Chapter 8: Michael’s Wife
Sarah put the call on speaker.
“Hello?””
A woman’s voice came through immediately.
“Where is Michael?””
Nobody answered.
Lauren sounded breathless.
“Sarah, where is he?””
Emily stared at the phone.
Sarah swallowed.
“He’s with sheriff’s deputies.””
There was silence.
Then Lauren whispered, “Thank God.””
That wasn’t the reaction any of us expected.
Sarah frowned.
“What?””
“Did they arrest him?””
“Yes.””
Lauren exhaled.
A long, shaking breath.
“Then listen to me. Do not let him leave with Emily.””
Emily stiffened.
“Why?””
Lauren heard her.
“Emily?””
“Yes.””
“Oh God.””
The woman’s voice softened.
“I’m sorry.””
Emily stepped closer to the phone.
“For what?””
Lauren hesitated.
“For not finding you sooner.””
Michael’s absence suddenly felt enormous.
I looked at Noah.
He looked equally confused.
Sarah gripped her phone.
“Lauren, what is going on?””
“I found Michael’s second phone yesterday.””
Sarah’s face tightened.
“What second phone?””
“The one he kept in his office.””
Lauren continued.
“There were messages. Bank screenshots. Pictures of account statements.””
I looked at Sarah.
She covered her mouth.
Lauren said, “Most of them had James Carter’s name on them.””
Nobody spoke.
I finally asked, “Lauren, this is James.””
“I know who you are.””
“How?””
“Because Michael has been talking about you for months.””
Emily whispered, “What did he say?””
Lauren became quiet.
“Emily, I don’t think—”
“Tell me.””
“He said James had taken everything that should have been his.””
I felt sick.
Emily’s eyes filled.
“Everything?””
“You. Your mother. The house. The family.””
Sarah whispered, “That’s insane.””
Lauren laughed bitterly.
“You think?””
Then her voice sharpened.
“He has been obsessed with proving he could come back and become important to Emily again.””
Emily hugged herself.
“So the house…”
“Was never yours.””
The words landed brutally.
Lauren continued.
“He wanted to purchase it under my name because his credit is destroyed.””
Noah nodded.
“That matches the paperwork.””
Lauren sounded surprised.
“You found the contract?””
“Yes.””
“Then you probably found the loan application too.””
“We did.””
Lauren sighed.
“I refused to sign it.””
I frowned.
“Then how was he planning to close?””
“He forged my signature.””
Sarah sat down.
Emily whispered, “Oh my God.””
Lauren continued.
“I discovered it yesterday morning. I confronted him.””
“What happened?”” I asked.
“He told me I was overreacting.””
Her voice trembled.
“Then he grabbed my laptop and left.””
The deputies finding Lauren’s identification suddenly made sense.
“Did you call the police?”” Noah asked.
“Yes. Yesterday.””
The pieces began connecting.
The vehicle complaint.
The identification.
The deputies.
Michael hadn’t been arrested because of my bank alert.
Not yet.
He had arrived at Emily’s wedding already being investigated.
Emily looked toward the courtyard.
Guests were beginning to murmur.
The ceremony had officially stalled.
She touched her veil.
“I can’t do this.””
Noah stepped closer.
“You don’t have to.””
“I mean any of it.””
Her breathing quickened.
“The flowers. The ballroom. The dress. Everyone watching.””
She grabbed the edge of a table.
“I wanted everything to look perfect.””
Noah held her shoulders.
“Look at me.””
She did.
“Do you want to marry me?””
“Yes.””
“Then that’s the only question that matters.””
Her face broke.
He pulled her against him.
I looked away.
Not because I was uncomfortable.
Because watching someone choose love without calculating what it cost suddenly hurt.
Lauren was still on speaker.
“Emily?””
Emily pulled back.
“Yes?””
“There’s something else.””
Every muscle in my body tightened.
Of course there was.
“What?”” Emily asked.
Lauren’s voice became careful.
“Michael told me Sarah invited him back.””
Emily looked at her mother.
Sarah shook her head immediately.
“No.””
Lauren continued.
“He said Sarah contacted him before your engagement.””
Sarah stood.
“That’s not true.””
Emily stared at her.
“When did you contact him?””
“I didn’t.””
Lauren said, “I have the messages.””
Sarah’s face changed.
I noticed.
So did Emily.
“Mom?””
Sarah looked trapped.
“Emily, I can explain.””
“Again?””
“It wasn’t what you think.””
“What do I think?””
Sarah looked at me.
That told me the explanation involved me.
I felt exhausted.
“When?”” I asked.
She whispered, “About eighteen months ago.””
Emily’s engagement had happened eleven months ago.
Michael had supposedly returned after hearing about it.
Another lie.
“Why?”” Emily asked.
Sarah’s eyes filled.
“Because you were asking questions.””
“What questions?””
“About your childhood. About why Michael disappeared.””
Emily shook her head.
“So you contacted him?””
“I wanted him to tell you the same thing I had.””
“The same lie?””
“No!””
Sarah’s voice broke.
“I wanted us to agree on what happened.””
I stared at her.
“You wanted to coordinate your stories.””
She looked at me.
“I wanted to protect our family.””
I laughed softly.
“Our family seems to require a remarkable amount of deception.””
Emily wiped her face.
“What did you offer him?””
Sarah didn’t answer.
Emily stepped closer.
“Mom.””
“I told him…”
She swallowed.
“I told him I would help him financially if he didn’t destroy everything.””
My chest tightened.
“How much?””
“At first? Ten thousand.””
“At first?””
Sarah looked at the floor.
“He kept asking for more.””
Michael hadn’t simply returned.
He had been invited.
Then paid.
Then he discovered the size of our accounts.
And greed did the rest.
Emily looked at me.
The shame on her face was unbearable.
“I chose him.””
I shook my head.
“You chose what you thought he was.””
“I pushed you away for him.””
“That part happened.””
She flinched.
I softened my voice.
“But we don’t have to decide what that means right now.””
The coordinator approached again.
“Emily, we need a decision.””
Emily looked at Noah.
Then at the open courtyard doors.
Then at me.
“Can we still get married?””
The coordinator nodded.
“The ceremony, yes.””
“And the reception?””
“That depends on payment.””
Emily looked at the invoices in her hands.
Then she did something I didn’t expect.
She handed them to the coordinator.
“Cancel everything you legally can.””
Sarah gasped.
“Emily!””
“No.””
Emily removed the diamond bracelet from her wrist.
Then the expensive earrings Sarah had bought her.
“I don’t need any of this.””
She looked at Noah.
“I need you.””
Noah smiled.
Emily turned toward me.
“And James…”
She swallowed.
“I need to ask you something.””
I braced myself.
She reached up and removed her veil.
“I know I don’t deserve to ask anymore.””
Her eyes filled.
“But if I walk down that aisle today…”
May you like
She looked at my arm.
“Would you still walk with me?””
