They All Said I Did It

The young guard snapped out of it and immediately pulled up the surveillance footage.

When it confirmed I had been cuffed in place the entire time, everyone exchanged uneasy looks.

A flicker of panic crossed Harry's eyes, but he steadied himself fast. "You can't just look at the room. Pull the footage from the deck where it happened, too."

The head of security brought up the deck cameras, and the crowd rushed over.

On screen, Cheryl and I walked to a quiet corner of the deck, talking. Then, in the span of a blink, something set us off. We started arguing.

Part of the view was blocked, so I couldn't clearly see Cheryl, but the man on screen looked agitated. In the middle of the argument, he kept turning his face toward the camera tucked in the corner.

A few seconds later, he shouted like he had lost control and shoved Cheryl hard. She went straight over the railing and into the ocean.

The man turned and ran, then the footage cut out.

My mind went blank.

The man in the video looked exactly like me. Even his height and build were the same.

But… The one who went to watch the sunset with Cheryl was supposed to be Harry. How did he turn into me?

Even the livestream chat froze.

[What's going on? How can the same person be in two places at once?]

[No way. Even identical twins wouldn't look this much alike!]

[There's no way to fake surveillance that fast. One cancels the other out. The evidence is useless!]

The streamer scratched his head, glancing between the screen and his phone. "There are witnesses and footage on both sides. Doesn't that count as reasonable doubt?"

Harry stood there, caught off guard.

It wasn't until the woman in black behind him cleared her throat that he snapped out of it.

"Take a good look. That's clearly Michael! In cases like this, the husband or wife is always the primary suspect. These guards are obviously covering for him. He must have paid them off. Don't let him fool you!"

Before his words even settled, my father rushed in from somewhere and struck me across the face.

"Michael, I didn't raise you to be this cruel! I know the company's strapped for cash. I already told you I'd find a way to fix it. You don't get to kill your wife for insurance money just because she wants a divorce!"

My father threw a stack of documents at me. The streamer hurried in close and zoomed in on them.

The chat exploded again.

[Two insurance policies? Am I seeing this right? If his wife dies, he gets four million!]

[I'm freaking out. My husband just bought me insurance, too. Is he going to kill me?]

[She went on this trip thinking he'd changed, thinking he'd be better. Turns out he planned this whole thing to take her life. What is wrong with people?]

As public opinion shifted, Harry's lips curved just slightly, a smile so faint that it almost slipped by. "Now we've got witnesses, evidence, and motive. Michael, what else do you have to say?"

"Trash like this deserves to pay with his life!"

"Yeah, make him pay!"

"Make him pay! Make him pay!"

The crowd surged again, fists in the air as the chant grew louder.

Even the young guard who had just backed me up looked at me now with disgust.

Right then, my phone started ringing.

I looked at the young guard. He instinctively reached for my cuffs, but Harry cut in sharply.

"He's a killer. If you let him loose and he hurts someone else, what then?"

I swallowed the anger burning in my chest. "With this many people watching, what do you think I can do? You sound pretty scared. What, feeling guilty?"

"Don't twist this around on me!"

Harry tried to argue, but under my insistence, the head of security stepped in and had my hands moved to the front instead of behind my back.

My secretary's voice came through the line. I listened carefully to every word. When the call ended, the weight on my chest finally lifted, and I let out a quiet laugh.

My father wiped at his eyes like he was grieving. "No matter what tricks you try, you killed Cheryl. That doesn't change. From today on, I'm done with you. I'll make sure the police punish the man who murdered my daughter-in-law!"

If I hadn't lived this once already, I might have believed he was truly disappointed in me.

A cold smile touched my lips. "Dad, you care about Cheryl this much… What, is she your real daughter or something?"