Chapter 10: The Truth He Never Expected Me to Find
For several minutes, I couldn't move.
The email from Margaret remained open on my phone, its final sentence glowing against the dark screen.
The original document did not contain the paragraph authorizing the disputed investment.
I read it again.
Then once more.
My father sat beside me, his expression grave. Lily slept in her bassinet, her tiny chest rising and falling beneath the hospital blanket.
Everything in that room seemed painfully ordinary.
A paper cup stood on the windowsill. A nurse had left a clean blanket folded over the chair. Somewhere down the hall, a child laughed.
Yet the foundation of my marriage had just shifted beneath my feet.
“Dad,” I whispered, “what if he really did add it?””
My father didn't rush to answer.
“Then the records need to establish who added it, when it happened, and what they intended to accomplish.””
“What if the records don't tell us everything?””
“Then we keep asking questions until we understand what we can.””
I looked at Lily.
For weeks, perhaps months, I'd been telling myself that my doubts were the product of exhaustion, pregnancy hormones, or my father's influence. Whenever something didn't make sense, Ethan had offered an explanation that made me feel guilty for asking.
He'd told me I was overthinking.
He'd told me I didn't understand business.
He'd told me my father wanted to control our marriage.
And whenever I began to question him, he'd reminded me how much pressure he was under.
I'd believed that a good wife should make his life easier.
I hadn't realized that I'd been making it easier for him to keep me uninformed.
My phone rang.
Margaret.
“Claire, I've reviewed the institution's preliminary findings,” she said.
“I want to be very careful about what we can conclude. We have an original document without the investment authorization paragraph and a later electronic version that contains it. We also have an upload date that doesn't match the handwritten date.””
“Can they prove who uploaded it?””
“The institution is reviewing the access records. We also need to establish whether the later version was created from the original, whether any changes were documented, and who submitted it.””
“Could the person who uploaded it have been someone other than Ethan?””
“Yes. That's why we need the audit trail rather than assumptions.””
I appreciated her honesty, even though part of me wanted certainty immediately.
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“What happens now?””
“The trustee is considering appropriate protective measures under the trust agreement. Your independent attorney should also advise you about your rights regarding the disputed authorization. In the meantime, preserve everything and avoid
