The Wife he threw Away (Claire and Lucian) novel Chapter 104

CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FOUR LUCIAN’S POV

By the time I got back to the mansion, the glass was gone.

Not all of it, not completely, but enough that someone who hadn’t been there wouldn’t notice what had happened.

The staff moved through the house quickly but quietly- too quietly.

The usual rhythm of the mansion-conversation, footsteps, the low hum of activity-had been replaced with something tighter.

Every movement now felt measured, every voice lowered.

They were watching me, but trying not to make it obvious.

It didn’t work.

I stepped further into the main hall, my gaze sweeping across the space once-the ceiling, the fixtures, the section that had already been partially restored. Efficient, clean, almost convincing.

Almost.

“Sir.” My assistant called. “Security footage is ready. All available angles have been compiled.”

“Good.” I nodded. “Lock down all access points. No one leaves until I say so.” 1

“Yes, sir.”

“Phones stay on. No one deletes anything. I want vendor logs, entry records, internal access-everything.”

“Yes, sir.”

The shift was immediate. Staff started moving faster around me. The tension thickened.

The realization dawned on me slowly- they weren’t hiding something. They were afraid of it.

I turned and headed toward the study.

The screens were already set up when I walked in.

I didn’t sit immediately. I stood there for a second, taking it in- the time stamps, the multiple feeds.

Then I stepped forward and pressed play.

The footage rolled. At first, it was nothing unusual- guests, movements, conversations.

I fast-forwarded. Then paused and rewound. I slowed it down a little bit more.

There.

Claire was seated, with Margot beside her.

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I adjusted the frame slightly, isolating their section of the room.

Everything looked normal.

Then I let the footage run, and watched the moment again. And again.

The collapse happened cleanly- too cleanly. The structure didn’t sway first. It weaken gradually.

It just suddenly gave away, like something had told it to.

“Sir… there’s something else.”

I didn’t look away from the screen. From the footage of the collapse.

“Show me.”

Another feed came up.

It was a footage from a side entrance- the vendor access point.

People were moving in and out-staff, delivery personnel, equipment handlers.

Then- a man in all black. He walked in with the vendors.

Nothing about him stood out at first glance- neutral clothing, head slightly lowered. He moved like he belonged there.

But he didn’t stop with the other vendors he came with.

He kept walking. Down the corridor- toward the restricted section.

“Pause.” I commanded.

The image froze.

“Run it forward.”

The camera followed him for a few seconds longer.

Then-

Static.

The feed cut and silence filled the room. That was strange. Why would the cameras suddenly malfunction?

“Do we have another angle?” I asked, almost desperate.

“No, sir. Cameras in that section went offline for approximately three minutes.”

Three minutes. Just enough time for him to do whatever he had come to do.

“Bring up the exit logs.” I ordered.

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My assistant moved quickly. “Sir… there’s no record of him leaving.”

Of course there wasn’t.

I leaned back slightly, eyes still on the frozen frame.

“He knew where to go,” I said.

That was the first thing I noticed- and it sat heavy on my mind.

The man walked without guessing, without getting caught up. It wasn’t luck. He knew.

Which meant he didn’t work alone.

“Sir… I think you should know that there was a last-minute adjustment.” One of my assistants stated.

I turned my head slightly.

“What adjustment?”

“The seating arrangement. And the alignment of the installation.”

I turned completely to face him.

He continued. “It shifted the focal point slightly.”

“How slightly?” I asked.

Another pause.

“It placed Ms. Claire directly under the structure.”

The room went very still.

“Who approved it?” I asked, but somehow, I already knew the answer before he spoke.

“Your fiancé, Ms. Sterling.”

I didn’t react immediately. I let the information settle, before I turned to one of the staff.

“Where is Camilla?” I asked calmly.

I wouldn’t transfer aggression to her, but I needed answers.

She was brought in within minutes, looking shaken and pale, with her hands clasped tightly in front of her.

“You were overseeing the internal arrangements.” I stated.

“Yes, sir.”

“I gave very specific instructions regarding the event.”

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Camilla nodded firmly. “Yes, sir.”

“And yet the seating was changed.” A pause. “Explain.”

“She insisted, sir,” Camilla said quickly. Desperately. “Miss Eva said it was a minor adjustment. Just positioning. She said it wouldn’t affect anything.”

Of course she did.

I held Camilla’s gaze for a moment longer, then looked away. She wasn’t to blame for this.

Eva hadn’t taken over the event. She had adjusted the seating arrangements.

A subtle change, but now… now it looked intentional.

I exhaled slowly.

The pieces were there, but they didn’t quite fit.

Not yet.

No, Eva couldn’t possibly be so… diabolical.

Theft-I could see.

Manipulation-expected.

But this? Murder?

I shook my head once. No.

Eva was many things.

But a murderer? No that was too far.

Or maybe I just didn’t want it to be.

I moved on, expelling the thought. “Bring in the coordinator.”

Then the assistants came in, and next was the security.

One after the other, they all answered the same questions. They all displayed the same confusion, the same fear. Consistently.

No cracks, no slips, no omissions.

They weren’t lying. They didn’t know.

Which meant- they were used.

By the time the last one stepped out, the tension in the room had become so thick, it was suffocating.

The household staff came in next.

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I leaned forward, bracing my hands against the table, trying to contain my anger and frustration before I started speaking.

“This happened under your supervision,” I said, my voice no longer as even as before.

No one spoke.

“My house!” My voice rose before I could even think of remaining calm. “An event in honor of my

mother!”

Still nothing.

“And because of your negligence-” The words came out before I could stop them. “My wife almost died.”

The door opened then. And I didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

“Your wife?” Eva’s voice cut through the silent room.

She stood in the doorway, composed as ever, but her eyes-her eyes were lit with something far less polished.

Her tone was sharp, but controlled. Barely hiding the fury beneath it.

I straightened slowly.

“You ordered me to leave the hospital,” she started. “In front of everyone.”

I didn’t respond.

She took a step closer, her eyes shining with rage. “And now you’re here, throwing accusations around over an accident.”

“Someone almost died in this house,” I said, my voice colder now.

“And yet all everyone- including news outlets-is talking about is you playing hero for her,” she shot

back.

Of course.

Anyone else would be worried about what happened in the mansion today- and how much worse it could have been. But not Eva.

No, all she was worried about was appearances.

I exhaled, shaking my head slowly. “You’re worried about the wrong thing, Eva.”

Her expression hardened then. “Am I?” she snapped. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’re still more concerned about her than the woman carrying your child.”

The room felt smaller then. Tighter.

“Maybe if she matters that much to you,” Eva continued, her voice rising with every word. “You shouldn’t

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have divorced her.”

Silence followed, heavy and tense.

“… You’re right,” I said.

Her eyes widened-just slightly.

But that was more enough.

Something in her snapped then, and all the composure- everything she had ever held back-was suddenly gone.

“I wish she had died tonight.”

The words hung in the air- ugly, unfiltered, but real.

No one moved.

No one spoke.

I didn’t react immediately. I didn’t raise my voice or step forward. What good would that do?

I just looked at her. Really looked at her.

And for the first time-

I didn’t see what I thought I knew. Who I thought I knew.

“Sir…”

My assistant’s voice came from behind me, low and careful, knowing the gravity of what she had just interrupted.

“Access to the cameras wasn’t external.” She said, then swallowed. “It was done from inside the system.”

I didn’t turn.

My gaze stayed on Eva.

And in that moment, something in my mind settled.

Not anger, but something colder. Something clearer.

For the first time since the incident- I wasn’t guessing anymore.

I was starting to understand.

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