Chapter 3: The Woman Who Knew Too Much
Nobody moved.
I stood in the middle of my own wedding reception, surrounded by white roses, shattered champagne glasses, and two hundred people who had just watched my future collapse.
Vanessa was crying.
Richard was standing near the exit.
And Lily was holding my hand as if she were afraid I might disappear too.
I looked at Vanessa.
“What did you just say?””
She covered her mouth.
“I didn't mean it like that.””
“You said my father wasn't supposed to die.””
“Marcus, please.””
“Were you there when he died?””
She shook her head.
But the movement was too quick.
Too practiced.
I took a step closer.
“Look at me and answer.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“I went to see him that night.””
“When?””
“The evening before his accident.””
“Why?””
“To talk.””
“About what?””
She looked at Richard.
He gave her a warning glance.
That told me everything.
“Don't look at him,” I said.
“Look at me.””
Vanessa's shoulders began shaking.
“Your father had documents. He was going to change the ownership structure of the company.””
“What documents?””
“He had discovered that Richard had been moving money.””
I turned toward my business partner.
Richard folded his arms.
“Don't listen to her.””
Vanessa continued.
“Robert wanted to remove Richard from the company and transfer his shares to you.””
I felt sick.
“How much money?””
She hesitated.
“How much?””
“Almost twelve million dollars.””
A murmur spread through the room.
Daniel swore under his breath.
I stared at Richard.
“Twelve million?””
He shrugged.
“It's more complicated than that.””
“You stole twelve million dollars from my company?””
“I borrowed it.””
“You borrowed it?””
“We had financial obligations. Your father was going to destroy the business over paperwork.””
I stepped toward him.
“Where is the money?””
Richard looked away.
That was when I realized the situation was much bigger than an affair.
My father had discovered financial fraud.
He had confronted Richard.
And Vanessa had been involved.
I turned back to her.
“What happened that night?””
She wiped her cheeks.
“I went to Robert's house because Richard asked me to convince him to wait before signing the new documents.””
“And?””
“He refused.””
“What happened next?””
“We argued.””
“Did you leave?””
“Yes.””
“Did Richard go there?””
She didn't answer.
I looked at Richard.
“Did you?””
He gave a cold smile.
“I'm not answering questions in front of a room full of strangers.””
“Then answer one question in front of me. Did you kill my father?””
His smile disappeared.
“Watch your mouth.””
I stepped closer.
“You sat beside me at his funeral. You held my shoulder while I buried him. You told me he was proud of me.””
Richard's jaw tightened.
“I was trying to protect the company.””
“From my father?””
“From you!””
The words exploded across the room.
Richard took a breath, realizing what he had said.
I stared at him.
“Explain that.””
He looked at Vanessa.
She was shaking her head.
“Richard,” she whispered, “don't.””
But he had already lost control.
“Your father was going to hand everything to you. You weren't ready. You had no idea how much debt that company was carrying.””
“So you stole from it?””
“I kept it alive!””
“And you needed my father dead?””
Richard lunged toward me.
Daniel grabbed him around the chest.
“Don't even think about it!””
Several guests screamed.
Two men from the security team rushed forward and pinned Richard against a table.
His elbow struck a crystal centerpiece.
It crashed to the floor.
“Get off me!”” he shouted.
I barely noticed.
I was looking at Vanessa.
“Tell me the truth.””
She shook her head.
“Marcus, I love you.””
I almost couldn't believe she had said it.
“You love me?””
“Yes.””
“Then why were you sleeping with him?””
She closed her eyes.
“I made a mistake.””
“How long?””
Silence.
“How long, Vanessa?””
She whispered something.
I couldn't hear her.
“Say it.””
“Fourteen months.””
The number hit me harder than the video.
Fourteen months.
My father had died eleven months earlier.
Which meant the affair had started before his death.
I remembered the business trips.
The late-night calls.
The weekends when Vanessa claimed she needed time alone.
I remembered buying her the diamond bracelet she had worn at our engagement party.
I had thought I was building a life with her.
She had been building something else.
“Was any of it real?”” I asked.
