Chapter 3: The Woman Named in My Father's Will
I didn't remember ending the call.
One moment, Evelyn Harrison was speaking.
The next, I was staring at Daniel with my phone pressed against my ear.
“Vanessa?”” I whispered.
Daniel said nothing.
“Vanessa is the beneficiary?””
He took a step toward me.
“Nia, give me the phone.””
I backed away.
“Why would my house go to Vanessa?””
“It doesn't mean what you think.””
“Then what does it mean?””
He looked toward the front door.
For the first time since I had known him, Daniel seemed to be calculating whether he could leave without answering a question.
I walked around the kitchen island, putting distance between us.
“Don't move.””
He stopped.
“Listen to yourself. You're treating me like a criminal.””
I looked at the scattered documents.
“Someone forged my signature, transferred my property, and listed your girlfriend as the beneficiary. What exactly should I call you?””
He slammed his palm against the counter.
“Vanessa was supposed to receive the property temporarily!””
“Why?””
“Because the company needed collateral.””
“Then why does the document say she gets it after my death?””
His silence answered more than his words could.
I called Evelyn again.
She answered immediately.
“Ms. Carter?””
“I'm still here. My husband is with me. I need you to explain everything.””
“I would strongly advise you to have another person present.””
“Just tell me what you found.””
Evelyn took a breath.
“The initial transfer was submitted through a company called Reed Residential Holdings. The company is registered to Vanessa Reed.””
Daniel closed his eyes.
I felt sick.
“Who submitted the paperwork?””
“The request came through your husband's business email. However, the documents were supported by a copy of an authorization that appears to bear your signature.””
“Can you stop the transfer?””
“We are reviewing the registration status and the supporting records. I cannot promise an immediate outcome, but I can flag the file as disputed and advise you on urgent legal steps.””
“Do that.””
“I will. Also, Ms. Carter, there is something else.””
I gripped the edge of the island.
“What?””
“The authorization refers to an estate document dated eleven years ago.””
“My father's will?””
“Yes. It appears someone has been relying on a clause in your father's estate planning documents to justify the arrangement.””
I looked at Daniel.
“Which clause?””
Evelyn hesitated.
“I'm not comfortable interpreting it over the phone without seeing the original will and the trust records. But I want you to know that the document refers to a family beneficiary arrangement.””
My father's will had been straightforward.
Or so I had believed.
He had left me his savings, his company shares, and the house I eventually purchased using part of the inheritance.
There had been no mention of Vanessa.
There couldn't have been.
I didn't know Vanessa existed until an hour ago.
“Send me everything,” I said.
“We'll send a secure request for your identification and a formal dispute statement. Please don't use any links sent by your husband or his associates.””
“Thank you.””
I ended the call.
Daniel was watching me.
“Now can we talk?””
I shook my head.
“You had your chance.””
“Nia, I made a mistake.””
“A mistake is forgetting milk at the grocery store. You didn't accidentally transfer my house.””
“I was trying to save the business.””
“By giving my property to Vanessa?””
He rubbed his eyes.
“She was helping me.””
I stared at him.
“Helping you how?””
“She has investors. Connections. She understands the property market.””
“So you gave her my house?””
“It was never supposed to become permanent.””
I looked down at the ultrasound photograph lying beside the documents.
The tiny image had a crease running through the middle.
I carefully smoothed it with my palm.
“Do you remember the first time we saw a fertility specialist?”” I asked.
Daniel frowned.
“What?””
“The first appointment. You held my hand and told me that no matter what happened, we would get through it together.””
He looked away.
“You were crying in the parking lot because you thought something was wrong with you. You told me I was already enough. You told me we could build a happy life even without children.””
“Nia—”
“And now there's a baby.””
My voice broke.
“There is finally a baby, Daniel.””
He stared at the photograph.
For a moment, I saw the man I had married.
Then he spoke.
“This isn't the right time.””
I felt something inside me go completely still.
“It's not the right time?””
“We have serious problems to solve.””
“You mean your debts.””
“Our debts.””
“No. Your debts. Your lies.
Your mistress. Your forged documents.””
He stepped toward me.
“I need you to understand that if this transfer collapses, the company could go under.””
I looked at him.
“And if it succeeds?””
He didn't answer.
“What happens to me?””
“You'll be taken care of.””
The words were so cold that I almost didn't recognize his voice.
“Taken care of?””
“We can arrange somewhere else for you to stay.””
I stared at him.
“You want to throw your pregnant wife out of her own house?””
“Don't make this more difficult than it needs to be.””
I picked up my handbag.
“I need somewhere safe tonight.””
He moved toward the doorway.
“Where are you going?””
“Not somewhere you can find me.””
He laughed bitterly.
“Don't be ridiculous. You're my wife.””
I looked directly into his eyes.
“Then you should have remembered that before you handed my home to another woman.””
I walked past him.
He caught my wrist.
Not hard enough to hurt me, but firmly enough to stop me.
“Nia. Don't do something you'll regret.””
I looked down at his fingers.
“Let go.””
He released me.
I stepped outside and called my best friend, Olivia.
She answered on the second ring.
“Hey, girl. How was the scan? Did you tell Daniel?””
I opened my mouth.
Nothing came out.
“Nia?””
“Olivia, can I come over?””
Her voice changed immediately.
“Of course. What's wrong?””
“My husband cheated on me.””
A pause.
“And he stole my house.””
Another pause.
Then Olivia said, “I'm getting my keys. Stay where you are.””
I sat in my car for twenty minutes before driving away.
Daniel didn't come outside.
He didn't call.
He didn't even send a message.
By the time I reached Olivia's apartment, the sky had turned dark.
She opened the door wearing pajamas, took one look at my face, and pulled me into her arms.
I cried against her shoulder until my throat hurt.
When I finally explained everything, she sat beside me on the couch and listened without interrupting.
Then she took my phone.
“Let's call the bank,” she said.
“And tomorrow we're finding you a lawyer.””
I nodded.
My phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number.
*Nia, this is Vanessa. I think you deserve to know what Daniel hasn't told you.*
I stared at the screen.
Another message appeared.
*Your father knew about me.*
My blood ran cold.
Before I could respond, a photograph arrived.
It showed an old document with my father's handwriting at the bottom.
I zoomed in.
The date was eleven years earlier.
And beneath my father's signature was a sentence that made my heart stop.
*If anything happens to me, make sure Vanessa receives what I promised her.*
Olivia leaned closer.
“What is that?””
I couldn't speak.
Because I recognized the handwriting.
And I recognized the name written at the top of the document.
It wasn't Vanessa Reed.
It was *Vanessa Carter*.
My father's surname.
My maiden name.
The woman in the red dress wasn't just my husband's mistress.
May you like
According to my father's handwriting, she had been promised something by my father long before Daniel and I ever met.
Something that apparently belonged to me.
