Chapter 3 - THE ATTORNEY WHO BETRAYED ME
The room seemed to shrink around me. I could still hear Arianne's voice coming through the speakers, trembling with fear, telling me not to trust them. But now I understood that "them" didn't only mean Scott, Vanessa, or even Evelyn. There was someone much closer to me. Someone who had sat across from me, looked me in the eyes, and promised to protect everything I had built.
My attorney.
For fifteen years, I had trusted him with every major decision involving the company. He had handled contracts, acquisitions, tax filings, corporate restructurings, and the legal documents Scott claimed were necessary to keep our business growing. His name was Daniel Mercer. He had been Scott's attorney before he became mine, but after our company expanded, I started using him personally as well.
I stared at the bank manager.
"Who is the man speaking to Scott?"
The manager looked uncomfortable.
"I don't know."
I turned toward the detective.
"Can you identify him?"
The detective nodded slowly.
"Daniel Mercer."
My stomach dropped.
Lily stirred in my arms, and I instinctively pulled her closer. I wanted to believe there had to be another explanation. A recording could be manipulated. A voice could be mistaken. But then the detective opened another file.
This time, the screen showed a scanned document.
At the bottom was Daniel's signature.
Above it was mine.
Except I had never signed it.
The document authorized the transfer of 49 percent of my ownership into a private holding company.
A holding company controlled by Scott.
I stared at the page until the words blurred.
"How long has this been happening?"
The detective looked at me.
"We're still determining that."
The bank manager quietly closed the folder.
"Mrs. Carter, there's something else you need to know."
I looked at him.
"What?"
He hesitated.
"Mrs. Evelyn specifically instructed us not to release the second envelope until you had seen the first documents."
I froze.
"There's another envelope?"
He nodded.
"And she told us something else."
"What?"
His eyes moved toward Lily.
"She said you wouldn't understand why she betrayed you until you saw who betrayed her first."
Before I could respond, my phone rang.
Scott.
I stared at his name on the screen.
Then I answered.
"Where are you?"
His voice was surprisingly calm.
"I know where you are, Diane."
My blood went cold.
He continued.
"And I know what you found."
I looked at the detective.
"How?"
Scott laughed softly.
"Because you were never supposed to open that box."
The call ended.
For several seconds, nobody moved.
Then my phone vibrated again.
A message appeared.
You have six hours to return everything Evelyn gave you.
Or Lily disappears.
I looked down at my daughter.
And for the first time that morning, I realized the money wasn't the real reason Evelyn had sent me to that bank.
May you like
She had been preparing me for war.
And Scott had just declared it.
