Chapter 25 - The Poisoned Glass
Before Vanessa could retaliate with another rehearsed denial, a doctor in bloodied scrubs stepped out of the trauma room.
Behind him walked a tall man in a plain suit displaying an Aspen Police detective badge.
"Mr. Van Allen?" the doctor asked softly, pulling down his surgical mask.
Daniel stepped away from his mother instantly. "How is she? Tell me she's alive!"
"Emily is stabilized for now, but she remains in critical condition," the doctor answered, exhaustion etched across his face. "We managed to halt the uterine contractions, but she lost an alarming amount of blood."
Daniel let out a ragged breath, tears spilling down his hollow cheeks. "And the baby?"
"There is still a faint fetal heartbeat," the doctor replied cautiously. "However, the next twelve hours are decisive."
"Doctor," the plainclothes detective interrupted, stepping forward with a plastic evidence pouch in his gloved hands. "You need to explain the lab results to Mr. Van Allen."
Vanessa stepped forward smoothly, her face a mask of patronizing concern.
"Detective, I am Vanessa Van Allen. Whatever medical complications this unfortunate girl has are strictly confidential—"
"Quiet!" Daniel snapped, cutting her off like a whip crack. He looked at the detective. "What did you find?"
"Mr. Van Allen, your wife didn't just suffer a fall," the detective stated gravely. "Her blood toxicology report came back positive for concentrated Ergotamine."
Daniel frowned, his mind racing. "What is that?"
"It's an alkaloid compound," the doctor explained solemnly. "In micro-doses, it treats migraines. But in high doses, it induces violent uterine contractions, severe vascular spasms, and rapid miscarriage."
Daniel felt the blood drain completely from his head.
"She was poisoned," Daniel said, the realization hitting him like a sledgehammer.
"Yes," the detective confirmed, holding up the sealed evidence bag. Inside was the crystal champagne tumbler recovered from the Gulfstream's galley.
"We tested the residue in the glass your flight attendant bagged per your orders. It was laced with a lethal dose."
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Daniel slowly turned his gaze toward Vanessa.
His mother stood frozen in place, the color draining from her aristocratic face until she looked like a marble corpse.
