Chapter 6: The House He Bought for His Second Family
I stared at the address on Andrea's screen.
It was a property in Westlake Estates, one of the most expensive neighborhoods outside Atlanta.
I recognized it immediately.
Marcus had shown me photographs of the house eight months earlier.
"It's an investment," he'd explained.
"The market is going to rise.""
I'd asked whether we could visit.
He'd kissed my forehead and said the renovation wasn't finished.
Now I understood why.
"That's where Vivian lives?"" I asked.
Andrea nodded.
"According to the company registration, that's its principal business address.""
Eleanor looked furious.
"Marcus told me he purchased that property through Hale Development.""
"Was that true?"" I asked.
"Apparently not.""
Andrea tapped the screen.
"The property was purchased through Cross Family Holdings. The down payment came from an account connected to the company.""
I felt sick.
"How much?""
"Approximately seven hundred thousand dollars.""
I lowered my head.
That was money Marcus had repeatedly claimed the company couldn't spare.
Money he said was needed to keep his employees paid.
Money he told me was the reason we couldn't afford to take a proper vacation before the baby arrived.
I remembered standing in a furniture store, comparing two inexpensive cribs because I didn't want to put unnecessary pressure on our finances.
Meanwhile, he had purchased another house.
For Vivian.
My phone rang.
This time, the caller ID showed Marcus.
I answered without hesitation.
"What?""
"Claire, we need to talk.""
"You can talk.""
"Not over the phone.""
"Why? Is Vivian listening?""
He exhaled.
"You're making this worse than it needs to be.""
I looked at Andrea.
"Did you buy Vivian a house?""
Silence.
"Who told you that?""
"Answer me.""
"It's an investment property.""
"Then why is her company listed as the owner?""
"Because we structured it that way.""
"We?""
"Claire, listen. There's a lot you don't understand about business.""
"Then explain why you used company money to buy a house for the woman you're having an affair with.""
His voice sharpened.
"Lower your voice.""
I almost laughed.
"You're not here. Nobody can hear me.""
"Mother has been filling your head with lies.""
"Eleanor showed me the documents.""
"She has no right to interfere.""
"She is your mother.""
"Exactly. And she's trying to destroy everything I've built.""
I looked at the hospital monitor.
The baby's heartbeat continued steadily.
"Marcus, I want you to answer one question.""
"What?""
"Did you ever intend to tell me about Vivian?""
He was quiet.
Then he said, "I was going to handle everything after the baby was born.""
I closed my eyes.
"Handle what?""
"The divorce. The house. The finances.""
"And Vivian?""
"She was part of my future.""
I pressed my lips together.
"What about the future you promised me?""
"Claire, people change.""
"Did you ever love me?""
He didn't answer.
I waited.
Five seconds.
Ten.
Then he said, "I don't want to have this conversation anymore.""
I ended the call.
Eleanor took my hand.
"You don't have to speak to him again unless you want to.""
I nodded.
For the first time, I wasn't waiting for Marcus to explain himself.
I wanted evidence.
I wanted the truth.
And I wanted my child protected.
Andrea received permission from the bank to obtain additional transaction records through the appropriate legal process.
She also contacted the company's external accountant.
An hour later, the accountant called.
His name was Robert Hayes.
He had worked with Hale Development for almost nine years.
Andrea put him on speaker.
"Mr. Hayes, thank you for returning my call.""
"Of course. I received your request. I need to be careful about what I disclose, but there are some things you should know.""
Eleanor leaned closer.
"Go ahead.""
Robert cleared his throat.
"Marcus has been asking me to reclassify several payments as consulting expenses.""
"Which payments?"" Andrea asked.
"Payments to Cross Family Holdings.""
"Did you approve them?""
"No.""
"Why not?""
"Because the company wasn't providing any documented services.""
I looked at Eleanor.
Robert continued.
"I raised concerns with Marcus two months ago. He told me the transactions were approved by the board.""
