Chapter 6 - The Brother Who Wanted Everything
I had spent eleven years believing my uncle was dead.
Twenty-one years believing my father had drowned.
And my entire life believing I was an only child.
By sunset, all three beliefs had collapsed.
Nora stood beside me in the basement, holding the photograph of Miles.
“Maybe it's someone who looks like him.”
I shook my head.
“No.”
“You can't know that.”
“Look at his left eyebrow.”
She leaned closer.
A tiny scar cut through it.
Miles had the same scar.
I'd noticed it during lunch.
Nora covered her mouth.
“Oh my God.”
I sat on the edge of the desk.
The room felt smaller.
My father had another son.
And that son had spent months trying to marry the woman standing beside me.
“Why would Miles hide this?” Nora whispered.
“Because he didn't want me to know.”
“Know what?”
“That he's my brother.”
My phone vibrated.
Marcus.
“Boss, we found something.”
“Tell me.”
“Miles Harper's original birth records were sealed after his mother's death. He was adopted by the Harpers when he was nine.”
I closed my eyes.
“His real name?”
“Nathaniel Thomas Cole.”
Nora sank into a chair.
Marcus continued.
“And there's more. Harbor Crown's controlling shares were transferred into a trust in 2008.”
“Whose trust?”
He hesitated.
“Nathaniel's.”
I stood.
“How much?”
“Forty-nine percent. The remaining shares are held through an offshore structure.”
“Controlled by Richard?”
“We're still tracing it.”
I looked at the cabinet.
The documents inside might explain everything.
“Send two men to Sullivan Street. Discreetly. No weapons visible.”
“Understood.”
I ended the call.
Nora looked at me.
“What happens now?”
I didn't know how to answer.
My instincts told me to take the documents, lock her somewhere safe, and hunt down every person involved.
But Nora wasn't cargo.
She wasn't an asset.
And she certainly wasn't mine to control.
“We make copies,” I said. “Then we give the originals to an attorney who isn't connected to either family.”
She looked surprised.
“That's it?”
“For now.”
“What about Miles?”
“I'll speak to him.”
“No.”
“Nora—”
“He's been manipulating my mother. He interfered with my loan. And apparently he's been lying about who he is.”
“Yes.”
“Then I want to hear what he has to say.”
I looked at her.
“You don't understand how dangerous he might be.”
Her expression hardened.
“And you don't understand how tired I am of men deciding what I can handle.”
That landed.
I took a breath.
“You're right.”
She blinked.
“I'm sorry?”
“I said you're right.”
“Could you repeat that? I'd like to record it.”
Despite everything, I laughed.
Then I held out my hand.
“Partners?”
She considered it.
“Partners.”
We left the basement with copies of the documents.
Marcus's men arrived fifteen minutes later.
I instructed them to preserve the property exactly as we'd found it and report any further intrusion.
Then Nora's phone rang.
Diane.
She answered reluctantly.
“Mom?”
I watched her expression change.
“What do you mean, arrested?”
A pause.
“No, that doesn't make sense.”
Another pause.
Then Nora looked at me.
“My mother says the police are at Bennett Events.”
“Why?”
She swallowed.
“They're accusing her of fraud.”
We drove to the company's downtown office.
Two police cars stood outside.
Employees gathered near the entrance.
Diane was sitting in the lobby, pale and furious.
Caroline stood beside her.
Miles was nowhere in sight.
“Nora!” Diane cried.
She hurried toward her daughter.
“This is your fault.”
Nora stopped.
“What?”
“You and your ridiculous bakery. You embarrassed Miles. You brought that man into our family.”
She pointed at me.
I remained silent.
Caroline stepped forward.
“Mom, stop.”
Diane ignored her.
“Now the company accounts are frozen. They're saying we received illegal transfers.”
Nora looked stunned.
“What transfers?”
Caroline answered.
“Harbor Crown Capital.”
I felt my jaw tighten.
Diane turned toward me.
“You know them, don't you?”
“Yes.”
“Then fix this.”
I stared at her.
“Excuse me?”
“You're powerful. You own half this city. Make the investigation disappear.”
Nora stepped between us.
“No.”
Diane looked at her.
“Nora—”
“No, Mom. We are not asking Evan to bury evidence.”
“This company is everything your father and I built!”
“And if someone used it to commit fraud, we need to find out who.”
Diane slapped her.
The sound echoed through the lobby.
For one terrible second, nobody moved.
Nora stood perfectly still.
Her cheek reddened.
Caroline gasped.
I took one step forward.
Then stopped.
Because Nora raised her hand.
Not toward her mother.
Toward me.
A silent command.
Don't.
I obeyed.
Nora looked at Diane.
Her voice was quiet.
“You don't get to do that anymore.”
Diane's face crumpled.
“Nora, I—”
“No.”
Nora took a breath.
“I have spent my whole life trying to earn your approval. And every time I got close, you moved the finish line.”
Tears slid down her cheeks.
“I love you. But I'm done being afraid of you.”
She turned away.
I followed her outside.
At the curb, she finally broke.
Not loudly.
She simply leaned against the car and cried.
I stood beside her.
Then she reached for me.
I wrapped my arms around her.
And for the first time in years, I held someone without thinking about what they might want from me.
“I hate this,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“I just wanted a bakery.”
I closed my eyes.
“You're going to have one.”
She pulled back.
“Don't promise things you can't control.”
I touched her cheek gently.
“Then I'll promise something I can.”
“What?”
“I won't disappear when things get difficult.”
She stared at me.
Then she kissed me.
Not on the cheek.
Not as part of our arrangement.
A real kiss.
And for one brief moment, the world stopped.
Then my phone rang.
Marcus again.
His voice was strained.
“Boss, you need to get somewhere secure.”
“Why?”
“Richard Cole just walked into our downtown office.”
I froze.
May you like
Marcus continued.
“And he says he has proof that your father is alive.”
