Chapter 8 - The Baby and the Betrayal
Sloane Avery had spent eleven months believing she was winning.
Now she was sitting in a hospital waiting room, crying because she didn't know whether Grant Mercer had ever loved her.
Claire arrived at the hospital just after noon.
She hadn't wanted to come.
But Sloane had called her directly.
And something in the younger woman's voice had frightened her.
“Claire, please. I need help.”
Claire had almost hung up.
Then Sloane whispered, “I'm bleeding.”
Whatever Claire felt about Sloane, she understood that fear.
She remembered the bathroom floor.
The pale green nursery.
The devastating silence after losing her own pregnancy.
“Call emergency services if you need them,” Claire had said. “Get medical attention immediately.”
Sloane had already been taken to the hospital by a friend.
Now Claire found her sitting in a private consultation room.
Her face was pale.
Her eyes were swollen.
A physician had evaluated her and explained that the pregnancy remained viable, though she needed follow-up care.
Claire felt relief.
She hated that she felt it.
Then she hated herself for questioning it.
Sloane looked up.
“You came.”
Claire sat across from her.
“Are you all right?”
“The doctor says the baby is okay for now.”
“Good.”
Sloane began crying again.
Claire waited.
Finally, Sloane whispered, “Grant isn't answering.”
Claire looked at her.
“Have you called anyone else?”
“My sister is coming.”
“Good.”
Sloane wiped her face.
“Daniel called me.”
Claire felt her stomach tighten.
“When?”
“This morning.”
“What did he want?”
“He told me to stop contacting Grant.”
Claire stared at her.
“Why?”
“He said the situation had become dangerous for everyone.”
Claire leaned forward.
“What situation?”
Sloane shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Claire studied her.
“Grant told me Daniel introduced you.”
Sloane looked down.
“Yes.”
“Did Daniel ask you to pursue Grant?”
Tears filled her eyes.
“At first, he just invited me to events.”
Claire waited.
“He said Grant was unhappy in his marriage.”
“Did you know Grant was married?”
“Yes.”
“Then you made your own choice.”
Sloane nodded.
“I know.”
Claire folded her hands.
“What did Daniel want from you?”
Sloane hesitated.
“He wanted information.”
“What kind?”
“About Grant's schedule. His meetings. Whether he was arguing with you.”
Claire stared at her.
“Did you report those things?”
“At first.”
“Why?”
Sloane looked ashamed.
“Daniel helped me get consulting work. He said he was mentoring me.”
Claire felt cold.
“Did he pay you?”
Sloane nodded.
“For legitimate consulting?”
“Some of it.”
“And the rest?”
She began crying.
“I don't know anymore.”
Claire sat back.
The affair had been real.
Sloane had chosen it.
Grant had chosen it.
But Daniel had apparently encouraged the relationship and collected information about it.
That didn't make either of them innocent.
It made the situation more disturbing.
“Do you have records of those payments?” Claire asked.
“Yes.”
“Then preserve them and speak to your attorney.”
Sloane nodded.
Then she looked at Claire.
“There's something else.”
Claire waited.
“Daniel asked me to encourage Grant to propose.”
Claire felt a chill.
“When?”
“Three weeks ago.”
“Why?”
“He said Grant needed to make a clean break.”
Claire stared at her.
“Did he tell you to announce it at the anniversary party?”
Sloane hesitated.
Then she nodded.
Claire closed her eyes.
The humiliation.
The audience.
The timing.
Daniel had wanted the marriage to collapse publicly.
But why?
Sloane whispered, “He told me that once Grant was separated from you, everything would become easier.”
Claire opened her eyes.
“Easier for whom?”
“I don't know.”
Then Sloane reached into her handbag.
She removed her phone.
“I recorded a conversation.”
Claire stared at her.
“With Daniel?”
“Yes.”
“Have you given it to your attorney?”
“Not yet.”
“Then do that first.”
Sloane looked disappointed.
“You won't listen?”
“Not until we know how it was obtained and whether it can be used properly.”
Sloane nodded.
For the first time, she seemed to understand that evidence wasn't a weapon to wave around.
It was something that had to be handled carefully.
Claire stood.
“I should go.”
Sloane looked up.
“Claire?”
“Yes?”
“I'm sorry about what I said.”
Claire remained silent.
“About you not being able to give Grant a family.”
The words reopened a wound Claire had spent years trying to heal.
Sloane's voice broke.
“I knew you'd lost a baby. Grant told me. And I used it against you.”
Claire felt tears burn her eyes.
For several seconds, she couldn't speak.
Then she said quietly, “That was cruel.”
“I know.”
“You didn't just insult me. You used the worst day of my life to make yourself feel powerful.”
Sloane sobbed.
“I know.”
Claire looked at her.
“I hope your baby is healthy.”
Sloane stared at her.
“But I can't forgive you today.”
She walked out.
Outside the hospital, Claire called Nathan.
“We need to know why Daniel wanted the anniversary party to destroy my marriage.”
Nathan was silent.
Then he said, “Claire, I think we found the answer.”
Her heart accelerated.
“What?”
“The Whitmore investment agreements contain a provision connected to Grant's marital status.”
Claire frowned.
“What provision?”
“Certain family-controlled commitments require review if Grant and you legally separate.”
Claire stared at the traffic.
“So Daniel wanted us separated?”
“Possibly.”
“Why?”
Nathan exhaled.
“Because separation could trigger a review of the investment structure.”
Claire felt confused.
“That would expose the problems, not hide them.”
“Unless Daniel wanted the review to happen at a particular time.”
Claire went still.
“What do you mean?”
Nathan's voice hardened.
“We found evidence that someone was preparing to transfer assets out of one of the Mercer Vale-managed vehicles before the review began.”
Claire gripped her phone.
“How much?”
May you like
Nathan hesitated.
“Forty million dollars.”
