Chapter 5: The Truth Hidden in His Phone
Julian called again the next morning.
This time, I answered.
Not because I missed him.
Because I was ready.
"Clara.""
His voice sounded different.
Less confident.
More desperate.
"Where are you?""
"Why?""
"Because I need to explain.""
I smiled faintly.
"You've had plenty of time to explain.""
Silence.
"I know you're angry.""
"Angry?""
I looked at the documents spread across Olivia's dining table.
"That's an interesting word.""
"Clara...""
"No, Julian. I want to understand something.""
"What?""
"Did you ever love me?""
The silence that followed hurt more than any confession could have.
Because he didn't answer immediately.
People answer quickly when the truth helps them.
They hesitate when it doesn't.
"I do love you.""
I closed my eyes.
"Then why?""
"I made mistakes.""
"No.""
My voice became colder.
"You made choices.""
He didn't respond.
"You didn't accidentally buy another woman an apartment.""
Silence.
"You didn't accidentally move our money.""
Silence.
"You didn't accidentally bring her on our honeymoon.""
Still silence.
"Those were choices.""
Finally, he whispered:
"You don't understand.""
"Then help me understand.""
He breathed heavily.
"I was under pressure.""
I almost laughed.
Pressure.
Another excuse.
"You were under pressure, so you betrayed me?""
"No.""
"Then what?""
He didn't answer.
I looked at the clock.
Every second mattered.
Because I knew something Julian didn't.
Rachel had requested copies of every financial document.
And Marcus had agreed to help.
The walls were closing in.
But Julian still believed he could control the story.
"Clara, come home.""
The words shocked me.
Home.
He actually said home.
As if nothing had changed.
"Why?""
"Because we're married.""
I stared at my wedding ring.
"Are we?""
His voice sharpened.
"Don't do this.""
There it was.
The anger.
The real Julian.
The one who appeared when he lost control.
"Do what?""
"Destroy everything because you're upset.""
I laughed quietly.
"Julian, you destroyed everything.""
"You're making a mistake.""
"No.""
I looked out the window.
"For the first time, I'm making a decision.""
I ended the call.
Immediately, Olivia appeared from the kitchen.
"How did he sound?""
"Scared.""
She nodded.
"Good.""
I looked at her.
"Good?""
"Yes. Because scared people make mistakes.""
She was right.
And Julian made his first mistake that afternoon.
He forgot I still had access to our shared cloud account.
For years, we used it for documents.
Photos.
Travel plans.
Important files.
I logged in.
At first, nothing.
Then I noticed a folder.
Hidden.
Created two weeks before the wedding.
The title was simple.
"S.""
My heart raced.
I opened it.
Inside were documents.
Photos.
Messages.
My hands shook as I clicked the first file.
It was a photo of Julian and Sienna.
Not romantic.
Not obvious.
But intimate.
They were sitting together at a restaurant.
The date was one year earlier.
One year.
I opened another file.
A conversation.
Between Julian and Sienna.
I read the first line.
And everything inside me went silent.
*Sienna: "Are you sure she'll sign everything before you tell her?""*
My breathing stopped.
The next message was from Julian.
*Julian: "She trusts me completely.""*
I continued reading.
Every sentence felt like a knife.
They weren't planning an affair.
They were planning an exit.
A financial exit.
They had discussed transferring assets.
Creating distance.
Making sure I wouldn't challenge anything.
Then I found the message that destroyed the last piece of love I had left.
*Julian: "Clara is emotional. She'll be hurt, but eventually she'll accept it.""*
Accept it.
Like I was a problem to manage.
Like my pain was predictable.
Like my love was a weakness.
I closed the laptop.
I couldn't breathe.
Olivia saw my face.
"What did you find?""
I handed her the computer.
She read silently.
Then she looked up.
"Clara...""
"I know.""
"No, listen to me.""
She grabbed my hand.
"This is not a marriage problem.""
I looked at her.
"This is fraud.""
The word stayed in the air.
Fraud.
Suddenly, everything made sense.
The rushed business decisions.
The secrecy.
The strange payments.
The honeymoon.
Sienna wasn't just the other woman.
She was the partner.
And I was the target.
That night, I made a decision.
I wasn't going to ask Julian for the truth anymore.
May you like
I already had it.
Now I needed justice.
