Chapter 8: The Husband Who Finally Chose a Side
Ethan stared at Daniel as if the attorney had accused him of murder.
“My access code?””
Daniel nodded.
“The system recorded your code at 11:42 p.m. last night.””
“I was at the wedding.””
“The ballroom footage may help establish that. We need to obtain and preserve it.””
“I never went to the office!””
Meredith opened her notebook.
“Ethan, did anyone else know your code?””
“My mother knew it. So did the office manager and two senior employees.””
“Have you ever shared it with Rachel?””
“No.””
Rachel's name hung in the air.
She hadn't attended our gathering at Dad's house, and no one had been able to reach her since the wedding.
Daniel called his office and instructed his team to preserve the available access logs. He also asked that the accounting office's security footage be secured before it could be overwritten.
Dad watched Ethan carefully.
“Can you prove where you were at 11:42?””
“I was in the hotel ballroom. Ask anyone.””
“I will,” Daniel said.
“But we need independent records, not just recollections.””
Ethan turned to me.
“Olivia, you know I was there.””
I remembered him standing beside me while his mother humiliated me. I remembered the shattered champagne glass and the way his eyes had followed Patricia instead of mine.
“I know you were at the reception,” I replied.
“I also know someone had access to your code.””
He lowered his eyes.
For once, he didn't ask me to reassure him.
That afternoon, Meredith arranged for the hotel to preserve its security footage. The hotel manager confirmed that the footage showed Ethan inside the ballroom during the relevant period, although the attorneys still needed to compare the timestamps with the accounting office's access records.
It was the first concrete evidence suggesting someone had used his credentials without his presence.
Ethan sat heavily in his chair.
“My mother did this.””
“Possibly,” Daniel replied.
“But we shouldn't assume who entered the office until the footage is reviewed.””
Ethan stood.
“Then let's review it.””
Meredith caught his sleeve.
“You're not going to confront your mother. Not without advice from counsel.””
“I need answers.””
“You need evidence. If Patricia is involved in these transfers, an emotional confrontation could give her an opportunity to destroy more records.””
Ethan looked toward me.
“Would you come with me if I went to see her?””
“No.””
The answer came out before I could soften it.
He nodded slowly.
“I understand.””
“No, Ethan. I don't think you do.””
I rose from my chair.
“For months, you knew your mother was trying to control our marriage. You kept telling me to be patient because confronting her was uncomfortable. Now you want me to stand beside you while you confront her because you're finally uncomfortable.””
He looked stricken.
“That's not fair.””
“Neither was our wedding.””
Dad remained silent, letting me speak.
I continued.
“I don't need you to perform one grand gesture and expect everything to be fixed. I need you to tell the truth, even when it costs you something.””
Ethan swallowed.
“What do you want me to do?””
“Stop protecting the family name. Stop hiding behind your mother's decisions. Tell your attorney everything you remember about the restructuring, including every document you signed.””
He nodded.
“I will.””
“And don't ask me to forgive you because your mother did something worse.””
He looked down at his wedding ring.
“I won't.””
For the next two hours, Ethan worked with Meredith to reconstruct the events leading up to the wedding. He described the emergency meetings, the unexplained financial pressure, and the documents Patricia had brought to him.
He admitted that he'd noticed inconsistencies in the company's accounts months earlier.
“Why didn't you investigate?”” Daniel asked.
Ethan rubbed his face.
“Mom said the accounting department was correcting a reporting error. She told me the board would panic if I raised concerns before the quarterly review.””
“And you accepted that explanation?””
“Yes.””
“Did you tell Olivia the company was struggling?””
“No.””
I sat quietly, absorbing the admission.
Ethan finally turned toward me.
“I was ashamed. I'd promised my father I'd keep the business strong. When the contracts started losing money, I thought I could fix everything before anyone found out.””
“Even me?””
“Especially you,” he whispered.
“I didn't want you to think I'd failed.””
I stared at him.
“You could have told me the truth. I would have stood beside you.””
“I know that now.””
“No. You should have known it then.””
He accepted the rebuke without arguing.
Near sunset, Daniel received the first security footage from Whitmore Construction's office.
We gathered around his laptop.
The image was grainy but clear enough to show a person entering the accounting office, wearing a dark coat and a baseball cap. The figure moved directly to the filing cabinets, opened two drawers, and removed a thick envelope.
Then the person turned toward the camera.
Rachel.
Ethan gripped the back of his chair.
“She was there.””
The footage showed Rachel leaving the office at 11:51 p.m. with the envelope tucked beneath her coat.
Daniel paused the video.
“This supports the possibility that Rachel removed company records. We still need to identify exactly what was taken and whether she had any authorization.””
Ethan stared at the screen.
“Why would she do this?””
Meredith closed her notebook.
“That's what we need to establish.””
As if summoned by the question, Ethan's phone rang.
Rachel.
He answered on speaker after Meredith nodded.
“Rachel, where are you?””
Her breathing sounded ragged.
“Ethan, I didn't know your mother would go this far.””
“Did you enter the accounting office last night?””
Silence.
“Rachel?””
“Yes.””
“Why?””
“Because Patricia told me the records would destroy all of us if they reached your lawyer.””
Ethan shut his eyes.
“What did you take?””
“The transfer documents. The original agreements. Everything she told me to collect.””
“Where are they now?””
Rachel began to cry.
“I have them.””
“Then return them.””
“I can't.””
“Why not?””
“Because Patricia knows I kept a copy of the agreement about Olivia. She called me this morning and said if I spoke to you, she'd make sure I went to prison alone.””
Daniel leaned toward the phone.
“Rachel, this is Daniel Reeves. You should speak with your own attorney before making any further decisions.””
Rachel's voice shook.
“I have something else. Something I found inside the envelope.””
“What?”” Ethan demanded.
“A letter from your mother to the bank.””
Ethan went still.
“What did it say?””
Rachel took a shaky breath.
“It said the company had already been transferred, and that you had agreed to accept personal responsibility for the outstanding debts.””
Meredith's expression sharpened.
“Rachel, did you see Ethan sign that letter?””
“No.””
“Did you see a separate authorization?””
“I saw his signature on the copy.””
Ethan gripped the phone.
“I never signed a personal guarantee.””
Rachel began sobbing harder.
“Then your mother forged it.””
The room fell silent.
Daniel slowly closed the laptop.
“Rachel,” he said, “you need to preserve that letter and every related document. Do not alter anything. Your attorney can arrange a lawful handover.””
Before anyone could ask another question, Rachel whispered something that made Ethan stumble backward.
“There's a second page, Ethan.””
“What second page?””
“The bank's instructions.””
“Read them.””
Rachel's voice dropped to almost nothing.
“They were supposed to seize the construction company on Monday morning.””
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Then she added:
“And if the loan couldn't be recovered from the company, the letter instructed them to pursue your personal assets—including the house you inherited from your father.””
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