I walked into my boyfriend’s family barbecue twenty-seven weeks pregnant / Chapter 12 / 63

Chapter 12 - Denise's Last Stand

Denise had not taken her downfall quietly.

When the forensic audit revealed that she had forged Tyler’s late father’s signature to liquidate trust assets, the district attorney filed formal criminal charges. Rather than surrendering to authorities, Denise had posted a hundred-thousand-dollar bond through a private bondsman—and vanished from her country club residence.

"Claire, you need to stay inside with the doors locked," Jenna warned me over the phone on Tuesday morning, her voice tense. "The police went to serve the surrender notice at her home, and she wasn't there. Her phone is turned off, and her car is missing from the garage."

"Jenna, I have a non-stress test and an ultrasound scheduled for 10:00 AM," I said, feeling a cold knot of dread tighten in my stomach. I was thirty-three weeks pregnant now; my belly was large and heavy, and every movement felt cumbersome. "The doctor said we can't miss this appointment. The baby’s heart rate was slightly elevated last week."

"Owen is driving you, right?"

"He's pulling into my driveway now."

"Good. Have him stay by your side every single second. I'm calling the precinct to request an officer meet you at the clinic parking lot."

When Owen and I arrived at the women's health pavilion, the parking lot was quiet under the midday sun. We didn't see any police cruiser yet, but Owen walked right beside me, his arm supporting my back as we made our way toward the sliding glass doors of the medical complex.

Suddenly, tires screeched behind us.

A beat-up gray rental sedan swerved around the corner of the parking lane, slamming on the brakes barely ten feet from where we stood.

The driver's door flew open.

Out stepped Denise Mercer.

She looked unrecognizable. Her impeccably styled blonde hair was tangled and unwashed, pulled into a messy ponytail. She was wearing an oversized trench coat, dark sunglasses, and her face was gaunt, her eyes bloodshot and wild with hysteria.

"Claire!" she screamed, rushing toward us. "You ruined my family! You ruined my son!"

Owen stepped in front of me instantly, shielding my entire body with his broad frame. "Back off, Denise! Don't take another step!"

"Get out of my way, you ignorant brute!" Denise shrieked, clawing at Owen’s arm with manicured nails that were chipped and broken. "She took Tyler’s money! She turned him against me! I was the one who built that firm! I gave him everything!"

"Someone call security!" a nurse shouted from the entrance of the clinic, running back inside to trigger the alarm.

Denise’s eyes locked onto me over Owen’s shoulder. She reached deep into the pocket of her trench coat, her fingers curling around something heavy and metallic.