truth, Chloe’s mouth hung open, but no words came out.
The detective had seen enough. *Smack.* He slapped the manila folder shut. In one fluid motion, he pulled the handcuffs from his belt, grabbed Chloe by the wrist, and ratcheted the steel tight, cuffing her directly to the metal hoop on the interrogation table.
The sharp metallic click snapped Vivian out of her
stupor. Adultery didn’t matter right now–prison did.
She lunged at the detective, grabbing his arm and
screaming hysterically that it was just a family misunderstanding, begging him to drop the charges. immediately.
Ethan cut her off, handing a final sheet of paper to the detective.
“Unfortunately, before I stepped foot inside this precinct, I already filed all the formal affidavits on
behalf of my client,” Ethan’s voice was ice–cold and sobering. “The paperwork is locked in. Grand larceny to the tune of a half–million dollars, coupled with felony identity theft. That makes this a major
criminal case, prosecuted by the state. You couldn’t drop the charges now even if you begged on your knees. The best outcome you can hope for is that she
serves less than ten years.”
With the precinct descending into absolute,
screaming chaos, Ethan placed a firm, grounding
hand on the small of my back and smoothly guided
me out of the madhouse.
Pushing through the heavy double doors, the
blinding midday sun hit my face. For the first time in twenty years, I felt like I could actually breathe. The suffocating weight of false accusations and constant abuse had finally been lifted. I let out a long, shuddering sigh of pure relief.
“Nice work,” I said, looking up at the man beside me.
Ethan popped the passenger door of his sleek sedan. Taking out the trash is what I do. Get in. I’ll take you
home.”
A bitter smile tugged at the corners of my mouth. I told him that those bloodsuckers had completely overrun my house. Aside from the clothes on my back, I didn’t have a home to go back to anymore.
Half an hour later, the rich, savory scent of seared ribeye filled the air of a quiet, upscale downtown steakhouse. It was the perfect meal to celebrate my rebirth and my newly cleared name. I picked up my silver knife and fork, ready to cut into the meat, but a
slight movement across the street caught my eye.
I slowly lowered my knife.
Peering through the restaurant’s massive floor–to-
ceiling glass windows, I saw him standing half–hidden in the shadows of an alleyway.
Nathan.
He had followed us here. His dark eyes were locked onto our table, tracking my every move like a venomous snake waiting for the perfect moment to strike.