Chapter 4
I barely slept that night.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Malik standing in the kitchen with that letter in his hands.
My son had worked so hard to enter the engineering program.
He spent weekends studying.
Turned down parties.
Saved money from summer jobs.
And now, because I trusted the wrong person with his education fund, he might lose everything.
At six the next morning, I was already sitting at the kitchen table.
My laptop was open.
Bank statements covered the marble counter.
A cup of coffee sat untouched beside me.
I had one priority.
Fix Malik's tuition.
Everything else could wait.
When he came downstairs, he looked surprised.
"Dad?"
I turned.
"Morning, son."
He glanced at the papers.
"You didn't sleep?"
"Not much."
He sat across from me.
"Are you okay?"
I almost laughed.
My son was the one facing financial trouble.
Yet he was still worried about me.
I reached across the table.
"Malik, I need you to hear something."
He nodded.
"Your education is not in danger because of anything you did."
His eyes filled.
I continued.
"I'm going to handle the balance."
"Dad, you don't have to—"
"Yes, I do."
He looked down.
I leaned forward.
"I should have made sure the money reached you directly."
He shook his head.
"You trusted Jasmine."
I nodded.
"And I failed to check."
He looked up.
I continued.
"That's my responsibility."
Malik wiped his eyes.
"I'm not mad at you."
My throat tightened.
"Maybe you should be."
He shook his head.
"No."
Then he said something I would never forget.
"I just wanted you to notice."
My heart broke.
I sat back.
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
Then I stood and walked around the table.
I hugged him.
"I'm noticing now, son."
He held me tightly.
"And I won't stop."
That morning, I called the university's financial office.
I explained the situation.
They confirmed the outstanding balance.
Then I paid it directly.
Not through Jasmine.
Not through a household account.
Directly.
I also established a separate education account for Malik.
Only he and I would have access.
I scheduled monthly transfers for his approved expenses.
Then I called his academic adviser.
With Malik's permission, we discussed how to make sure his training program remained secure.
By noon, the financial hold was removed.
Malik stared at the confirmation email.
Then looked at me.
"Really?"
I smiled.
"Really."
He covered his face.
I could see his shoulders shaking.
I hugged him again.
For the first time in weeks, he smiled without forcing it.
Then he asked something unexpected.
"Dad, can I still keep my job?"
I frowned.
"Why?"
He shrugged.
"I like earning my own money."
I studied him.
My son wasn't lazy.
He wasn't entitled.
He wasn't expecting me to hand him everything.
He wanted independence.
But he deserved support while building it.
I nodded.
"As long as it doesn't interfere with school."
He grinned.
"Deal."
That afternoon, I met my accountant, Raymond Lewis.
Raymond had managed my business finances for nearly fifteen years.
He was careful.
Honest.
The kind of man who checked every number twice.
When I told him what happened, he looked stunned.
"Seventy thousand?"
I nodded.
"At least."
He leaned forward.
"Marcus, we need to review all household accounts."
I agreed.
We spent hours examining transactions.
Transfers.
Withdrawals.
Credit card charges.
Payment schedules.
The deeper we looked, the worse it became.
Jasmine had not simply taken money once.
She had created a pattern.
Whenever I traveled for work, unusual expenses appeared.
Luxury purchases.
Cash transfers.
Payments to unfamiliar companies.
Several invoices claimed to be home maintenance expenses.
But the vendors didn't exist.
Or at least, Raymond couldn't find legitimate records for them.
I stared at one invoice.
"Kitchen plumbing emergency."
Raymond nodded.
"Seven thousand dollars."
I shook my head.
"Our kitchen never had a plumbing emergency."
He looked grim.
"Then we need to investigate where that money went."
My stomach tightened.
I thought about Jasmine telling me repairs were urgent.
How she insisted I shouldn't worry.
How she said I worked too hard and needed to trust her.
I had believed her.
Every time.
Then Raymond found something unexpected.
A recurring transfer.
Two thousand five hundred dollars every month.
I frowned.
"What's that?"
He checked the details.
"It goes to an account labeled J&J Ventures."
My heart pounded.
Jordan's company.
The business Jasmine admitted creating.
I stared at the dates.
The transfers began nine months earlier.
Three months before Jasmine claimed the business existed.
I felt cold.
"She's been funding it longer than she admitted."
Raymond nodded.
"And there's another concern."
I looked up.
"What?"
He pointed to the authorization field.
"The transfer instructions were submitted using an electronic signature."
I stared at the screen.
My name appeared.
Marcus Williams.
But I had never authorized those payments.
I shook my head.
"That's not mine."
Raymond looked at me carefully.
"Then someone may have used your information without permission."
My stomach twisted.
I thought about our marriage.
Our shared devices.
The passwords Jasmine knew.
The documents she had access to.
I had trusted her with everything.
Now I realized how much damage someone could do when they had that level of access.
Raymond recommended contacting the bank's security department.
I agreed.
We preserved the records.
Then I called an attorney named Angela Brooks.
She specialized in family and financial disputes.
She listened carefully.
Then asked a question I hadn't considered.
"Marcus, do you and Jasmine have a prenuptial agreement?"
I nodded.
"Yes."
"Who prepared it?"
"My attorney before the wedding."
"Good. I want to review it."
I sent her a copy.
She explained that the house was purchased before my marriage and remained titled in my name.
But she warned me that marital property, financial obligations, and occupancy rights would require proper legal handling.
I appreciated her honesty.
I didn't want revenge.
I wanted clarity.
I wanted my son protected.
And I wanted to know exactly how much money had been taken.
Then Angela asked another question.
"Does Jasmine have access to your business accounts?"
My stomach tightened.
"Some."
"What kind of access?"
I thought carefully.
"She helped with household payments when I traveled."
Angela remained silent.
Then she said, "Marcus, we need to review that too."
My heart began pounding.
My business.
The company I had built from nothing.
The business that employed forty-three people.
I had spent twenty years creating it.
And suddenly, I wondered whether Jasmine had been taking money from there too.
That evening, I called Raymond again.
"Check the business accounts."
He hesitated.
"All of them?"
"Every single one."
There was a pause.
Then he said, "Marcus, I was hoping you wouldn't ask that."
My stomach dropped.
"Why?"
Raymond took a breath.
"Because I've been reviewing them already."
I froze.
"And?"
His voice became serious.
"There's a vendor account I don't recognize."
My heart pounded.
"What vendor?"
He read the name.
"J&J Property Solutions."
I closed my eyes.
Jasmine.
Jordan.
Again.
Raymond continued.
"That company has received payments from your business for the past eight months."
My throat tightened.
"How much?"
He hesitated.
Then answered.
"One hundred and twelve thousand dollars."
I couldn't breathe.
Because now I understood.
Jasmine hadn't simply stolen from my son's education fund.
May you like
She may have been using my business to finance Jordan's life too.
And if the records proved what I feared, the consequences were going to be much bigger than a broken marriage.
