---- Chapter 7 Derek' s world imploded. Panic, raw and overwhelming, seized him. He scrambled for his phone, his fingers fumbling as he tried to dial my number. "This line has been disconnected." The automated voice was a death sentence. He tried again. Same result. | had blocked him. | was gone. "This is your fault!" he screamed, whirling on his friends. He grabbed Edison by the collar. "What did you do to her?" Edison, his face ashen, pushed him away. "Me? What about you? This whole thing was your idea!" "It was for Else!" Derek roared, his eyes wild with a mixture of grief and fury. "Don't you dare put this on me!" Else shrieked, backing away from him. "You're the one who wanted to punish her! You're the one who set up the bet!" "Edison was the one who drugged her!" she added, pointing a trembling finger at him. "And you enjoyed every second of it!" Edison shot back. "You and your sick obsession with your brother!" ---- "She's my wife!" Derek bellowed, the words sounding hollow even to his own ears. He lunged at Edison, his fists flying, a blind, desperate rage fueling his attack. "She was carrying my son!" The irony was lost on him. Just days ago, he had denied this child with every fiber of his being. Now, in the face of this horrific proof, a twisted, possessive grief had taken root. Sirens wailed in the distance, growing closer. The police, alerted by the hospital about a possible violent assault and a suspicious miscarriage, were on their way. They arrived to a scene of chaos. Derek, covered in blood-mine and now Edison's-pummeling his friend on the pavement. Else, screaming hysterically. And the gruesome contents of the box, a silent testament to the night's horrors. The police swarmed the scene. They pulled Derek off Edison and slammed him against a car. "Derek Hubbard, you're under arrest for assault," an officer said, cuffing his hands behind his back. "Assault?" Derek repeated, dazed. "She killed my son!" Just then, a sleek black car pulled up, and Derek's personal assistant, a man named Leo, rushed out, his face pale with panic. "Derek! It's a disaster!" Leo cried, holding up his phone. ---- The screen was filled with headlines. "Hubbard Enterprises CEO in Violent Sex Scandal." "Leaked Videos Show Billionaire's Depraved Games." My evidence. | had released it. "The stock has plummeted 80%," Leo stammered. "The board is calling for an emergency meeting. They're going to oust you. The company is collapsing." The phone's screen showed a video, now going viral. It was the footage from my living room. Of Derek, Else, and Edison planning my assault. Of them discussing the "submissive serum." The public comments were a flood of outrage and disgust. "This man is a monster." "And that sister of his... they're sick." "| hope they rot in hell." "Throw them in jail and lose the key." The weight of it all crushed Derek. His company, his reputation, his freedom... all gone in a matter of hours. He looked at the faces of the officers, at the disgust in their eyes. He was no longer a powerful CEO. He was a monster. He was being led to a police car when he saw the note again, lying on the ground. "You won the bet." ---- The words echoed in his shattered mind. He had won. And he had lost everything