She stepped toward me.
“Marcus, I did love you.””
“Did you love me, or did you love my money?””
She began crying harder.
“I didn't know how much money your father was worth when we met.””
“But you knew by the time he died.””
She said nothing.
Then Evelyn stepped forward.
“Marcus, there's something else.””
I turned toward her.
“What?””
She looked at Vanessa.
“Tell him.””
Vanessa shook her head.
“Please don't.””
Evelyn's voice trembled.
“Lily didn't just find those videos by accident.””
I frowned.
“What do you mean?””
Evelyn took a deep breath.
“Three weeks ago, Vanessa came to my house while Lily was doing homework.””
Vanessa immediately interrupted.
“That's not true.””
Evelyn ignored her.
“She asked Lily to help her carry some boxes from her car. When Lily went back outside, she heard Vanessa talking to Richard on the phone.””
I looked down at Lily.
She was staring at the floor.
“What did you hear, sweetheart?””
Lily swallowed.
“She said you were going to sign something after the wedding.””
“What something?””
“The papers that would make her the boss.””
I looked at Vanessa.
She shook her head.
“That's a lie.””
Lily continued.
“She said when you signed, you wouldn't be able to take anything back.””
My stomach tightened.
I remembered the documents Vanessa had placed on the dressing-room table that morning.
She had told me they were routine paperwork for the company's family trust.
I had planned to sign them after our honeymoon.
“Where are those documents?”” I asked.
Vanessa's expression changed.
“They're at home.””
“What documents?””
“Just administrative paperwork.””
“Vanessa.””
She looked down.
I reached into my jacket and pulled out my phone.
I called my lawyer, James Bennett.
He answered after two rings.
“Marcus? You should be getting married right now.””
“James, I need you to listen carefully.””
His voice immediately changed.
“What happened?””
“Did you prepare any documents for Vanessa to become a director or trustee of my company?””
A pause.
Then he said something that made the entire room seem to disappear.
“Marcus, I specifically warned you not to sign those papers.””
My heart began pounding.
“What papers?””
“The documents Richard sent over last month. They would transfer controlling voting rights to a private holding company.””
“Whose company?””
Another pause.
“It's registered under Vanessa's name.””
I looked at her.
She was staring at the floor.
James continued.
“Marcus, there's another problem. The transfer becomes effective once you sign the final authorization. And according to the documents I reviewed yesterday, the authorization was scheduled to be signed today.””
I felt my hands go cold.
Today.
At my wedding.
Vanessa hadn't just wanted to marry me.
She wanted my signature.
I looked at the beautiful woman in the expensive white gown.
The woman who had kissed me in front of our families that morning.
The woman who had promised to love me forever.
“You planned all of this,” I whispered.
She shook her head.
“Marcus, it wasn't supposed to happen this way.””
“Then how was it supposed to happen?””
She looked up.
For a moment, her tears disappeared.
Her face became strangely calm.
“You were supposed to trust me.””
I stared at her.
“And if I had signed?””
She didn't answer.
Daniel's phone began ringing.
He looked at the screen and frowned.
“Marcus, it's the hotel manager.””
“Tell him to call later.””
“He says someone is trying to access your private office upstairs.””
I turned toward him.
“What?””
Daniel answered.
He listened for several seconds.
Then his face changed.
“There's a woman up there,” he said slowly.
“She says she's your father's attorney.””
My heart skipped.
“My father's attorney died six months ago.””
Daniel swallowed.
“She says she has the original police report from the night of the accident.””
I looked at Evelyn.
She was suddenly pale.
Then Lily tugged at my sleeve.
“Uncle Marcus?””
“What is it?””
She looked toward the ballroom doors.
“That's the woman Grandma told me about.””
I stared at her.
“What woman?””
Lily's voice dropped to a whisper.
“The woman who came to our house after Vanessa said Grandpa Robert was dead.””
Before I could ask another question, the ballroom doors opened.
A woman in a dark blue coat stepped inside.
She carried a thick brown envelope.
May you like
And the first words out of her mouth were:
“Marcus Hayes, your father didn't die in a car accident.””
