CHAPTER 408: CONFESSION

I sat down across from Eric, my body tense, every instinct screaming at me to leave.

But I stayed.

Ash settled into her chair, pulling out her phone and setting it face-down on the table between us. Recording, probably.

"Alright, Eric," she said briskly. "Tell Kael what you told me. About Sarah."

Eric shifted in his seat, his hands clasped together on the table. He looked uncomfortable. Guilty.

Good.

"It started about seven months into my relationship with Aria," he began, his voice quiet. "Sarah... she came on to me."

I felt my jaw tighten.

"That’s a fucking pathetic excuse to cheat don’t you think?" I said flatly.

Eric flinched but nodded. "I know. I’m not trying to justify it. I’m just telling you what happened."

"Then keep talking," I said.

"It started small," Eric went on, his voice gaining a bit more confidence now that I wasn’t interrupting. "She’d text me. Ask to meet up for coffee. Said she was worried about Aria and wanted to make sure I was treating her right. I thought she was just being a good friend."

He paused, swallowing hard.

"But then one night, Aria was working late, and Sarah showed up at my place. She was... different. Flirty. Touchy. And I—" He stopped, shame flickering across his face. "I let It happen."

"And then she started blackmailing me," Eric continued. "She had photos. Videos. Threatened to send them to Aria if I didn’t do what she wanted."

That got my attention.

"Which was?

"Photos. Videos. Things she’d taken without me knowing." His voice dropped. "She told me to break up with Aria. Said if I didn’t, she’d send everything to Aria herself. Make it look even worse than it was."

"And you did," I said. It wasn’t a question.

"I tried to wait it out," Eric said. "Tried to figure out a way to tell Aria without destroying everything. But then Aria lost her job."

My eyes narrowed. "What?"

"She made some mistake at work. A big one. Got fired over it." Eric looked at me. "I’m sure Sarah orchestrated it. Aria was too careful to make that kind of error on her own."

I remembered because I saw the mistake and made sure she was fired.

"Aria found out about the cheating on her own," Eric continued. "She didn’t know it was Sarah I was sleeping with. She just knew I’d betrayed her, and she ended things. I tried to tell her the truth, tried to explain, but she wouldn’t listen."

He paused, his gaze flickering to me before darting away immediately.

I was glaring at him. I knew I was. The urge to reach across the table and break something was strong.

Eric swallowed hard and continued.

"Even after we broke up, even after I tried getting her back and kept failing..." He trailed off, looking ashamed. "I was still sleeping with Sarah."

"What?" The word came out sharper than I intended.

"She’d call me," Eric said quickly. "Anytime she felt like it. And I’d go. I don’t know why. I was pathetic. Desperate. She had this hold over me—"

I felt my patience snap.

"What exactly are you trying to say?" I demanded, leaning forward. "You cheated on Aria, got blackmailed, tried to win her back, and kept sleeping with the woman who ruined your relationship? What the fuck is the point of this story?"

Ash scoffed, throwing a disgusted look at Eric. "Yeah, Eric. What’s the fucking point? Because right now, you just sound like a spineless piece of shit."

Eric nodded, his hands trembling slightly on the table.

"We’d meet up at my place. Sometimes hers. And one of the last times we had sex..." He hesitated. "The condom broke."

I went very still.

"I didn’t realize it until after," Eric continued. "Not until she was already gone. By the time I figured it out and tried to contact her, she’d blocked me. Completely cut me off."

Ash leaned forward. "Tell him what you think."

Eric’s eyes met mine for a brief second before dropping again.

"I think the baby Sarah’s carrying might be mine," he said quietly.

The words hung in the air.

I didn’t move. Didn’t react. Just let them sink in.

"But I don’t know how to prove it," Eric added quickly. "Not unless she agrees to a DNA test. And she never would. Not willingly."

Ash’s expression hardened. "Which is exactly why you’re going to come forward and testify against her. With your statement and whatever evidence you have to back up your claim."

"Yeah I know." Eric nodded. "That’s why I agreed to meet. I feel—" His voice cracked slightly. "I feel terrible about what I did to Aria. Betraying her like that because of my own insecurity and low self-esteem. I was a coward."

