Winning Back His Ex's Wife's Broken Heart by Hayley

Richard

pov.

The call from the police came just after dawn, jarring me awake in the cold, uncomfortable chair next to Sarah's hospital bed.

I fumbled with my phone, heart pounding as I stepped into the hallway to answer.

"We've located Susan," the officer said. "She's in custody. We'd like you to come down to the station."

My grip tightened around the phone. The relief I felt was fleeting, quickly replaced by anger. "I'll be there," I said, my voice low.

Zoe appeared beside me as I hung up. She had been sitting with Sarah through the night, taking turns with Martins to ensure I wasn't alone.

Her eyes were heavy with exhaustion, but her concern for Sarah mirrored my own.

"Was that about Susan?" she asked.

I nodded. "They've got her. I'm heading to the station."

"I'm coming with you," she said firmly.

"No," I said, shaking my head. "Stay here. I need someone I trust to be with Sarah."

She hesitated, then sighed. "Fine. But keep me updated."

When I arrived at the police station, Martins was already there, leaning against a wall in the waiting area. He straightened when he saw me, his expression grim.

"This better be good," he muttered.

"Let's hope it gives us answers," I replied.

The officer led us to the interrogation room, where Susan sat handcuffed to the table. She looked nothing like the woman I remembered-the confident, polished ex who had once been a part of my life. Instead, she was disheveled, her hair tangled and her face pale. But her eyes still held that familiar glint of cunning, a reminder of why I had ended things with her in the first place.

"Richard," she said with a small, almost mocking smile as I entered. "Long time no see."

"Susan," I said coldly, taking the seat across from her. Martins stood beside me, his arms crossed.

The officer gestured for Susan to speak, and for a moment, she just sat there, staring at me. Then, she shrugged. "Well, I guess this is the part where I spill my guts, huh?"

"Start with why," I said, my voice hard. "Why did you do this? Why involve Isabella? Why target Sarah?"

Her smile faltered, and she leaned back in her chair, studying me. "You really don't get it, do you?" she said bitterly. "You think you can just toss people aside and move on without consequences?"

I frowned. "What are you talking about? We broke up a year ago. You were the one who couldn't let go."

who humiliated me," she shot back. "You moved on so quickly, parading your perfect little fiancée around while I was still

about humiliation," Martins interjected, his tone sharp. "This is about you putting lives at risk. You helped a mentally unstable woman escape a psychiatric hospital. You gave her

her voice low and venomous. "Because I wanted you to feel what it's

jaw tightened, anger bubbling beneath the surface. "So you manipulated Isabella? Used her as a pawn in your

on my nerves. "Isabella was easy to manipulate. She was already obsessed with you, convinced you were her dead fiance. All I had to do was give

sick," I said, my voice

smile widened. "Maybe. But it worked, didn't it? Look at you now. Your precious Sarah is lying in a hospital bed, your baby's future uncertain. And you're here, scrambling to put the pieces together. Tell me, Richard, how does it feel?" I stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. Martins placed a hand on my shoulder, grounding me before I could say or do something I'd regret. "You've just confessed to orchestrating this entire mess," Martins said coolly. "That's all we needed

room. She didn't resist, but as

ending while it lasts," she whispered. "It's only a matter of time before it all

didn't respond, refusing to give

***

at the hospital, I relayed everything to Zoe and Martins. Sarah was still unconscious, her face pale against the hospital pillows. The sight of her

evident. "The good news is we have enough to bury

hospital where she belongs, we can focus on Sarah and the baby." "Burying her isn't enough," I

right now, you need

of Susan brought a strange kind of relief mixed with fury. I knew this was far from

hospital, I sat by Sarah's bedside, her pale face and the sound of the machines hooked to her creating an ache in my

hand gently, scared that even the slightest pressure might

the confrontation with Isabelle and the discovery of Susan's involvement. The doctors assured me Sarah's condition was stable, but the word

went, checking her vitals, adjusting the machines, and offering me sympathetic smiles, but none of it lessened the weight

and Martins were my lifelines. They stayed close, taking turns keeping me company

on the other hand, was already in full lawyer mode, piecing together a case that would hold Susan accountable for

to review the evidence. Martins came with

detective laid out what they had

psychiatric hospital," he said, pointing to a series of grainy

nurse. We're

forward, staring at the

nodded grimly. "That was Susan as well. We found that the access code to your penthouse hadn't been changed in years, and she

gut. I'd been so focused on protecting Sarah that I hadn't thought to check something as basic as changing the

I muttered, running a

that," Martins said sharply. "This is on her, not you. You trusted someone who took advantage of

but didn't respond. Fault or not, the guilt was still

case so airtight that Susan wouldn't have a chance to wiggle out of it. He spent hours on the phone, coordinating with

he said one evening as we sat in the hospital cafeteria. Zoe had taken over my spot by Sarah's bedside, giving me a rare

to claim diminished responsibility, but we have her confession on record. That's our strongest

moment was consumed by thoughts of Sarah-her pale face, the steady beep of the machines, the tiny movements I swore I saw when I stared at her long enough. "Richard, are you listening?" Martins asked, his

shaking myself out of it. "Confession. Strong

his chair. "Look, I get it. Your mind's with Sarah, and it should be. But this

"I just... I can't stop thinking about her,

The baby's alive. That's what

turned into weeks, and Sarah's condition remained unchanged. The doctors said her