Chapter 9 - THE LAST CARD JOANNE HAD TO PLAY
Joanne entered the house without waiting for an invitation.
She looked older than she had at the wedding, but her expression remained as sharp as ever.
“Madison.”
“Joanne.”
Her eyes moved toward Samuel.
For the first time, the polished woman who had spent years controlling the Cross family appeared genuinely frightened.
“Samuel.”
He stood.
“Joanne.”
She placed the document on the table.
“There's no reason for this to become uglier than it already is.”
Madison almost smiled.
“That's an interesting thing to say after everything you've done.”
Joanne ignored her.
She turned toward Samuel.
“You should have stayed gone.”
Samuel's voice remained steady.
“You should have stopped stealing.”
Joanne's jaw tightened.
“I built that company.”
“You diverted its money.”
“I protected my son.”
“You used your son.”
Joanne turned toward Madison.
“You have no idea what you're involved in.”
“I know enough.”
Joanne opened the folder.
Inside was a legal settlement.
It offered Madison a substantial payment in exchange for relinquishing her claim to the Hale property interests and withdrawing all complaints related to the disputed financial transactions.
Madison read the amount.
Five million dollars.
Kelsey, who had arrived with Robert and Diane, let out a low whistle.
“That's a lot of money.”
Joanne looked at her.
“It's a generous offer.”
Madison closed the folder.
“No.”
Joanne's expression hardened.
“You should think carefully.”
“I have.”
“You could walk away with enough money to live comfortably for the rest of your life.”
“I already have a life.”
“Your grandmother's property is complicated. You could spend years in court.”
“Then I suppose I'll spend years in court.”
Joanne leaned closer.
“Do you really believe Everett will be spared? He signed those documents. He approved the transactions. If this goes to trial, he'll lose everything.”
Madison looked at her.
“He should have thought about that before using my name.”
Joanne's voice sharpened.
“You were supposed to marry him.”
Madison shook her head.
“And that was your mistake. You thought a wedding would make me easier to manipulate.”
Joanne's face changed.
Then she made her final threat.
“Your father has a business too, doesn't he? A small construction company. It would be unfortunate if certain investors reconsidered their contracts.”
Robert stepped forward.
“Are you threatening my family?”
Joanne didn't blink.
“I'm explaining the consequences of unnecessary conflict.”
Rebecca quietly placed her phone on the table.
A red recording indicator was visible.
Joanne noticed.
Her eyes narrowed.
“Turn that off.”
“No,” Rebecca said.
Joanne turned toward her.
“You have no idea what you're doing.”
“Actually, I do.”
Rebecca opened another folder.
It contained the original financial records from Building 17, the forged authorization documents, and the recordings from the digital recorder.
She placed a final document on top.
A signed affidavit from Richard Cross.
Joanne stared at it.
“Where did you get that?”
“Richard has agreed to cooperate with investigators.”
For the first time, Joanne looked cornered.
Then the front door opened.
Everett walked inside.
He looked at his mother.
“What are you doing here?”
Joanne turned sharply.
“You shouldn't be here.”
Everett noticed the settlement agreement.
His eyes moved to Madison.
“Did you sign it?”
“No.”
Joanne stepped toward him.
“Everett, we need to leave.”
He didn't move.
Instead, he placed a small envelope on the table.
“I found Father's letter.”
Madison looked at him.
“Where?”
“In my mother's safe.”
Joanne's expression became almost murderous.
“You had no right.”
Everett ignored her.
He opened the envelope.
The letter contained a detailed account of the financial transactions his father had discovered.
It also named the person who had helped Joanne move the money.
Not Richard.
Not Camille.
Someone else.
Everett read the final paragraph aloud.
If anything happens to me, investigate the person who convinced me to trust my own family. I believe the person closest to me has already betrayed us.
Everett stopped.
Madison looked at the page.
A name appeared beneath the paragraph.
Thomas Bellamy.
The private lender.
But another signature appeared below it.
Everett Cross.
Madison looked up.
“What does this mean?”
Everett's face drained of color.
“I didn't sign this.”
Joanne laughed.
A cold, brittle sound.
“Of course you didn't.”
She turned toward Madison.
“Now you understand why I tried to keep this family together.”
But Madison noticed something else.
The date on the letter was twenty-eight years old.
Everett had been too young to sign it.
Someone had forged his signature long before he and Madison ever met.
And whoever had done it had spent decades preparing to make him the perfect scapegoat.
Joanne suddenly reached for the document.
Daniel moved between them.
Police officers entered seconds later.
Rebecca had already arranged for the evidence to be delivered to investigators.
Joanne was escorted outside for questioning.
Everett remained standing in the living room.
He looked at Madison.
“I know I don't deserve anything from you.”
She said nothing.
“But there's something you need to know.”
He handed her a second envelope.
“This came from my father. It wasn't in the safe.”
Madison opened it.
Inside was a photograph of a woman holding a baby.
The woman was Eleanor.
The baby was Madison.
And standing beside them was Everett's father.
On the back was a handwritten sentence.
One day, these two families may finally become one again. I hope their children will never have to pay for our mistakes.
Madison stared at the photograph.
Everett's father had known her family.
He had cared about her grandmother.
He had wanted the two families to reconcile.
But the final line was written in a different handwriting.
If Madison ever discovers the truth, tell her who her father really is.
Madison slowly looked at her father.
May you like
Robert's face had gone completely white.
And for the first time in her life, he couldn't meet her eyes.