"Was that true?"" Andrea asked.
"No. I checked the minutes. No such approval existed.""
Eleanor closed her eyes.
"What did Marcus say when you challenged him?""
"He told me to stop asking questions if I wanted to keep my job.""
My hands curled around the blanket.
Andrea asked, "Did you retain copies of the records?""
"Yes.""
"Can you preserve them?""
"I already have.""
There was a pause.
Then Robert added something unexpected.
"There's another issue. I found a payment labeled as a maternity-related expense.""
My stomach tightened.
"What does that mean?"" I asked.
Robert hesitated.
"It was a payment to a private medical consultant. The amount was forty-eight thousand dollars.""
"Who received it?""
"I don't have the full recipient details yet. But the invoice references a family-planning consultation.""
Eleanor frowned.
"Whose family planning?""
"That's what I couldn't establish.""
Andrea wrote something down.
"Please send the invoice through the proper legal channel.""
"I will.""
Before ending the call, Robert spoke again.
"Mrs. Hale, there's one more thing.""
I leaned toward the phone.
"What?""
"Marcus told me yesterday that the company would soon have a new controlling shareholder.""
Eleanor went completely still.
"Who?""
Robert answered quietly.
"Vivian Cross.""
Eleanor stood so quickly that her chair scraped against the floor.
"That's impossible.""
"That's what I thought. But Marcus asked me to prepare the paperwork.""
Andrea immediately requested copies.
When the call ended, Eleanor paced the room.
"Richard would never have allowed this.""
"Could Marcus transfer the shares?"" I asked.
"Not without violating the trust restrictions.""
Andrea opened the original agreement.
"He's been trying to bypass those restrictions through the unauthorized amendments.""
I stared at the papers.
"So Vivian wasn't just going to become his wife.""
"No," Eleanor replied.
"She was going to become one of the most powerful people in the company.""
I remembered Vivian's words at the hotel.
Marcus wants his mother to meet the woman he plans to marry.
Now I understood why she had been so confident.
She believed she was about to inherit more than a husband.
She believed she was about to inherit an empire.
Then Andrea's phone rang again.
She listened for several seconds before her expression changed.
"Yes. I understand.""
She ended the call and looked at Eleanor.
"The bank has identified the source of the original seven-hundred-thousand-dollar payment for the Westlake property.""
"Where did it come from?""
Andrea turned the laptop toward us.
The account number was partially concealed.
But the account holder's name was visible.
Claire Hale.
I felt my breath disappear.
"That's impossible.""
Andrea opened the supporting transaction record.
The money had been transferred from an account established in my name shortly after my marriage.
An account I had never knowingly opened.
Then I recognized the final four digits.
They belonged to the savings account my father had left me.
My inheritance.
The money I had used to help Marcus save his business.
The money he had promised to protect for our family.
I looked at Eleanor.
"He stole my inheritance.""
Andrea shook her head slowly.
"We need to establish exactly how the account was accessed. But the transaction records strongly suggest that funds belonging to you were used in the property purchase.""
My eyes filled with tears.
Marcus hadn't simply cheated.
He had taken the money my father left me and used it to build a home for another woman.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number appeared.
You should check the storage room at the Westlake property.
A second message followed.
There's something inside that Marcus never wanted you to find.
I looked at Andrea.
"Who sent this?""
She examined the number.
"Unknown. We shouldn't visit the property without taking precautions.""
Eleanor picked up her coat.
"Then we won't go alone.""
Before anyone could move, another message appeared.
This time, it included a photograph.
A nursery.
Fresh white walls. A gold-lettered name above a wooden crib.
I zoomed in.
The name above the crib was not Vivian's.
It wasn't Marcus's.
It was the name of my unborn daughter.
May you like
*And beneath the photograph was a handwritten note:*
Ask Marcus why he prepared a room for your baby in the house he bought for Vivian.
