Lacy Knighton had seethed for weeks over the trickery, finally ready to enact her plan. Max's refusal to help hampered her; his usual dependability had vanished since Aaron's engagement, a rift stemming from Lacy's refusal to give up. She scoffed at the idea of needing him, vehemently denying any lingering feelings or hurt. He would eventually crawl back, she mused, and she'd relish making him sweat for abandoning her at a crucial moment.

With Max's help, she could have easily sabotaged equipment at Robert Hall's construction site. Working alone, the orchestration took longer. Her plan was simple: cause a piece of equipment to malfunction, severely injuring a worker. His emergency contact—his daughter, Keeley—would rush to the hospital, leaving the baby unattended during the workday. This was Lacy's opportunity.

Lacy possessed incriminating information on a doctor whose malpractice suit involved her mother's family. He had provided her with a tranquilizer. She intended to inject Keeley, then dispose of the child. She considered dropping Keeley from a secluded New York City bridge at night; the impact would be fatal, or at least incapacitating. Corpses float; discovery was inevitable.

The tranquilizer would be difficult to detect without a specific toxicology screen, making it appear a suicide. Aaron, grief-stricken after his daughter's death, would likely believe it. Lacy believed his grief would remove all obstacles, forcing Aaron to comply with his father. Keeley was the problem; her removal would restore everything to "normal."

Disguised as a construction worker, Lacy arrived at the site. She located a worker and inquired about Robert Hall's whereabouts. Learning he was out of town until Monday, she feigned ignorance of a memo. Secretly frustrated, Lacy snapped a spare wooden board—her plan stalled by Hall's absence. Enraged, she resolved to deal with Keeley immediately.

Lacy shifted focus to Graydon Meyer, who had betrayed her. She needed to ruin him financially. High-profile scandals always affected his stocks; this time, she intended a truly unforgivable act to cause a prolonged downturn. Lacy planned to entangle him in a prostitution scandal, using hidden camera footage from a previous visit. While he'd easily afford bail, the scandal would be sufficient punishment.

The pretense of not wanting to harm him that day had been difficult, but necessary. This would end their partnership. Changing out of her disguise, Lacy proceeded to Graydon's office, her burner phone containing the prostitutes' numbers already prepared. She intended to drug him and then call them.

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