Chapter 11: The Woman Who Knew Everything
I stared at the phone screen.
The name wasn’t saved.
But I knew the number.
Not because I had called it.
Because I had seen it before.
Years ago.
On Marcus’s phone.
My hands went cold.
Ethan noticed.
“Mom?””
I looked at him.
“I need to take this.””
Daniel stepped closer.
“Are you sure?””
No.
I wasn’t sure about anything anymore.
But I had spent three years living with unanswered questions.
I wasn’t afraid of the truth.
Not anymore.
I walked toward the side of the auditorium and answered.
“Hello?””
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
Then a woman’s voice whispered:
“Emily?””
I froze.
“Yes?””
“It’s Linda.””
My heart skipped.
Linda.
Marcus’s former assistant.
The woman who worked at his company before the divorce.
The woman who disappeared after Marcus left.
“Why are you calling me?””
Her voice shook.
“Because I should have called three years ago.””
I closed my eyes.
Another person who knew.
Another person who stayed silent.
“What happened?””
She took a breath.
“Marcus told me to destroy records.””
My grip tightened around the phone.
“What records?””
“Financial records.””
The auditorium noise faded around me.
“Linda, what are you talking about?””
“He wasn’t just hiding money.””
A pause.
“He was hiding where the money came from.””
My stomach tightened.
I looked back at Ethan.
He was watching me carefully.
“What do you mean?””
Linda lowered her voice.
“Marcus had another account.””
“Another account?””
“Yes.””
“For what?””
A long silence.
Then:
“Chloe.””
My chest tightened.
“I already know they were together.””
“No.””
Linda’s voice became urgent.
“You don’t understand.””
She sounded terrified.
“Chloe wasn’t just someone he was seeing.””
I waited.
“She was involved in the company.””
I frowned.
“What company?””
“Your husband’s company.””
I looked at Marcus.
He was standing near the stage, watching me.
“Marcus owned part of a company,” Linda continued.
“I know.””
“No, Emily.””
Her voice broke.
“You don’t know.””
A chill moved through me.
“Tell me.””
“He used your name.””
My heart stopped.
“My name?””
“Yes.””
I felt dizzy.
“How?””
“He created documents saying you approved certain investments.””
“That’s impossible.””
“I know.””
Linda sounded close to tears.
“That’s why I kept copies.””
The room suddenly felt too warm.
“What kind of investments?””
She hesitated.
“Ones that lost money.””
My eyes widened.
“How much?””
Silence.
Then she said a number.
A number so large I couldn’t process it.
I looked at Marcus.
All those years.
All those conversations about money.
All those moments when he said, “Trust me.””
I trusted him.
Because I was his wife.
Because I believed marriage meant something.
“Why are you telling me now?””
Linda answered softly.
“Because Chloe called me last night.””
My heart stopped.
“What did she say?””
“She asked if I still had the files.””
I looked at Chloe.
Her face changed.
She knew.
“She was trying to find the evidence before Ethan found it.””
I ended the call slowly.
When I returned to the stage, everyone looked at me.
Ethan immediately knew something was wrong.
“What happened?””
I looked at Marcus.
Then Chloe.
“There’s another secret.””
Marcus’s expression changed.
Chloe looked terrified.
Daniel stepped closer.
“What did you find?””
I held up my phone.
“Someone just told me Marcus used my name in business documents.””
The crowd reacted.
Marcus shook his head.
“That’s not true.””
Ethan looked at him.
“Then why are you afraid?””
Marcus opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Rachel whispered:
“Because it is true.””
Everyone turned.
She looked at Chloe.
“I remember when she talked about it.””
Chloe’s face drained.
“You don’t know anything.””
Rachel looked at her.
“I know you said once that Emily would never realize she was signing away her own life.””
I felt a sharp pain in my chest.
Signing away?
I looked at Marcus.
“What did you make me sign?””
He looked away.
And that was the moment I understood.
The divorce papers.
The financial forms.
The documents he placed in front of me while telling me everything would be easier.
I thought I was signing an ending.
But maybe…
I had signed something else.
Ethan grabbed the microphone.
“Dad.””
Marcus looked at him.
“What?””
My son’s voice was calm.
“Tell us the truth.””
A long silence.
Then Marcus finally whispered:
“She wasn’t supposed to find out.””
May you like
The auditorium went completely silent.
Because everyone heard him.
