Chapter 2 - The Villa Was Never His
Diane stared at the wet papers as though the numbers might change if she looked long enough.
“They’re wrong,” she said.
Rachel took the documents from her and placed them safely inside the folder.
“The transfers were verified through bank records.”
Diane pointed at me.
“She manufactured this.”
“I did not.”
“You control the company.”
“That is why I hired an outside accounting firm.”
Ethan set down his whiskey.
“It wasn’t theft.”
I turned toward him.
“What would you call it?”
“A temporary transfer.”
“Without authorization?”
“I planned to return it.”
“When?”
He hesitated.
I stepped closer.
“Before or after you filed for divorce?”
Several guests moved away from the center of the room. They were still listening, but no one wanted to appear involved.
Ethan lowered his voice.
“We shouldn’t do this in public.”
“You brought me into a room filled with people celebrating the assets you thought you were taking from me.”
“I didn’t organize this.”
“But you came.”
His silence answered for him.
Diane pushed between us.
“My son invested in our family business. There is nothing illegal about helping his family.”
I looked at her.
“Mercer Family Ventures was insolvent.”
Her mouth tightened.
“That is a temporary situation.”
“It had no paying clients, no active contracts, and over three hundred thousand dollars in debt.”
Brooke glanced at her mother.
“You said the company was doing well.”
“It will do well.”
“With money taken from mine?” I asked.
Diane ignored me.
She looked at Ethan.
“How much did you send?”
He rubbed the back of his neck.
“Mom—”
“How much?”
“Six hundred eighty-four thousand.”
Brooke covered her mouth.
Diane’s face hardened.
“You told me the funds came from your investment account.”
“I was going to move money around later.”
“Whose money?”
Ethan’s voice dropped.
“Mine, after the divorce.”
The truth landed harder than I expected.
Not because I was surprised.
Because Ethan had finally said it clearly.
His plan had been simple.
Divorce me.
Claim part of my fortune.
Use it to cover the money he had already taken.
Diane looked toward the guests.
“Everyone should leave.”
No one moved.
She raised her voice.
“The party is over.”
A man near the stage quietly set down his champagne and headed toward the door. Others followed, whispering among themselves.
Brooke stayed.
So did Ethan’s uncle Raymond and two of Diane’s closest friends.
Rachel leaned toward me.
“Would you like to continue privately?”
“No,” Diane said. “She has humiliated us enough.”
I looked at Rachel.
“I’m fine.”
Diane pointed toward the exit.
“Get out.”
I almost laughed.
“This isn’t your country club.”
“I paid for this room.”
“With what money?”
Her face turned red.
Ethan stepped between us.
“Enough.”
I met his eyes.
“Sign the agreement.”
He looked toward Rachel.
“What happens if I don’t?”
Rachel answered calmly.
“Then we proceed to court, where the audit, the prenuptial agreement, the hidden transfers, and your attempt to conceal assets will become part of the public record.”
Diane grabbed his arm.
“Do not sign anything.”
Ethan pulled away.
“Mom.”
“She’s bluffing.”
Rachel opened a separate file.
“We have already prepared a civil complaint.”
Ethan stared at the papers.
“And criminal charges?”
I answered.
“That depends on what happens next.”
His voice became bitter.
“So this is blackmail.”
“No. Blackmail would be asking you for something you do not legally owe.”
I slid a pen across the table.
“This agreement allows you to repay the missing funds over five years after selling your personal assets. In return, Halcyon will not pursue additional damages unless more money is discovered.”
Diane read the first page.
“He isn’t selling his house.”
“The house has a mortgage larger than its current value,” Rachel said. “It will likely be sold anyway.”
Diane looked at me.
“What about his cars?”
“Two were leased through Halcyon. They have already been returned.”
Ethan sat down heavily.
Diane’s voice cracked.
“You took his cars?”
“They belonged to the company.”
“You’re trying to leave him with nothing.”
“No,” I said. “I am stopping him from leaving me with his debt.”
Brooke pulled off the diamond bracelet.
“What about this?”
I looked at it.
“What about it?”
“Was it bought with company money?”
Ethan turned away.
That was enough.
Brooke placed the bracelet on the table.
“I didn’t know.”
Diane snapped, “Keep it on.”
Brooke looked at her mother.
“Did you know?”
Diane hesitated.
“Know what?”
“That Ethan was using Claire’s money.”
“I knew my son was making investments.”
“You told me he owned part of Halcyon.”
“He should have.”
Brooke stepped back as if Diane had struck her.
Ethan picked up the pen.
His hand shook.
Diane seized his wrist.
“You sign that, and she wins.”
I looked at him.
“This isn’t about winning. It is about deciding whether you want the consequences to become worse.”
He stared at the signature line.
Then he looked at me.
“Did you ever love me?”
The question silenced everyone.
I answered honestly.
“For seven years.”
His eyes dropped.
“What changed?”
“You stopped seeing me as your wife and started seeing me as an exit strategy.”
He signed the first page.
Diane made a broken sound.
Ethan signed the second.
Then the third.
When he finished, he placed the pen on the table.
Rachel gathered the documents.
Diane stared at me with pure hatred.
“You planned this.”
“No, Diane. You planned a victory party before learning who had actually lost.”
I picked up my handbag.
As I turned toward the door, Ethan spoke behind me.
“Claire.”
I stopped but did not face him.
“I’m sorry.”
I waited.
He added nothing else.
So I walked away.
Outside, the California sun was bright over the mountains.
Behind me, gold balloons pressed against the ballroom windows.
May you like
By sunset, they would begin to deflate.
Just like every lie inside that room.
