Chapter 13 - The Husband Behind the Glass
Julian requested a meeting.
Audrey agreed only after prosecutors confirmed it would be recorded and separated by reinforced glass.
He entered the detention interview room wearing an orange uniform.
Without the mansion, tailored clothes, and Eleanor’s protection, he looked smaller.
Audrey sat across from him.
Thomas and Detective Ramirez watched from another room.
Julian picked up the phone.
“I never wanted it to go this far.”
Audrey almost laughed.
“You slapped me in front of two officers.”
“I panicked.”
“You forged my name.”
“My mother said the money would be replaced.”
“You insured my life.”
“I didn’t plan to hurt you.”
“I heard you say the policy would solve the problem.”
Julian looked down.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Audrey asked the question she had carried since finding Caroline’s files.
“Did you know who I was when we met?”
Julian closed his eyes.
“Yes.”
The answer hurt more than she expected.
Their first conversation at a charity event had felt effortless.
He remembered her favorite book.
He sent coffee to her office.
He listened when she spoke about losing her mother.
Every gesture had been researched.
“My mother told me to meet you,” he said.
“Did she tell you to marry me?”
“Yes.”
“Did you ever love me?”
Julian’s face changed.
“I think I did.”
Audrey shook her head.
“You don’t hit someone you love because they refuse to sign away their life.”
“I was under pressure.”
“You always have a reason.”
“My mother controlled everything.”
“And you controlled me.”
Julian pressed closer to the glass.
“I can testify against her. I can help you recover the money.”
“You want a deal.”
“I want a chance.”
“You had hundreds.”
He began crying.
Audrey once would have rushed to comfort him.
Now she saw the tears as another tool.
Julian said Eleanor ordered him to isolate Audrey, create the false medical record, and search for Caroline’s evidence.
He admitted he planted prescription bottles.
He admitted creating fake messages.
He admitted approving the attempt to damage Thomas’s brakes.
But he insisted he never planned Audrey’s death.
Then prosecutors played a recovered voicemail Julian had sent Eleanor after Audrey discovered the loan.
“She’s becoming impossible to control. If the court won’t give me the trust, we may need to trigger the policy.”
Julian stared at the table.
Audrey’s voice remained steady.
“You weren’t trapped by your mother. You became her.”
She put down the phone.
Julian stood.
“Audrey, wait.”
She walked away.
May you like
For the first time, he could not follow.
👉 Julian’s confession completed the criminal case, but Eleanor still believed she could destroy Audrey during the public trial.
