"I happen to have a file you might be interested in. Do you want to see it?" Finn asked.


    Evangeline looked up at him, her eyes still wet with tears.


    Finn took out his phone and pulled up a document. It was a report from a garage owned by The Lockridges, something he had stumbled upon while investigating her past.


    "This is from the car Poppy was driving that day. The diagnostic report shows that at the moment of impact, she didn''t brake. She floored it."


    Evangeline froze. It meant the crash was intentional. Poppy had tried to kill her. But just as a flicker of hope ignited within her, it was extinguished.


    "A report isn''t enough proof," she said dejectedly. "And the car has already been disposed of."


    When she had woken up after the crash, Soren had already had the ident cleaned up and officially ruled an ident. Even if she had contested it, she was in no position to investigate. She had neither the power to challenge Soren nor the money to uncover the truth. And she knew that even if she found proof, Soren would do anything to protect Poppy.


    Finn smiled faintly. "What if I told you the car was never destroyed?"


    Evangeline stared at him in shock. "Really?"


    He nodded. "And not just the car. I have a backup of the dashcam footage and the internal surveince." He had noticed the car when the Fawkes family sent it to be scrapped. Because of its origin, he''d had his people hold on to it. He never imagined it would be so useful.


    "If you want to sue Poppy for attempted murder, The Lockridges can provide you with the bestwyers," he added.


    Evangeline was silent for a moment, her gaze dropping.


    "Having second thoughts?" Finn asked, raising an eyebrow.


    She shook her head. "It''s not enough."


    If she tried to Sue Poppy, Soren would move heaven and earth to stop her. Even if she managed to ovee his interference and get the case to court, the penalty for causing a miscarriage wasn''t Severe. Poppy wouldn''t be locked up for long, and with the Fawkes family''s influence, her punishment would be even lighter. Her child was dead, but Poppy would get off with a p on the wrist.


    It wasn''t enough.


    An idea sparked in her mind. She pulled the engagement invitation from her purse, her eyes growing cold. Poppy wanted to y the part of the gentle kind-hearted woman, using this marriage to climb the socialdder.


    Fine. She would show everyone exactly who Poppy really was. She would let Soren


    —and the world—see the true face of the woman he had loved all these years.


    With the factory issue resolved and no further interference from the Fawkes family, the following days went smoothly. Evangeline''s role was mainly supervisory, which?eft her free to gather evidence from the car crash. With Finn''s help, the process was much faster than she''d expected. At the same time, she started taking self-defense lessons from him. After just a few days, she could feel her strength growing. If Soren ever tried to manhandle her again, she felt confident she could hold her own.


    Not that he had tried. Soren hadn''t contacted her at all. And, just as Poppy had said, within two days the Fawkes family officially announced the engagement of Soren and Poppy.


    ***