Chapter 14 - THE LETTER
Rose Hale had chosen my husband before I ever met him.
The letter explained everything.
She had watched Damian grow up.
Brilliant.
Ambitious.
Controlled.
Malcolm's favorite son.
Rose believed a marriage between Damian and me could permanently unite Hale and Cross interests.
She had introduced us through a charity board.
The fundraiser where Damian claimed we had met by chance.
Nothing had been chance.
Then Rose wrote something stranger.
If Damian loves you, the plan may save both families.
If he loves power more, destroy the trust.
Mom read over my shoulder.
"She treated your life like a corporate experiment."
I kept reading.
Rose admitted knowing Malcolm had threatened Evelyn.
She claimed she had tried to stop him.
But she had also hidden the financial crimes to protect Hale Holdings.
Different person.
Same excuse.
Protect the company.
Protect the family.
Protect the name.
Always at someone else's expense.
The final paragraph contained instructions for dissolving the infrastructure trust.
The ledger itself was the legal key.
We had what we needed.
Then Rebecca's phone rang.
She answered.
Her face went still.
"The merger vote has been moved."
"When?"
"Tomorrow morning."
Celeste had betrayed us.
My stomach dropped.
"No."
Rebecca turned the phone toward me.
A security image showed Celeste entering Hale Holdings headquarters twenty minutes earlier.
Damian waited beside her.
Mom whispered, "She gave us forty-eight hours to get us out of the city."
The lake house alarm suddenly activated.
Windows locked.
Doors sealed.
A message appeared on the security panel.
SYSTEM CONTROL TRANSFERRED.
Damian's voice came through the intercom.
"Happy birthday, Claire."
I stared at the ceiling camera.
"You tracked Celeste."
"Of course."
"She works for you."
"Everyone works for someone."
Mom grabbed the ledger.
Damian continued.
"Leave it on the table."
"No."
"Then the police arriving in six minutes will find stolen trust property in your possession."
Rebecca swore under her breath.
Damian had reported us for burglary.
Mom looked at the old back staircase.
"There was a service tunnel."
We ran.
The tunnel opened behind the boathouse.
We reached the road just as police vehicles entered the property.
Rebecca identified herself.
Arguments followed.
Warrants.
Documents.
Jurisdiction.
Forty minutes disappeared.
By the time the misunderstanding was untangled, Damian had gained something more valuable than the ledger.
Time.
Then my phone rang.
Mara.
"Claire."
Her voice was shaking.
"Someone came into the mansion."
"Who?"
"Nathan Price."
I frowned.
"Nathan is under federal protection."
"Not anymore."
"What did he take?"
Silence.
"Mara?"
"Your mother's files."
Every copy.
Every photograph.
Every backup drive we hadn't already given Rebecca.
Nathan Price had betrayed us again.
May you like
And this time, he had left one message behind.
Tell Claire the debt is paid.
