Chapter 2 - The Woman They Never Asked About
Daniel ran after Emily.
“Emily!”
She kept walking.
Her heels struck the stone driveway with calm, measured clicks.
“Emily, stop!”
She reached the bottom step before Daniel grabbed her arm.
Emily looked down at his hand.
“Let go.”
Daniel released her.
“What did you do?”
“Exactly what I told Michael to do.”
“Who is Michael?”
Emily almost smiled.
“That question is eight years late.”
Behind Daniel, people poured from the mansion.
Patricia pushed through them holding her phone.
“My card was declined.”
Emily glanced at her.
“That was fast.”
“You froze my accounts!”
“No.”
Patricia’s face twisted.
“Don’t lie to me.”
“I didn’t freeze your personal accounts.”
Daniel shoved his phone toward Emily.
The message was from Whitmore Development’s corporate banking division.
TEMPORARY RESTRICTION ON DISCRETIONARY EXECUTIVE ACCOUNTS PENDING AUTHORIZED REVIEW.
“What is this?” Daniel demanded.
“A restriction.”
“I can read!”
“Then why are you asking?”
Patricia marched forward.
“You vindictive little—”
“Mom.”
Ryan stepped between them.
Patricia turned on him.
“Stay out of this.”
Ryan didn’t move.
For the first time that evening, Emily saw something unfamiliar in his expression.
Fear.
Not of her.
Of what might be coming.
Daniel lowered his voice.
“You had no authority to do this.”
Emily looked at him.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Completely sure?”
Daniel hesitated.
That hesitation was enough.
Patricia noticed.
“What is she talking about?”
Daniel ignored his mother.
“Emily, whatever game you’re playing, stop it.”
“I’m not playing a game.”
“You’re angry.”
“I was angry three years ago.”
Daniel frowned.
“When?”
“When I discovered someone had transferred four million dollars from Whitmore Development into three private investment vehicles.”
Ryan’s head snapped up.
“What?”
Daniel stared at Emily.
“That was a restructuring.”
“No. It was theft wearing a nice suit.”
Several relatives stepped closer.
Patricia’s face hardened.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Emily reached into her purse.
She pulled out an envelope.
Daniel stared at it.
“What’s that?”
“A copy.”
“Of what?”
Emily handed it to Ryan.
He opened it.
Inside was a corporate resolution dated seven years earlier.
Ryan read the first line.
Then the second.
His mouth opened slightly.
“Emily…”
Daniel grabbed the document.
His eyes moved quickly across the page.
“No.”
Patricia snatched it from him.
She read aloud.
“Upon execution of the emergency capital agreement, Emily Carter Whitmore, through Carter Holdings LLC, shall receive…”
She stopped.
Claire stepped forward.
“Receive what?”
Patricia didn’t answer.
Ryan did.
“Fifty-one percent.”
Silence.
Daniel looked at Emily as though he no longer recognized her.
“That isn’t possible.”
“It’s possible.”
“You never owned fifty-one percent of Whitmore Development.”
Emily held his gaze.
“Yes, Daniel.”
She paused.
“I did.”
Patricia shook her head.
“No. Your father controlled this company.”
“Your father lost control when the company defaulted on forty-two million dollars of debt.”
Patricia went pale.
Daniel stared at her.
“What debt?”
Emily laughed once.
A small, exhausted sound.
“Of course she never told you.”
Patricia snapped, “Shut your mouth.”
Emily stepped closer.
“Seven years ago, your family was seventy-two hours away from bankruptcy.”
Daniel’s eyes shifted toward his mother.
“That’s not true.”
Emily continued.
“Three banks walked away. Two investors backed out. Payroll was due Friday.”
Ryan whispered, “Dad was in the hospital.”
“Yes.”
Emily nodded.
“And Patricia begged me to help.”
Daniel looked at his mother.
“Mom?”
Patricia’s silence was suddenly louder than anything Emily could have said.
Emily continued.
“My father left me assets when he died. I sold part of them. Carter Holdings took over the emergency debt, injected sixteen million dollars in cash, and guaranteed the construction loans.”
Daniel looked sick.
“You told me your inheritance was small.”
“I told you I didn’t want to talk about it.”
“That’s not the same thing.”
“No. It isn’t.”
Patricia finally found her voice.
“That agreement was temporary.”
Emily looked at her.
“No.”
“It was meant to protect the company.”
“It did.”
“Until Arthur recovered.”
Emily’s expression sharpened.
“Your husband died before he could repurchase the shares.”
Everyone went quiet.
Patricia’s hands trembled.
Daniel turned toward her.
“You knew?”
Patricia said nothing.
“Mom, did you know Emily owned the majority?”
Patricia swallowed.
“I knew there had been an arrangement.”
Emily stared at her.
“You signed it.”
Daniel looked as if someone had struck him.
“You signed it?”
Patricia’s face changed.
The arrogance remained, but something else appeared underneath it.
Panic.
Emily stepped toward her car.
Daniel followed.
“Wait.”
Emily opened the door.
“What?”
“If you control the company… why didn’t you ever tell me?”
Emily looked at the man she had loved for eight years.
“Because your father made me promise to let you build something without knowing your wife owned the floor beneath your feet.”
Daniel said nothing.
Emily got into the car.
But before she could close the door, Ryan’s phone buzzed again.
He looked at the screen.
His face went white.
“Daniel.”
Daniel turned.
Ryan held out the phone.
“It’s from the board.”
“What?”
Ryan swallowed.
“There’s an emergency meeting tomorrow morning.”
Daniel took the phone.
Then read the final line.
His lips parted.
“Suspension pending investigation?”
Emily started the engine.
Daniel looked at her through the open door.
“Investigation into what?”
Emily met his eyes.
May you like
“The missing money.”
Then she drove away.
