Chapter 5 - THE MAN I MARRIED
Grant Mercer had existed.
He simply wasn’t my husband.
Rebecca verified it within three hours.
The real Grant Mercer had died at seventeen in a motorcycle accident in northern California.
The man I married had been born Graham Vale.
Martin Vale’s youngest son.
I stared at the birth certificate until the letters blurred.
“This is impossible.”
Dad looked devastated.
“No. It’s calculated.”
Graham had been fourteen when Martin went to prison.
Years later, he reconstructed himself.
New records.
New history.
New career.
Eventually, he entered Mercer Aeronautics.
Then my life.
Every anniversary suddenly felt contaminated.
Every first.
Every promise.
Even the first night I met him at a charity auction.
Had that been planned too?
My phone rang.
Grant.
This time I answered.
“Hello, Graham.”
Silence.
Then:
“Where did you hear that name?”
No denial.
That hurt more than I expected.
“You should have picked a better dead man.”
His breathing changed.
“Where are you?”
“Somewhere you aren’t.”
“Evelyn, listen carefully. Your father is lying to you.”
“Predictable.”
“You don’t understand what Daniel did.”
“Then explain.”
A pause.
“My father didn’t sabotage Flight 219.”
“Who did?”
“Daniel.”
Dad’s face tightened.
I put the call on speaker.
Grant continued.
“Your father destroyed evidence, framed mine for fraud, and built an empire on insurance money and stolen contracts.”
Dad stepped forward.
“That’s a lie.”
Grant laughed bitterly.
“Of course he’s there.”
“Grant—”
“Ask him about the maintenance report.”
I looked at Dad.
His expression shifted.
Tiny.
But enough.
“What maintenance report?”
Dad said nothing.
Grant heard the silence.
“There you go.”
I felt sick.
“What are you doing with Martin?”
“Trying to keep him from destroying everything.”
“By stealing from my company?”
“I moved money because your father was hiding assets.”
“For a house?”
“The house isn’t mine.”
“Then whose?”
“Claire’s.”
Claire looked startled.
Grant continued.
“I was moving her before Martin found her.”
“Why bring Vanessa?”
Another silence.
“I made mistakes.”
I almost laughed.
“You kissed her in front of me.”
“I needed her to come with me.”
“You could have asked.”
“She had access to files I needed.”
Vanessa, listening from Rebecca’s laptop, whispered a curse.
Grant said, “I never expected you at the terminal.”
“That makes humiliating me acceptable?”
“No.”
At least he had enough sense not to try.
“Did you marry me because of my shares?”
Silence.
That answer hurt.
“Did you?”
“At first.”
My eyes closed.
Dad moved toward me.
I raised my hand.
Grant continued.
“But not after.”
“Convenient.”
“I know.”
“No, you don’t.”
“I love you.”
I laughed.
The sound surprised even me.
“You don’t get to use that word today.”
“I know.”
“Stop saying you know.”
He went quiet.
Then:
“Evelyn, Martin has been manipulating all of us.”
“And you helped him.”
“Yes.”
Finally.
Truth.
Ugly and simple.
“Why?”
“Because when I was fourteen, I watched my mother lose everything. My father convinced me Daniel caused it.”
“And now?”
“Now I know parts of his story were lies.”
“Parts?”
“That’s what I’m trying to prove.”
A noise sounded behind him.
Grant suddenly lowered his voice.
“I have to go.”
“Where?”
“Don’t trust the board meeting tomorrow.”
My skin prickled.
“How do you know about it?”
“Because Martin arranged it.”
The line disconnected.
Dad and Rebecca exchanged looks.
My emergency board meeting had supposedly been confidential.
Apparently it wasn’t.
Rebecca checked her phone.
Then froze.
“What?”
“The meeting time changed.”
“By whom?”
She turned the screen toward us.
Emergency Mercer Aeronautics Board Meeting — 9:00 A.M.
Authorized by:
Daniel Mercer.
I looked at my father.
He stared at the screen.
“I didn’t send that.”
Then my phone buzzed.
Another anonymous message.
YOUR HUSBAND LIED ABOUT HIS NAME.
A second followed.
YOUR FATHER LIED ABOUT THE CRASH.
Then a third.
TOMORROW YOU FIND OUT WHICH MAN LIED ABOUT YOUR MOTHER.
My heart stopped.
My mother had died when I was eleven.
Dad whispered:
“No.”
I looked at him.
“What does Mom have to do with this?”
He sat down slowly.
May you like
And I knew before he spoke that another piece of my childhood was about to disappear.
“Your mother,” he said, “was on Flight 219.”
