Chapter 7 - THE LIE THAT DESTROYED THEM BOTH
Brooke stared at the document.
For several seconds, she appeared unable to understand what she was seeing.
Then she looked at Grant.
“You told me those records were confidential.”
Grant's face hardened.
“Not here.”
“You told me everything was arranged!”
“Brooke, stop talking.”
She laughed bitterly.
“Of course. That's what you always say when someone discovers the truth.”
Claire remained silent.
The document was genuine.
Brooke had been pregnant.
She had also undergone a medical procedure five weeks earlier.
The child she had claimed was about to become Grant's second family did not exist.
But something was wrong.
Claire noticed the payment authorization.
The procedure had been paid for by a subsidiary account.
The same account used to transfer money to Northstar.
And the authorization signature was hers.
Claire looked at Arthur.
“That's impossible.”
Arthur nodded.
“We need to verify the original.”
Grant stepped forward.
“You see? This is exactly what happens when you start digging through private records.”
Claire ignored him.
“Brooke, why did you send me the ultrasound?”
Brooke looked away.
“Because I wanted you to leave him.”
“Why?”
“Because he promised me a future.”
Claire's voice remained steady.
“And when you discovered he had no intention of giving you one?”
Brooke's eyes filled.
“He said you would never let him go.”
Claire almost laughed.
“Let him go? He walked out on Christmas Eve without looking back.”
Brooke looked genuinely surprised.
“He said you were refusing to cooperate.”
Claire glanced at Grant.
“You told her I was keeping you trapped?”
Grant said nothing.
Brooke suddenly understood something.
She had been lied to too.
“You said she was unstable,” she whispered.
Grant looked furious.
“Enough.”
“You said she couldn't understand the company.”
“Brooke.”
“You said her father was dead and there was nothing she could do.”
Claire stood.
“That's enough.”
She turned to Arthur.
“Preserve every document. I want the medical payments investigated separately.”
Arthur nodded.
Grant grabbed his briefcase.
“This is over.”
But it wasn't.
Not remotely.
That evening, Claire received a call from a number she didn't recognize.
A woman introduced herself as Detective Elena Ruiz.
She was investigating a suspected financial fraud involving Bennett Harbor Logistics.
“Ms. Bennett, we need to speak with you about your father's death.”
Claire's hand tightened around the phone.
“Why?”
“New evidence has emerged.”
“What evidence?”
“A former employee contacted our office. He claims Mr. Howard Bennett instructed him to alter maintenance records relating to the vehicle your father was using the night he died.”
Claire stopped breathing.
Her father had died in a car accident?
No.
He had died at home.
“Detective, my father suffered a cardiac event.”
“That was the original finding.”
“What are you saying?”
“We're reviewing a medical report that may have been altered before it reached the family.”
Claire sat down.
The room seemed suddenly too small.
“Who submitted the report?”
“An outside medical contractor.”
“Who paid them?”
There was a pause.
“Bennett Harbor Logistics.”
Claire closed her eyes.
The company had paid for a medical report connected to her father's death.
And the person who authorized the payment was Howard.
“Detective, I have recordings.”
“We'd like to see them.”
Claire looked toward the study.
“I'll arrange it.”
After the call, she walked upstairs.
Ethan was drawing at the kitchen table.
He had drawn three people beneath a Christmas tree.
One tall man.
One woman.
One little boy.
Claire sat beside him.
“That's beautiful.”
Ethan nodded.
“It's our family.”
Claire looked at the drawing.
“Do you want to tell me something?”
He hesitated.
“Daddy came to my room last night.”
Claire felt her heart skip.
“When?”
“When you were downstairs.”
“What did he say?”
Ethan picked at the paper.
“He said if I wanted our family to stay together, I should tell you not to take his job away.”
Claire felt a wave of anger so intense she had to steady herself.
“Did he tell you anything else?”
Ethan nodded.
“He said Grandma and Grandpa wouldn't be proud of you.”
Claire pulled him into her arms.
“Oh, sweetheart.”
Then Ethan whispered something that made her blood run cold.
“He also said Uncle Howard told him you might have to go away for a long time.”
Claire slowly pulled back.
“Did he say why?”
Ethan nodded.
“He said because you were the one who signed the money papers.”
Claire stared at her son.
Grant was not simply trying to frighten her into stopping.
May you like
He was preparing to make her the criminal.
And somewhere inside the company, someone had already begun building the evidence.
