Chapter 6 - The Setup
David was a desperate man, and desperate men are dangerous.
He realized the police were closing in on him, and he needed a scapegoat.
He knew Maria was the only one aggressively pushing the investigation forward.
While Maria was at the hospital sitting by Eleanor's side, David broke into her small apartment.
He wore black gloves and moved quickly through her modest living space.
He opened her kitchen cupboard and hid a small, unmarked glass vial behind her coffee mugs.
It was the remaining half of the paralytic poison he had used on his wife.
Next, he logged onto his laptop using a VPN and transferred fifty thousand dollars into Maria's bank account.
He framed the transfer to look like a payoff from a rival corporate company.
He was going to paint Maria as a corporate spy who poisoned Eleanor for money.
David smirked, wiping his fingerprints from the doorknob before slipping out into the hallway.
He immediately called the anonymous police tip line from a burner phone.
"I have information about the attempted murder of Eleanor Vance," he disguised his voice.
"You need to search the maid's apartment immediately."
An hour later, heavily armed officers kicked down Maria's door.
They found the vial exactly where David had planted it.
Back at the hospital, two uniformed officers approached Maria in the waiting room.
"Maria Santos?" one of them asked, holding a pair of steel handcuffs.
"You are under arrest for the attempted murder of your employer."
Maria looked at them in complete shock as they forced her hands behind her back.
David watched from the end of the hallway, a cruel smile playing on his lips.
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He thought he had finally won.
But he underestimated Eleanor.
