The Crimson Chariot

07 | A Lover's Predicament

On hearing his question, Diana's eyes widen in alarm. She clenches her jaw, looking at me for a split second and then at Aiden. She's trying to control the shockwave, and surprisingly, manages to do that pretty well.

"Yes, it's true. Logan and I had an affair," she says and goes on to explain further.

"Ethan never truly loved me; he only pretended to care in public. It was just an act for him!"

"And wasn't it an act for you too? After all, the wedding was just an alliance, right Miss Park?" Aiden asks and I notice Diana's jaw twitch.

"It was, but I cared for him," she answers. "I wanted to get to know him as a friend. I wanted us to work because, after the wedding, we would be stuck together forever."

Aiden nods and raises an eyebrow. "Go on," he says, giving her the cue to continue.

"Ethan wanted to visit Logan one day on the set of his movie, and Logan and I sort of just hit it off. He was so...understanding and considerate than Ethan ever was!" she exclaims as if she is describing a fairy tale to us. However, her smile soon falters.

"Things escalated over the next few months and we found ourselves falling in love with each other. We planned on telling Ethan and his parents after Logan's movie was released. We wanted the spotlight off Ethan to avoid negative headlines."

"Well, that sure didn't go according to plan." Aiden smirks, scribbling down something in his notes.

Diana continues. "On the night of Ethan's death, I received a message from an unknown number, warning me that if I didn't come clean about the affair and pregnancy with Ethan that night, Logan was going to die." Diana pauses as she watches Aiden and I look over at each other.

Diana is pregnant...with Logan's child. As much as I want to feel bad for her, all the events leading to his moment make up for the perfect motive for murder.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Aiden holds up a hand, "why didn't you contact the authorities about this threat?" He asks her. It feels like he almost expected the pregnancy. It isn't the most surprising bit, really.

"No one knew about the pregnancy except Logan and me...or so I thought," she says, shrugging her shoulders and chewing on her bottom lip. "I took the threat very seriously. I told Ethan about the affair, and he was very angry, so much so that he called off the party."

That lines up perfectly with what Maeve told us the other day!

"Ethan told his parents about what I had just confessed to him and then stormed off. Victor and Patricia asked me to leave. They were furious with me. Logan stared at me, unable to do anything!"

"Do you know where Ethan stormed off to?" I ask. Diana glances over at me and passes me a short nod.

"I followed Ethan to Lake Iris, which was a spot we would hang out away from the cameras and media. I tried to talk to him and convince him to come home, but we argued instead. He was heartbroken, which was why I decided to leave him alone at the lake."

"And then you returned to your apartment?" I ask and she answers in affirmation.

"Is that all? Anything else you want to add or elaborate on?" Aiden asks, and Diana nods. This time, however, her nod is hesitant.

"Yeah, that's everything," she replies, and Aiden almost chuckles as if he is enjoying this. He pulls some photos of surveillance footage of her apartment out and sets them in front of her.

"So, care to explain why you were leaving your apartment around midnight, during the time frame of the murder?" he asks, and Diana looks visibly nervous as all the color from her face vanishes.