The Accident Before the Marriage
Chapter 10 - The Accident Before the Marriage
Detective Lena Brooks reviewed the original crash.
Claire’s brake system showed no defect.
The road was wet, but the car’s data recorder indicated delayed steering and no braking response from the driver.
That pattern could result from sedation.
Pharmacy records showed Vanessa collected the same medication later prescribed to Oliver two days before Claire died.
She claimed it was for her own insomnia.
The bottle was never found.
Lucas’s phone placed him near Claire’s office on the afternoon of the crash. He said he attended a nearby meeting.
No meeting record existed.
Investigators found an erased voice message in Claire’s cloud archive.
Vanessa said:
“We can resolve this privately. Do not destroy everyone because you are angry.”
Claire answered:
“Return the trust money before Monday.”
The recording ended.
Evidence did not yet prove murder.
It proved motive, access, and dishonesty.
Jonathan felt the marriage collapse backward through time.
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Vanessa had entered his life as the woman who helped him survive Claire’s death.
Now investigators considered whether she helped cause it.
