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“That’s child pornography,” Tessa announces. “My mother would eat him alive over this.”

I glance over to Tessa, who is leaning on the desk, hunched over Jalynn as she takes in the photos. “Who’s your mom?”

“Kathleen Clarke. America’s Crusade for Women’s Rights.” Tessa’s face beams with pride.

My eyes open wide, as I’m surprised to hear who her mom is. I’ve heard of her, even in New York, from some big cases recently.

“Look at these,” Jalynn says.

Videos.

We all grimace as Jalynn scrolls through the sex tapes. Edward Sexton is a good-looking man and was a decade ago, too, according to the videos. None of us want to see him taking Missy doggy-style though.

Tessa points to the screen. “Look at the date of the first video. She was only seventeen.”

“Age of consent is seventeen,” I offer.

“It’s eighteen in California. She’s a minor in these videos,” Tessa says.

The way the videos are taken, I get the feeling Edward didn’t know they were being filmed. Things are grainy, and angles are off, but there’s no doubt it’s the two of them.

“Why would she secretly film them and keep them all these years later?” Jalynn wonders out loud.

“Insurance policy. My mother has had many clients secretly tape men in order to prove what scum they are. In this case, I’d assume Missy was keeping these as blackmail.” Tessa closes her eyes in disgust.

Jalynn closes the Videos folder and clicks open the next.

Audio.

There are dozens of recordings. Most of them sound like phone conversations. We listen to Missy and Edward talk about their relationship. They have phone sex, and sometimes, they just talk. Missy tells Edward about a few courses she’s taking at the community college, and Edward talks to her about a movie he saw. They always end on the same note: Missy wants more of Edward, and he tells her he loves her more than his wife.

As the dates go on, Missy pleads with Edward to leave his wife. Edward sounds hesitant, and with each file, Missy becomes harder and harder to tame. She even threatens to tell Marina about their affair, including how long it’s been going on.

On the last recording, Missy makes Edward a proposition.

“What if Marina wasn’t in the picture anymore?”

“My darling, I wish for anything for it to be just us. We could run away together.”

“And live off what? The company is in your wife’s name.”

Edward sighs. “I wish she would get into a horrible car accident. Then, I wouldn’t have to worry about our future.”

“Would you want her gone?” Missy asks.

“It’s not so simple.”

“Edward, you have been stringing me along for too long. I don’t believe you truly love me. I’ve given you my body for years. I was just a child—”

“Missy, please don’t bring that up again. No one would understand. They’ll never understand. If I could make Marina disappear, I would. I would do anything to be with you.”

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

“Do you remember what you told me? About the cars and how you could make it look like an accident?”

Edward hesitates. “Yes …”