Chapter 3: The Second Betrayal
My husband pulled his arm away from Richard.
“Don’t touch me.”
“Then sit down, Daniel,” Richard said.
“And tell Claire the truth.”
Hearing my name in Richard’s warning made the room feel even quieter.
Daniel glanced toward the restaurant door, but his mother, Lorraine, was already gone.
“What truth?” I asked.
Daniel straightened his jacket.
“Dad is upset.
He doesn’t know what he’s saying.”
Richard placed the hotel receipt beside my ruined cake.
“I know you transferred forty-eight thousand dollars from Claire’s savings account.”
My fingers tightened around the cloth in my hand.
“That’s impossible,” I said.
“Daniel can’t withdraw from that account without my signature.”
Richard looked at his son.
“Show her.”
“Show me what?”
Daniel gave a short laugh.
“This is ridiculous.
We are not discussing our finances in front of seventy people.”
“You discussed my humiliation in front of them,” I said.
“We can discuss your betrayal here too.”
A few guests lowered their eyes.
Others remained perfectly still.
Richard opened a folder inside the envelope and slid a document toward me.
My name appeared beneath a transfer authorization.
The signature looked like mine, but the final letter leaned in the wrong direction.
“I didn’t sign this.”
Daniel reached for the page.
“You sign things without reading them all the time.”
I pulled it away.
“Then tell me when I signed it.”
“It was among the refinancing papers.”
“We never refinanced anything.”
Daniel’s mouth closed.
Richard tapped the hotel receipt.
“The money went into an account Lorraine opened with the man in those photographs.
His name is Victor Lane.”
“Who is he?” I asked.
“A travel consultant,” Daniel said quickly.
Richard stared at him.
“Is that what your mother told you?”
Daniel pushed back his chair.
“Mom made a mistake.
She was afraid you would overreact, so I helped her replace the money.”
“With my money?” I asked.
“She was going to return it.”
“After forging my signature?”
“You’re making it sound worse than it is.”
A woman near the window whispered, “How could it be worse?”
Daniel turned toward her.
“This is a private family matter.”
“No,” I said.
“It stopped being private when you used my name.”
He leaned toward me.
“If you continue this, you will destroy everyone in this family.”
“You watched your mother shove cake into my face.”
“It was a joke.”
“And the money?”
His eyes moved to the envelope.
Richard picked up Lorraine’s abandoned napkin.
Underneath it lay a small brass key.
“That belongs to our home safe,” he said.
Daniel lunged across the table, but Richard closed his fist around it.
“What’s in the safe?” I asked.
“Nothing that concerns Claire,” Daniel said.
Richard’s eyes remained on his son.
“That answer tells me it concerns her most.”
The restaurant manager stepped closer.
“Sir, should I call someone?”
Daniel shook his head.
“No one is calling anyone.”
My phone vibrated inside my purse.
A notification from my bank filled the screen.
ACCOUNT SECURITY ALERT: LIEN DOCUMENTS PROCESSED.
I held it out.
“What did you put a lien on?”
Daniel’s anger disappeared.
May you like
For one second, he looked almost sorry.
Then he whispered, “Your mother’s cottage.”
