They Turned Me Into a Criminal in My First Life—This Time I Fight Back Chapter 03
A familiar voice rang out behind me.
“Vivienne, I never imagined you could be this cruel.”
I turned around.
Ethan was striding toward me, fury written all over his face. Clara followed closely behind him, her cheeks flushed as she clung to his arm like a shy, innocent girlfriend.
My stomach dropped.
I could only watch as the two of them approached.
Ethan looked remorseful as he addressed the crowd.
“The real killer is my wife.”
His voice cracked at just the right moment.
“Yesterday was supposed to be our wedding anniversary. I begged her to stay home with me, but she insisted on going out.”
He lowered his head and sighed heavily.
“Maybe this is partly my fault. If I’d stopped her from leaving, none of this would have happened.”
The performance was flawless.
Within seconds, the crowd’s sympathy shifted toward him.
Then he looked at me with heartbreaking disappointment.
“Vivienne, I just finished giving my statement to the police. Please… just confess.”
A cold laugh escaped me.
My gaze slid past him and landed directly on Clara.
“Why would I confess to a crime I didn’t commit?”
I stared her down.
“Clara Avery is the real murderer. Not me. Last night I was out of town on a business trip.”
“That’s a lie!”
Clara’s shrill voice cut me off.
Every head turned toward her.
She glared at me.
“Vivienne, stop lying. I saw you with another man yesterday. The two of you were all over each other. When I caught you, you didn’t even look ashamed.”
Her eyes flashed with triumph.
“And now you’re trying to frame me in front of the police and the victim’s family?”
She pulled out her phone and held it up.
A photo filled the screen.
In it, I was kissing a man.
Clara smirked.
“See? I have proof.”
The moment I saw the picture, I almost laughed.
If they could fabricate dashcam footage convincing enough to fool everyone, creating a fake photo would have been effortless.
The crowd erupted.
“Unbelievable. She’s not only a killer, she’s a cheater.”
“She’s married and sleeping around? What a slut.”
“Disgusting.”
And then my own husband joined the attack.
Pain filled Ethan’s face as he leaned weakly against Clara’s shoulder.
“Vivienne… I never thought you’d betray me like this.”
His voice trembled.
“You cheated on me behind my back. How could you?”
Then he grabbed one of the officers by the arm.
“Officer, please help me. Vivienne kidnapped that child because she can’t have children of her own.”
My heart skipped.
I looked at Ethan with amused disbelief.
The crowd immediately fell silent.
Ethan continued.
“When we got married, I found out her uterus had been damaged. She’s infertile.”
A collective gasp swept through the crowd.
“Damn, man. You married damaged goods?”
“So that’s her motive!”
“Officer, what are you waiting for? Arrest her already!”
Even though I’d lived through this nightmare once before, hearing it happen again still made panic claw at my chest.
I forced myself to stay calm.
“I have evidence.”
My voice rang across the plaza.
“I have witnesses and proof that I wasn’t the one who killed anyone.”
The noise died instantly.
Even the police officer frowned.
“We already checked your flight records. They show you arrived in Viremont early yesterday morning.”
He paused.
“The murder occurred at nine o’clock last night. How exactly does that eliminate you as a suspect?”