Chapter 3 - The Woman Who Knew Too Much
Dominic stared at the photograph.
Dr. Samuel Price had been his physician for nearly a decade.
He had treated Dominic after a warehouse shooting, monitored his blood pressure, and performed routine medical examinations.
There was no reason for Celeste to be meeting him privately.
"Where did this come from?"
"Hospital security footage," Griffin replied. "One of our people noticed her vehicle in the restricted parking area."
"Why wasn't I told?"
"Because the footage wasn't released until this afternoon."
Dominic picked up the photograph.
"Find out what they discussed."
Griffin nodded.
"And Celeste?"
"Don't let her know we're looking."
For several seconds, Dominic said nothing.
Then his eyes returned to the divorce petition.
"Did Eliza go to the hospital recently?"
Griffin hesitated.
"Yes."
Dominic's head lifted.
"When?"
"Several times over the last two months. She had appointments at the women's clinic."
The words landed with unexpected force.
Dominic slowly put down the photograph.
"What appointments?"
"I don't know, sir."
"Find out."
Griffin studied him.
"Dominic, maybe you should ask your wife."
Dominic gave him a cold look.
"She's not answering."
"Perhaps there's a reason."
Dominic didn't respond.
Meanwhile, Eliza sat in a small café near Lincoln Park, waiting for Margaret Bell.
Paige had insisted on accompanying her.
The former housekeeper arrived fifteen minutes late, wearing a gray coat and carrying an old leather handbag.
She looked older than Eliza remembered.
Her hands trembled as she sat down.
"Thank you for coming," Eliza said.
Margaret looked at her stomach.
"Fourteen weeks?"
Eliza froze.
"How did you know?"
"Because I saw the appointment confirmation."
"Where?"
Margaret glanced toward the window.
"At the estate. Celeste was looking through some papers in Dominic's study. She dropped one. I picked it up before she noticed."
Paige leaned forward.
"Why would Celeste have access to Eliza's medical information?"
Margaret lowered her voice.
"Because she's been trying to make sure Mrs. Rourke never becomes the legal owner of Blackridge."
Eliza stared at her.
"That doesn't make sense. I have never wanted Dominic's businesses."
"Wanting something and being entitled to it are different matters."
Margaret opened her handbag and removed a faded photograph.
It showed Dominic as a young boy standing beside his grandmother, Evelyn Rourke.
Behind them was a large wooden desk.
On it sat the emerald necklace.
Eliza recognized the photograph immediately.
"Dominic told me that necklace belonged to his grandmother."
"It did."
"Then why is Celeste wearing it?"
"Because she stole it."
Paige sat back.
"You're accusing her of stealing from the Rourkes?"
Margaret looked at her.
"I'm telling you what I saw."
She reached into her handbag again and removed a folded letter.
The paper was yellowed.
The handwriting was elegant and unmistakable.
Eliza recognized it from the birthday cards Evelyn had sent her during the first years of her marriage.
"Read it," Margaret whispered.
Eliza unfolded the letter.
To the woman Dominic chooses to build his family with:
There will come a day when people around my grandson will confuse loyalty with obedience. They will tell him that power is something he must hold alone. They will encourage him to distrust anyone who can challenge his decisions.
Do not let him forget that a family is not a business.
The emerald necklace is not a decoration. It is the key to the original family trust. Whoever wears it without the rightful owner's permission is attempting to claim something that does not belong to them.
At the bottom was a final sentence.
If Dominic's wife carries his child, the child must be protected from the people who want Blackridge.
Eliza lowered the letter.
"What trust?"
Margaret looked at her.
"Before Evelyn died, she created a separate legal trust. It held controlling voting rights in the original Blackridge companies."
"Dominic owns Blackridge."
"He manages it. That's not the same thing."
Paige frowned.
"Who owns the trust?"
Margaret looked directly at Eliza.
"Your husband's grandmother left the controlling interest to Dominic's legitimate firstborn child. Until that child reaches adulthood, the child's mother becomes the temporary guardian of the voting rights."
Eliza's fingers tightened around the letter.
"But I don't have a child yet."
"Which is why Celeste is desperate."
"Desperate to do what?"
Margaret took a breath.
"She wants Dominic to marry her before the child is born. She believes that if she becomes his legal wife, she can challenge the trust and force the estate into a new arrangement."
Paige shook her head.
"That's not how inheritance works."
"Not without the original documents," Margaret replied. "And those documents have disappeared."
Eliza looked at the emerald necklace in the photograph.
"Why did Evelyn choose me?"
Margaret's expression softened.
"Because she knew you were the only person who loved Dominic without wanting anything from him."
Eliza almost laughed.
That woman had known her better than Dominic did.
"Where are the documents?"
Margaret looked toward the café entrance.
"I don't know."
Then her phone vibrated.
She glanced at it and went pale.
"What is it?" Eliza asked.
Margaret turned the screen around.
A message from an unknown number.
You have five minutes to leave. They know you're there.
Paige stood immediately.
"Who knows?"
Margaret began gathering her things.
"Celeste."
A black SUV pulled to the curb outside.
Two men stepped out.
Paige grabbed Eliza's arm.
"Back exit. Now."
They hurried through the kitchen.
Eliza's heart pounded as they emerged into the alley behind the café.
Margaret stopped beside a delivery entrance.
"There's something else."
"Not now," Paige said.
Margaret seized Eliza's hand.
"Your grandmother-in-law left a second letter. It names the person who arranged her death."
Eliza went still.
"Evelyn died of natural causes."
Margaret's eyes filled with tears.
"That's what the family was told."
Before Eliza could ask another question, a car horn blared.
A man in a dark coat stepped out of the alley.
He held a photograph.
It showed Eliza leaving her obstetrician's office.
He looked directly at her.
"Mrs. Rourke?"
Paige moved in front of her sister.
"Who are you?"
The man didn't answer.
He simply held out a second envelope.
"Your husband wants you to know that he has discovered you're pregnant."
Eliza felt the blood drain from her face.
Then the man added:
May you like
"Unfortunately, so has the woman wearing his grandmother's necklace."
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