Chapter 4 - The Scandal That Almost Destroyed My Family
By noon, my photograph was everywhere.
Business websites.
Social media.
Television news.
The headlines were brutal.
Billionaire's Wife Linked to Missing Corporate Funds.
Nia Bennett Named in Financial Investigation.
Former Wife Accused of Secretly Draining Ex-Husband's Company.
I sat in Isaiah's study staring at the screen.
My hands felt numb.
One article claimed I had used my relationship with Isaiah to manipulate a corporate acquisition.
Another suggested I had secretly maintained financial ties with Marcus throughout our marriage.
Neither claim was supported by evidence.
But people were sharing them anyway.
Thousands of strangers were discussing my character.
My marriage.
My child.
And none of them knew me.
Isaiah closed the laptop.
"Stop reading."
I looked up.
"They think I stole money."
"I know."
"They think I married you to get rich."
His expression softened.
"Nia."
I shook my head.
"Your foundation is in the news. Your investors are calling. This could hurt everything you've built."
He crouched in front of me.
"Look at me."
I did.
"Did you steal that money?"
"No."
"Did you create that company?"
"No."
"Then we start with the truth."
Tears filled my eyes.
"Truth doesn't always matter online."
"It matters to me."
He took my hands.
"And it will matter when this goes before investigators."
I wanted to believe him.
But I remembered being twenty-six, sitting across from Marcus's divorce attorney while he explained how little I supposedly contributed to our marriage.
I remembered having my work dismissed.
My sacrifices ignored.
My character questioned.
It felt as though the same nightmare was beginning again.
Only this time, I had far more to lose.
That afternoon, my mother arrived.
She walked into the study carrying a tray of sandwiches.
"Eat."
I shook my head.
"I'm not hungry."
"Did I ask?"
Despite everything, I almost smiled.
Mom placed the tray on the table.
Then she sat beside me.
"I saw the news."
I lowered my eyes.
"I'm sorry."
She gave me a sharp look.
"For what?"
"For dragging our family into this."
My mother took my hand.
"Nia, when your father died, you were sixteen."
I looked at her.
"You remember what people said?"
I nodded slowly.
Some relatives had claimed my mother couldn't raise me alone.
Others suggested she should sell our house and move in with family.
She ignored them.
Worked two jobs.
Finished nursing school.
And raised me to believe my worth wasn't determined by anyone else's opinion.
"People talked then," she said.
"They talked when you married Marcus. They talked when you divorced him."
She leaned closer.
"And they're talking now."
I wiped my eyes.
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying people have always talked, sweetheart. But you've always survived."
I hugged her.
For a moment, I felt sixteen again.
Safe in my mother's arms.
Then Isaiah entered.
His expression was serious.
"Daniel found something."
I stood.
"What?"
He motioned for us to sit.
Daniel appeared carrying a tablet.
"The leaked documents came from an account connected to Vanessa Reed."
I frowned.
"Marcus's girlfriend?"
Daniel nodded.
"She's also listed as a marketing consultant for Carter Development."
I stared at him.
"Vanessa works for Marcus?"
"Yes."
"She never mentioned that."
Isaiah gave me a look.
"Apparently, there are quite a few things they haven't mentioned."
Daniel continued.
"Vanessa had access to internal communications. She appears to have sent selected documents to several media outlets."
I felt anger rising.
"Why would she do that?"
"Possibly to protect Marcus. Possibly for another reason."
I remembered her laughter at the gala.
Her sparkling gown.
The way she had looked at me like I was beneath her.
Now she was helping spread lies about me.
I clenched my fists.
"What do we do?"
Isaiah answered.
"We preserve the evidence, cooperate with investigators, and let our attorneys respond."
I looked at him.
"That's it?"
"For now."
I shook my head.
"She's trying to destroy my reputation."
He nodded.
"And we won't let her."
That evening, the situation became worse.
A television commentator claimed that the Bennett Children's Foundation might have received money connected to Carter Development.
The statement was speculative.
But it spread rapidly.
Within hours, several donors began asking questions.
One postponed a scheduled contribution.
Another requested financial records.
Isaiah's foundation director called twice.
I watched my husband's expression grow increasingly serious.
And guilt began eating at me.
After Lily went to sleep, I found Isaiah in the kitchen.
He was standing beside the sink, reading a message.
"Isaiah?"
He looked up.
"Hey, sweetheart."
I took a breath.
"Maybe I should step down from the foundation."
His expression changed.
"What?"
"Temporarily. Until this is resolved."
"No."
"Isaiah, please listen."
"I am listening."
"People are questioning the foundation because of me."
"They're questioning it because someone is spreading false accusations."
"But my name is involved."
He set down his phone.
"Nia, you helped build our literacy programs."
"I know."
"You spent years working with children nobody else wanted to help."
"I know."
"Why should you abandon that because your ex-husband used your identity?"
I couldn't answer.
He stepped closer.
"You're not responsible for Marcus's choices."
I looked down.
"I just don't want to hurt you."
He gently lifted my chin.
"You couldn't hurt me by telling the truth."
Tears spilled down my face.
Then he said something that made me cry harder.
"I didn't marry you because your life was easy."
His voice softened.
"I married you because I wanted to face the difficult parts with you."
I buried my face against his chest.
He held me until I stopped shaking.
The next morning, our attorney arranged a meeting with federal investigators.
I brought every document I could find from my marriage to Marcus.
Old bank statements.
Emails.
Divorce records.
Tax filings.
And a folder I hadn't opened in seven years.
It contained documents from Carter Development's earliest days.
I remembered packing it away after the divorce because looking at it hurt too much.
Now I opened it.
Inside were contracts.
Receipts.
And handwritten notes.
Near the bottom, I found a document that made me stop breathing.
An original partnership agreement.
Dated eight months before Marcus and I married.
It listed two founding partners.
Marcus Carter.
And Nia Brooks.
I stared at the page.
My signature was there.
So was Marcus's.
I remembered signing it.
But I also remembered Marcus telling me the agreement had been replaced when the business incorporated.
He claimed I no longer owned anything.
During our divorce, Richard Sloan had repeated that claim.
I looked at Isaiah.
"Marcus lied to me."
He leaned closer.
"What is it?"
I handed him the document.
He read it.
Then read it again.
His expression changed.
"Nia."
My heart pounded.
"What?"
He looked directly at me.
"This may mean you never stopped being a founding owner of Carter Development."
I stared at him.
Seven years ago, Marcus had told me I was worthless.
He had convinced me I had contributed nothing.
He had taken the company we built and erased my name from its history.
May you like
But the document in my hands told a different story.
And for the first time, I realized Marcus might have stolen far more from me than seven years of my life.
