The Rose He Killed novel Chapter 9

Chapter 11 Months of Silence 2

+25 Points

Chapter 11: Months of Silence-2

Then she opened the door.

I watched her expression change, watched hope die in real time. Watched her hand move to her stomach, watched her try to speak, watched Jade turn those crocodile tears on like a faucet.

The footage had no audio, but I didn’t need it. I remembered every word I’d said, every accusation I’d thrown at her, every cruel dismissal. I remembered telling her to “get rid of it,” like our child was trash to be disposed of. Our child. Mine and Bella’s.

The private investigator had confirmed it. The timeline matched perfectly. She’d been months pregnant that night. Those first few weeks when I’d been traveling constantly for business, coming home late, barely speaking to her.

She must have been terrified, trying to figure out how to tell her husband she was pregnant when he treated her like furniture. And when she’d finally tried, I’d destroyed her. My phone buzzed again, this time it was Richard Hart.

Caleb, we need to discuss the quarterly projections. Also, Jade mentioned you’ve been distant lately. Is everything alright?

I stared at the message, rage building in my chest like a living thing. Richard, who’d orchestrated this entire disaster, who’d sold his daughter like property and then thrown her away when she became inconvenient. Richard, who’d fed me lies about Bella for months, poisoning every interaction.

The investigator had uncovered that too. The doctored photos Richard had shown me of Bella supposedly meeting with other men, always with convenient explanations about her manipulative nature. The stories about her being “unstable” and “gold-digging.” All lies. All carefully constructed manipulation to keep me from ever seeing my wife clearly.

I called him. He picked up on the first ring, his voice smooth and satisfied. “Caleb! Good to hear from you. I was beginning to think”

“Stay away from me.” My voice came out cold enough to freeze. “You, Jade, Margaret. All of you. If I see any of you near my building, near my home, near anything that’s mine, I’ll destroy Hart Industries so thoroughly there won’t be rubble left to remember it by.”

Silence. Then, carefully, “Caleb, I don’t understand, did something happen?”

“You know exactly what happened.” I stood and walked to the window, looking out at the city lights. “You sold me your daughter, fed me lies about her, and then helped Jade destroy her when she became inconvenient. You threw your pregnant daughter into the street like garbage.”

“Now wait just a minute.”

“I’m done waiting. I’m done with your excuses. Whatever alliance we had, whatever business relationship existed, it’s over. I’ll honor the existing contracts because I’m not my father, but after that, you’re dead to me.”

I hung up before he could respond and blocked his number, then Jade’s, then Margaret’s. Let them scramble. Let them panic. It was less than they deserved.

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Chapter 11 Months of Silence 2

+25 Points

My office door opened without a knock, and Jade walked in like she owned the place, her dress too tight, her smile too bright.

“Caleb, baby, I’ve been trying to reach you all week.” She moved toward me, but I held up a hand.

“Get out.”

She stopped, confusion flickering across her face. “What?”

“Get. Out.” I enunciated each word carefully. “And if you come back, if you call, if you so much as look in my direction, I’ll file harassment charges. Do you understand?”

“But we-what we have” She reached for me, and I stepped back so fast she stumbled.

“We have nothing. We never did, you were a mistake I made when I was drunk, stupid and angry, and you used it to destroy my wife. Now get out of my building before I have security remove you.”

Her face twisted into something ugly. “Your wife? That pathetic little mouse? Caleb, she was nobody. She was boring and weak and completely beneath you. I did you a favor getting rid of her.”

The rage that had been building in my chest finally broke free. I moved toward her, and she backed up, real fear finally showing in her eyes.

“That ‘pathetic little mouse’ was worth a hundred of you,” I said softly, dangerously. “She was genuine and kind and brilliant, and I was too fucking blind to see it until after I’d destroyed her. But you know what the worst part is, Jade? The absolute worst part?”

She shook her head, backing toward the door.

“I’m going to find her.” I smiled, cold and sharp. “I’m going to find my wife and my child, and I’m going to spend the rest of my life making this right. And when I do, the first thing I’ll tell her is that you meant nothing. That you were just a momentary lapse in judgment that I regret every single day.”

“She’s gone, Caleb.” Jade’s voice turned vicious. “She’s probably dead in a ditch somewhere. Or she got rid of the baby like you told her to and moved on with her life. Either way, she’s never coming back.”

“Get out.”

She left, finally, and I sank into my chair, exhausted by the rage, by the guilt, by the endless loop of what-ifs that plagued me every waking moment.

What if I’d listened to her that night?

What if I’d questioned Richard’s stories?

What if I’d just talked to my wife instead of ignoring her for months?

What if I’d been a better man?

My phone buzzed with a new message from the investigator.

Sir, we can’t find any trace of Bella Hart. It’s like she vanished. What about the card she used?

I typed back immediately. The last stop. Where was it exactly?

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