Chapter 4
I thought I understood betrayal.
I thought discovering my wife's affair was the worst pain I could experience.
Then she told me she had used our home as part of Damian's investment scheme.
I sat in my study, staring at her.
"What house money?"
Nia's hands trembled.
She looked at Olivia.
Then at me.
"I took out a loan."
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
"A loan?"
She nodded.
"Against the house."
My stomach tightened.
"Without telling me?"
She began crying.
"Damian said it was temporary."
I closed my eyes.
How many times had she said that?
Temporary.
An investment.
A favor.
Something that would be fixed later.
I took a breath.
"How much?"
She swallowed.
"One hundred and twenty thousand dollars."
My chest tightened.
The room seemed to tilt.
One hundred and twenty thousand dollars.
I looked at Olivia.
"Can she do that without my signature?"
Olivia answered carefully.
"That depends on the financing documents and how the property was titled. We need to inspect the application."
Nia began shaking harder.
I turned toward her.
"Did you sign my name?"
She covered her face.
The silence answered me.
Jasmine whispered,
"Oh, Nia."
I stared at my wife.
For eleven years, I had believed we were partners.
We shared everything.
Our paychecks.
Our plans.
Our dreams.
And now she was telling me she forged my signature to borrow money against our home.
I felt sick.
"Why?"
Nia began sobbing.
"Because Damian said the investment was guaranteed."
I shook my head.
"Nothing is guaranteed."
"I know that now."
I stared.
"You didn't know before?"
She looked away.
I took a shaky breath.
"Where is the money?"
Nia whispered,
"With Southern Crest."
Jasmine closed her eyes.
Olivia began reviewing the documents Nia provided.
Within an hour, we discovered that the loan had been processed through a private lender.
The paperwork included my supposed electronic signature.
But the authentication records were questionable.
The funds had been transferred to an account connected to Damian.
I felt cold all over.
Olivia looked at me.
"We should notify the lender and dispute any unauthorized signature immediately."
I nodded.
"Do it."
Nia looked frightened.
"Will I go to jail?"
I stared at her.
That was her first question.
Not whether we could save the house.
Not whether my employees would be paid.
Not whether our marriage had been destroyed.
Whether she would go to jail.
I took a slow breath.
"Nia, I don't know."
She began crying harder.
I looked away.
I couldn't comfort her.
Not yet.
That evening, Olivia advised us to preserve communications and separate financial access while the investigation continued.
Jasmine helped secure the business systems.
I contacted the bank.
Then the lender.
Then my insurance provider.
Every call felt like another piece of my life falling apart.
By midnight, I was exhausted.
Nia stood in the kitchen doorway.
"Marcus?"
I looked up.
"What?"
She hesitated.
"Can we talk alone?"
I stared at her.
For years, that sentence meant something warm.
We used to sit together after difficult days.
Share a cup of tea.
Talk until the problems felt smaller.
Now I was afraid of what she might say next.
I nodded.
"Okay."
She sat across from me.
For a moment, she stared at her hands.
Then whispered,
"I never meant to hurt you."
I closed my eyes.
"Nia, you planned to leave me today."
She began crying.
"I was confused."
I looked at her.
"For six months?"
She shook her head.
"Damian made me feel different."
My chest tightened.
"Different how?"
She swallowed.
"He listened to me."
I stared.
"I listened to you."
She looked away.
"You were always working."
The words hurt.
Because they weren't entirely wrong.
I had worked long hours.
Sometimes I missed dinners.
Sometimes I came home exhausted.
Sometimes I fell asleep while she was talking.
I had made mistakes.
But I had never imagined she would punish me by giving another man access to everything we built.
I took a breath.
"I know I wasn't a perfect husband."
Nia began crying harder.
I continued.
"But you could have told me you were unhappy."
She nodded.
"I know."
"You could have asked for counseling."
"I know."
"You could have left honestly."
She covered her face.
I swallowed.
"Instead, you lied."
For a long moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she whispered,
"I thought the lottery would fix everything."
I almost laughed.
"Fix what?"
She looked at me.
"Give me a way out."
I felt tears burn my eyes.
I had spent eleven years trying to build a life she would be happy in.
And she had been waiting for a way to escape.
I stood.
"I need some space."
Nia reached for me.
"Marcus, please."
I stepped back.
"No."
Her face crumpled.
I continued.
"I can't make decisions about our marriage tonight."
She nodded slowly.
I looked toward the staircase.
"You can stay in the guest room for now. We'll discuss arrangements with our attorneys."
Nia began crying.
I didn't feel victorious.
I felt empty.
The next morning, Jasmine called.
Her voice was urgent.
"Marcus, we found something."
My stomach tightened.
"What?"
"Damian has been contacting other employees at your company."
I froze.
"Why?"
"He offered them investment opportunities."
My heart pounded.
"Who?"
"At least three people."
I felt sick.
My employees.
People who trusted me.
People who believed Bennett Construction was a safe place to work.
I took a breath.
"Did they invest?"
Jasmine hesitated.
"One did."
My stomach tightened.
"Who?"
She swallowed.
"Tasha."
I closed my eyes.
My office manager.
The woman who had helped me build the business.
I felt sick.
"How much?"
"Thirty-five thousand dollars."
I sat down.
Tasha had two children.
Her husband was recovering from surgery.
She couldn't afford to lose that money.
I looked toward the window.
Then whispered,
"We have to help her."
Jasmine nodded.
"We will."
But before I could ask another question, she continued.
"Marcus, there's something else."
My heart pounded.
"What?"
"Damian has already applied to withdraw a large sum from Southern Crest."
I froze.
"How large?"
"More than four hundred thousand dollars."
I stared.
"Where is he sending it?"
Jasmine took a breath.
"To an overseas account."
My hands began shaking.
Damian wasn't planning to invest our money.
May you like
He was preparing to disappear.
And suddenly, I realized Nia might not be the only person he had betrayed.
