Chapter 3
I had never hated silence so much.
Marcus stood near the lounge door.
His mouth opened.
Then closed.
My father's attorneys were waiting outside.
The twins were sleeping again.
Everything around me looked peaceful.
But my marriage was falling apart in front of my eyes.
"Answer me," I whispered.
Marcus looked toward Dad.
"Arthur, can we discuss this privately?"
Dad's expression didn't change.
"You are discussing it privately."
Marcus shook his head.
"I mean without lawyers."
I stared at him.
"You want fewer witnesses?"
His face twisted.
"Nia, that's not fair."
I almost laughed.
"Fair?"
I held up the document.
"Is this my signature?"
He said nothing.
"Marcus, I was in the hospital this morning."
He swallowed.
"I know."
"I was feeding our daughters while you were signing paperwork about my home."
His eyes filled.
"I was desperate."
The word made me sick.
Desperate.
As though desperation gave him permission to betray me.
I looked at Dad.
"Can he actually take the house?"
Dad shook his head.
"Not if the trust documents are what our attorneys understand them to be. But we need to investigate exactly what was submitted and whether anyone attempted to use false authorization."
I nodded slowly.
Then I looked at Marcus.
"Who signed my name?"
He sat down.
His shoulders collapsed.
"Mom arranged the documents."
My heart stopped.
"Diane?"
He nodded.
"She said the authorization was a formality."
I stared at him.
"And you believed her?"
"She told me she'd handled everything."
I gripped the edge of the sofa.
"You knew I hadn't signed."
He looked away.
"Yes."
That one word destroyed the last excuse I had been trying to make for him.
He knew.
He knew I hadn't agreed.
He knew the house was connected to my family.
He knew I was recovering from childbirth.
And he had gone ahead anyway.
I looked at my daughters.
Amara was sleeping with one tiny hand curled beside her cheek.
Ava's face rested against the cream blanket.
They had no idea their father had placed their home at risk.
I felt sick.
"Why did your mother throw us out of the hotel?"
Marcus looked confused.
"What?"
"Diane didn't just insult me. She canceled our room and demanded that I leave."
He hesitated.
Dad watched him closely.
"Marcus," I said. "Why?"
He rubbed his forehead.
"Mom thought you needed time apart."
I stared at him.
"Time apart?"
"She said if you stayed somewhere else for a few days, we could sort things out."
I shook my head.
"That doesn't explain why she said my babies didn't belong in the family."
Marcus looked toward the window.
"She was angry."
"About what?"
He didn't answer.
Dad stepped forward.
"Because the transaction was blocked."
Marcus looked up sharply.
I turned toward my father.
"What?"
Dad sat beside me.
"One of my attorneys received an alert this morning about an attempted transaction involving the trust property. We instructed the relevant parties not to proceed while the authorization was investigated."
I stared at him.
"So Diane knew?"
"She was notified that the transaction couldn't continue without proper approval."
My stomach tightened.
I remembered Diane's expression when she snatched the envelope.
The anger.
The cruelty.
The way she kept telling me to leave.
It hadn't been random.
She had been furious because something had gone wrong with her plan.
I looked at Marcus.
"Did she want me gone because she couldn't get the house?"
He shook his head.
"Nia, Mom wouldn't—"
"Stop."
My voice came out stronger than I expected.
"Stop defending her."
He stared at me.
I felt tears sliding down my face.
"She told me your daughters weren't family."
Marcus looked down.
"And you stood beside her."
His eyes reddened.
"I didn't know what to do."
I felt something inside me grow cold.
"You could have stood beside your wife."
He started crying.
For years, those tears would have made me reach for him.
I would have comforted him.
I would have told him everything would be okay.
But not this time.
I had two babies depending on me.
I couldn't carry Marcus too.
Dad quietly opened the lounge door.
He spoke to one of the attorneys.
A woman entered.
She introduced herself as Olivia Grant.
She explained that she worked with Dad's legal team and had reviewed the trust documents.
She spoke carefully, without promising outcomes she couldn't guarantee.
"The transaction appears to have relied on an authorization your trust never granted," she told me.
I looked at her.
"What happens now?"
"We'll preserve the documents, verify how the signature was produced, and notify the necessary institutions. We also recommend that you speak with an attorney who represents your interests independently."
Dad nodded.
"I've already arranged that option. Nia can choose her own counsel."
I looked at him.
"You did all this today?"
His expression softened.
"I started asking questions after Marcus contacted me."
My heart dropped.
"Marcus contacted you?"
Dad looked at my husband.
"Yes."
I turned slowly.
"When?"
Marcus didn't answer.
Dad continued.
"Three weeks ago."
I stared at him.
Three weeks ago, I had been heavily pregnant.
I could barely sleep.
Marcus had spent nights telling me everything was fine.
Meanwhile, he had been contacting my father.
"Why?" I whispered.
Dad looked at me sadly.
"Because he wanted me to guarantee his business debts."
I felt numb.
Marcus had gone to the father he claimed was controlling and arrogant.
Not to repair our family.
Not to ask him to meet his granddaughters.
But to ask for money.
Dad continued.
"I offered to help him understand his financial options. I also told him I wouldn't use your property as security for his business."
Marcus wiped his face.
"I thought he would help."
Dad looked at him.
"I offered to help you find an ethical solution. I refused to put my daughter's future at risk."
I stared at Marcus.
"Did you tell Diane?"
He nodded.
"Yes."
Everything began making sense.
The resentment.
The accusations.
The sudden cruelty.
Diane believed I was standing between her son and my father's money.
And now she had tried to make me pay for it.
Before I could speak, Olivia's phone rang.
She excused herself and answered.
Her expression changed.
She listened carefully.
Then turned toward Dad.
"Arthur, we have a problem."
My heart began pounding.
"What problem?"
Olivia looked at me.
"The bank has identified another document submitted with the financing application."
She paused.
"It appears to include a statement that you were no longer living with Marcus and had agreed to relinquish certain rights."
I stared at her.
"What?"
She swallowed.
"The document claims you signed it before the twins were born."
I could barely breathe.
May you like
Then Olivia said something that made my blood turn cold.
"The signature was reportedly witnessed by Diane Whitmore."