He looked up at me again, and this time he held my gaze.

"I’ve seen the way Sarah gets when it comes to Aria," he said. "The look in her eyes. It’s not normal. It’s not... healthy. She thinks she’s protecting Aria, but she’s just isolating her. Hurting her. And it’s terrifying."

His hands clenched on the table.

"Sarah is mentally unwell," Eric said. "And she’s dangerous."

"But you still chose to keep fucking her," Ash cut in, her voice dripping with contempt. A dangerous smile curved her lips. "You’re a piece of shit regardless of your reasons."

"I—I know, I just—"

"You’re done," Ash interrupted. "You can leave now. My P.A. will contact you about the testimony."

Eric stammered something else, but Ash waved him off dismissively.

He stood, nodded awkwardly in my direction, and left without another word.

The silence that followed felt heavy.

I stared at the empty chair across from me, processing everything I’d just heard.

"So," Ash said after a moment, turning to me. "What do you think?"

I leaned back in my chair, my expression carefully blank.

"It doesn’t matter," I said.

Ash’s eyebrows shot up. "Excuse me?"

"It doesn’t matter," I repeated. "Not when Aria still thinks I’m a monster."

"Kael—"

"She’s gone, Ash. She doesn’t want anything to do with me. And honestly?" I felt something cold settle in my chest. "Maybe that’s for the best."

Ash went quiet for a moment, studying me.

Then...

"You sound like you’re trying to convince yourself more than me."

I didn’t say anything. .

But she continued, "You know... I found out where Aria is."

My body tensed before I could stop it.

"Don’t," I said, my voice low. "Don’t bother her."

Ash tilted her head, a small smile playing at her lips. "You don’t look surprised."

"I’m leaving," I said, pushing my chair back.

But before I could stand, Ash’s hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me back down.

"We’re not done," she said firmly.

"Ash—"

She was already reaching into her bag, pulling out a bulky manila file. She slapped it down on the table between us.

"Look," she commanded.

I stared at the file for a moment, then flipped it open.

The first thing I saw was a header: CRIMINAL CASE FILE – HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION

My eyes scanned the page. Victim name. Date of death. Location where the body was found.

Then I turned the page.

And froze.

The images were graphic. Professional crime scene photographs, clinical and detailed.

A body. Or what was left of one.

Limbs severed cleanly. Torso separated from the legs. Arms detached at the shoulders. The head...

I forced myself to keep looking, to understand what I was seeing.

"What is this?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"That," Ash said quietly, "is Cain. The boy Sarah dated back in college."

I flipped through more pages. Police reports. Witness statements. Evidence logs.

"His body was found on a Saturday morning by his roommate," Ash continued, her tone clinical now. Detached. "During the investigation, police discovered messages from a few days before he was murdered. Messages in a group chat where Cain talked about using Sarah to get close to Aria."

I stopped flipping, my eyes landing on photocopies of dozens of text messages dating back.

[ Bro, Sarah is so fucking desperate lmao]

[Have you SEEN Aria? That body? Fuck, man ]

More and more and more messages.

Endless.

My stomach turned.

"Sarah was questioned," Ash said. "She denied everything. Said she had no idea what Cain was doing, that she was devastated by his death. She played the grieving girlfriend perfectly."

I kept reading. Interview transcripts. Sarah’s statement, clean and composed and utterly convincing.

"The case dragged on for weeks," Ash continued. "No leads. No concrete evidence. And then suddenly, they arrested someone. An old homeless man. A drunk with a history of petty crime. He was found with Cain’s wallet and watch."

She paused, letting that sink in.

"He was convicted," she said. "Sentenced to life. Case closed. Everybody leaves happily ever after."

I looked up at her, my mind calm.

Ash leaned forward, her eyes locked on mine.

"So here’s the million-dollar question, Kael," she said quietly. "Do you think she did it?"

I looked back down at the file. At the photographs. At the meticulous way the body had been dismembered. At Sarah’s pristine statement, her perfectly crafted alibi.

At the convenient arrest of a man who couldn’t defend himself properly.

Aof course she did.