Chapter 4 - THE SECRET MY FATHER TOOK TO HIS GRAVE
I stared at the photograph until the edges of the room seemed to disappear.
My father was younger in the picture, perhaps ten years before his death.
Beside him stood a little girl wearing a yellow dress.
She was holding his hand.
“Emily?”
David's voice brought me back.
I turned the phone toward him.
His expression changed immediately.
“Where did you get this?”
“Someone named Michael Hayes sent it.”
David examined the photograph.
Then he looked at Richard.
Richard had gone unusually quiet.
“Do you recognize her?” I asked.
Nobody answered.
Vanessa suddenly picked up her handbag.
“I should go.”
Richard caught her wrist.
“Sit down.”
She pulled away.
“Don't touch me.”
I watched them exchange a look.
Something was wrong.
“Who is she?” I demanded.
David sighed.
“Emily, there's something your father never told you.”
I felt a familiar coldness settle in my chest.
“I'm listening.”
“Your father had another daughter.”
The words struck harder than Richard's photograph ever could.
“What?”
“She was born before your parents married. Her name was Olivia.”
I shook my head.
“My mother never mentioned another child.”
“Your father believed it was safer to keep her existence private.”
“Safer from whom?”
David looked toward Richard.
That was my answer.
Richard laughed bitterly.
“This is unbelievable.”
I turned toward him.
“You knew?”
He didn't answer.
“Richard, did you know my father had another daughter?”
His silence was enough.
David continued.
“Olivia was raised by her mother. Your father supported her financially through a separate trust. After her mother died, he tried to bring her into the family business.”
“Why didn't he tell me?”
“Because someone was threatening her.”
My stomach tightened.
“Who?”
David hesitated.
“Your father suspected Richard's business partners were involved.”
Richard slammed his hand against the table.
“This is insane. I came here to discuss the company, not listen to old family gossip.”
“Then leave,” I said.
His expression darkened.
“You can't throw me out of my own house.”
“Actually, I can ask you to leave mine.”
He stared at me.
Then he picked up his coat.
“Fine. But remember something, Emily. Without me, Carter Development would have collapsed years ago.”
I looked at the blue box.
“Without my father's money, you would still be selling apartment renovations to people who couldn't afford them.”
His face turned red.
He left.
Vanessa followed.
But before she reached the door, she stopped.
“Emily.”
I looked at her.
She lowered her voice.
“You don't understand what he's capable of.”
I almost smiled.
“Neither did you, apparently.”
She looked down.
Then she whispered something that made my heart stop.
“I'm not the only woman he's been seeing.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
She looked toward David.
“Ask him about the woman in Boston.”
Then she walked out.
The house fell silent.
David closed the curtains.
“Emily, I need to know something. Did your father ever mention a private account in Switzerland?”
“No.”
“What about a second trust?”
I shook my head.
David took a breath.
“Your father established an offshore holding structure before Richard joined the company. It owns several commercial properties, investment funds, and the original development patents.”
“How much is it worth?”
“We haven't completed the valuation.”
“David.”
He looked at me.
“Approximately $640 million.”
I sat down.
For twelve years, Richard had made me feel guilty whenever I questioned his spending.
He had told me that I was fortunate to live in a beautiful house, that I should appreciate his success, that business decisions were beyond my understanding.
Meanwhile, my father had quietly protected an empire I hadn't even known existed.
My phone rang again.
Michael Hayes.
This time, I answered.
“Mrs. Carter, we have a serious problem.”
“Go ahead.”
“Richard has called an emergency board meeting for December twenty-sixth. He's planning to remove you as a beneficiary representative and finalize the property transfers.”
“Can he do that?”
“No. But he believes he can.”
“Why?”
Michael hesitated.
“Because he has a document signed by your father.”
My blood ran cold.
“What document?”
“A revised beneficiary designation.”
David looked up sharply.
“That's impossible.”
Michael continued.
“There's something else. The document names Richard as the sole successor.”
I closed my eyes.
Then Michael added:
“Mrs. Carter, I compared the signature with your father's original records.”
“And?”
“It isn't forged.”
The room went silent.
“Then what are you saying?”
May you like
Michael's answer came slowly.
“Your father signed it six months before he died.”
