A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 78

Brinley had acted so high and mighty at the hospital, trying to crush her like an ant. Well, this is what happened when the ant refused to be crushed.

"You've lived in Marina City long enough," Fairfax snapped, his voice tight with frustration. "You know what her mother is like. You think Herbert was helping you last night? He was setting you up to be killed!"

He knew Harriet would not let this go. The thought of her clandestine retaliation made his blood run cold.

Starla, however, simply took a sip of water.

His mention of Herbert was met with a pointed silence, which only fueled Fairfax's suspicions about their relationship. His breathing grew ragged with anger and jealousy. "Fine. Tell me what you want to do next. I'll do it for you. Just stop going to Herbert. You want to raise hell? I'll light the match!"

It was better than watching her rely on another man.

Starla raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his outburst.

"Tell me!" he demanded, his control fraying. "What will it take for you to stop? I'll do it all for you, right now!"

They stared at each other, his eyes burning with a desperate intensity.

A slow, deliberate smile spread across Starla’s face.

"I want half of Brinley's life," she said, each word a perfectly polished stone of vengeance. "Are you man enough to deliver that?"

She had lost two children at Brinley's hands. Half a life in return seemed more than fair.

The air went still. Fairfax, who had been on the verge of exploding, now stood frozen, his lips pressed into a thin, hard line.

Without another word, he picked up the phone he had dropped—miraculously, it wasn't completely destroyed—and left without a backward glance.

As soon as he was gone, Molly rushed to Starla's side. "Ma'am, Mr. Yelchin really does care about you. That soup… he was up at dawn making it himself."

Starla felt a wave of nausea. The knowledge that he had made it made her want to vomit. She ignored Molly and stood up, intending to leave for her biotech company. But as she took a step, a strange sensation washed over her.

Just as she was about to look down, Molly gasped in horror. "Ma'am! You're… you're bleeding so much!"

A dark stain was spreading on the sofa where she had been sitting. Lost in her anger with Fairfax, Starla hadn't even noticed. Now, she felt a warm liquid trickling down her legs. Her vision started to blacken at the edges.

Molly quickly helped her back onto the sofa and frantically dialed Fairfax's number, but the call went unanswered.