Chapter 2: The Recording They Never Expected Me to See
Emily locked the office door behind us.
The room smelled of printer ink and stale coffee. A small security monitor sat on a cluttered desk beside several stacks of appointment records.
My mother lowered herself into a chair.
"Sarah, what's happening?""
I squeezed her hand.
"I don't know, Mom.""
Emily checked the hallway through the narrow glass panel.
"Ethan and Vanessa are still outside.""
"Why are you helping us?"" I asked.
She swallowed.
"Because I heard what they said about your mother yesterday.""
My stomach tightened.
"What did they say?""
Emily sat at the computer.
"I wasn't supposed to be working yesterday afternoon. I came in to pick up my paycheck, and I heard them arguing in the back office.""
She clicked a folder.
"Vanessa told Ethan she didn't want to do it. He told her she had no choice.""
"Do what?""
Emily looked at me.
"Humiliate your mother.""
The words landed like a slap.
My mother covered her mouth.
Emily opened the security software.
"There are cameras in the reception area, the hallways, and the styling stations. Vanessa doesn't know I kept copies of the recordings.""
"Why would you keep them?"" I asked.
"Because she has done things like this before.""
Emily's fingers hovered over the keyboard.
"She ruined another client's hair last month. When the woman threatened to complain, Vanessa said she'd make sure the salon's insurance company blamed her.""
I felt sick.
"Play yesterday's recording.""
Emily selected a timestamp.
The screen showed the salon's reception area.
Ethan walked through the entrance at 2:14 p.m.
He wasn't wearing the suit he'd worn today. Instead, he had on a gray sweater and jeans.
Vanessa came out of the back office and kissed his cheek.
Then she looked around.
"Nobody's here," she said.
Ethan laughed.
"Relax. Nobody's watching.""
I leaned closer to the monitor.
Vanessa poured two glasses of champagne.
"What if Sarah finds out?""
Ethan took a glass.
"She won't.""
"And her mother?""
"That's exactly why we're doing this.""
My blood turned cold.
Vanessa sat on the edge of the styling counter.
"Linda is going to make a huge scene if she sees what I do to her hair.""
Ethan shrugged.
"That's the point.""
My mother made a small sound beside me.
On the recording, Vanessa laughed.
"You're asking me to destroy a sixty-three-year-old woman's hair three days before your wedding.""
"I'm asking you to make her look ridiculous.""
"You're a terrible person.""
Ethan smiled.
"Yet you're still here.""
Vanessa leaned closer.
"What's in it for me?""
He placed his glass down.
"After the wedding, everything changes.""
"That's what you said last time.""
"Because last time wasn't the right moment.""
Then Ethan stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Once Sarah signs the property agreement, we won't have to pretend anymore.""
Vanessa turned.
"What about Linda?""
"She'll be too busy comforting her daughter.""
The two of them laughed.
Then Ethan kissed Vanessa.
Not on the cheek.
Not a friendly greeting.
A long, intimate kiss.
My knees nearly buckled.
My mother reached for my shoulder.
"Sarah...""
I couldn't answer.
Four years of memories suddenly seemed contaminated.
The first anniversary dinner.
The proposal at the lake.
The Christmas morning when Ethan had promised my mother he would always protect me.
Every word sounded different now.
Emily paused the video.
"There's another recording.""
I wiped my face.
"Show me.""
The next clip showed Vanessa opening a drawer and removing a folder.
Ethan stood beside her.
She flipped through several documents.
"She hasn't signed anything yet," Vanessa said.
"She will.""
"What if she refuses?""
Ethan took the folder.
"Then we'll use the signature from the authorization.""
My mother suddenly stood.
"What authorization?""
Emily looked at her.
"That's what I was trying to tell you.""
She opened another file.
A scanned agreement appeared on the screen.
At the top was the name of my late father, Robert Miller.
Below it was a description of his lakefront property in Georgia.
The property was worth approximately $1.8 million.
My father had bought it when I was twelve. It was the place where we spent every summer, where he taught me to fish, where he proposed to my mother.
After he died, the property became part of his estate.
Ethan had always encouraged me to keep it.
He even claimed it was a special place we could eventually share with our children.
Now I was staring at a document transferring ownership into a newly formed company.
The listed owners were Ethan Miller and Vanessa Collins.
My mouth went dry.
"That's impossible.""
Emily pointed toward the bottom.
"Look at the signature.""
My name was printed beneath a familiar-looking signature.
Sarah Miller.
I shook my head.
"I never signed this.""
My mother leaned closer.
"That's not your handwriting.""
"No," I whispered.
"It's not.""
Emily opened the attached records.
There were copies of my driver's license, my father's death certificate, and a notarized authorization.
I recognized the license immediately.
I'd given Ethan a copy months earlier when he said he needed it to arrange our wedding insurance.
He had told me it was standard paperwork.
I turned toward Emily.
"When was this printed?""
She opened the printer history.
"Yesterday morning. At 9:42.""
"Who printed it?""
Emily clicked another window.
A username appeared.
VANESSA.C.
My mother's breathing became uneven.
Then she noticed the notary's name.
Patricia Collins.
Her younger sister.
My aunt Patricia.
The woman who had introduced Ethan and me at a charity event four years earlier.
The woman who had repeatedly told me I was lucky to find such a successful, generous man.
My mother gripped the edge of the desk.
"Patricia wouldn't do this.""
I picked up my phone.
"Let's ask her.""
The call rang twice.
"Sarah, sweetheart!"" Patricia answered cheerfully.
"Are you excited? I just finished choosing my dress for the wedding.""
I stared at the signature on the screen.
"Why is your name on a notarized document transferring Dad's property to Ethan?""
Silence.
A long, terrible silence.
Then Patricia whispered:
"Where did you get that?""
My mother closed her eyes.
I felt my stomach twist.
"Answer me, Patricia.""
Her voice cracked.
"Sarah, please don't tell your mother about this.""
I looked at Mom.
She was standing beside me, trembling.
"Why shouldn't I tell her?""
Patricia began crying.
"Because your father didn't leave that property to you alone.""
I froze.
"What are you talking about?""
Then she whispered:
"Sarah, there's another beneficiary.""
My mother slowly sank into the chair.
"Who?"" I demanded.
Patricia didn't answer.
Instead, she said something that made the entire room feel smaller.
"Ethan knows exactly who it is.""
And before I could ask another question, Emily clicked on the final attachment.
A photograph appeared.
Ethan stood beside Vanessa.
Between them was a little boy, perhaps four years old.
The birth certificate attached beneath the picture showed Ethan Miller listed as the father.
I stared at the date.
The child had been born the same month Ethan proposed to me.
But the address beneath Vanessa's name was even more disturbing.
May you like
It was my father's lakefront property.
The house Ethan had sworn he had never visited.
Related Stories
