Chapter 6 - THE WOMAN BEFORE ME
Natalie met us the next morning at Martin's office.
She was thirty-four.
Soft-spoken.
Perfectly composed.
Nothing about her matched the woman Derek had described years ago.
He had called Natalie obsessive.
Unstable.
Jealous.
He claimed she had stalked him after their breakup.
Now she placed a thick binder on Martin's conference table.
“I kept this because I knew someday he'd do it again.”
She opened it.
Inside were screenshots.
Emails.
Bank alerts.
Photographs.
Even handwritten notes.
The pattern was terrifyingly familiar.
Derek had moved into Natalie's apartment after four months.
He began asking about her savings.
Then her father's estate.
Then her retirement account.
Whenever she resisted, he accused her of not trusting him.
Brenda began visiting without notice.
She rearranged cabinets.
Criticized Natalie's clothing.
Inspected her grocery receipts.
Then the humiliation began.
Small things first.
A cruel joke in front of friends.
A drink spilled “accidentally.”
A demand that Natalie clean while guests watched.
Exactly like my brunch.
I felt sick.
“How long did it take before you left?”
“Eleven months.”
“Why so long?”
Natalie looked at me without judgment.
“Because Derek was wonderful afterward.”
I understood immediately.
“He apologized.”
“He cried.”
“He bought flowers.”
“He said his mother was controlling him.”
“He promised therapy.”
“He told me I was the only person who truly understood him.”
My throat tightened.
That was the Derek I knew.
The charming man returned whenever cruelty stopped working.
Natalie turned another page.
“This is where it became financial.”
There were emails between Derek and Brenda.
One line had been highlighted.
Once she feels dependent, she'll sign anything.
Another read:
Don't push too hard before her father's estate closes.
Martin photographed every page.
“Did they take money?”
Natalie nodded.
“Thirty-eight thousand dollars.”
“How?”
“Derek convinced me to co-sign a business loan.”
“The business never existed.”
My father swore under his breath.
Natalie continued.
“I sued.”
“They settled.”
“Part of the settlement required confidentiality.”
“Then how can you show us this?”
“The confidentiality clause covers the settlement amount and accusations made in the civil complaint.”
“It does not prohibit me from cooperating with law enforcement regarding suspected criminal conduct.”
Martin looked impressed.
“You've had this conversation with another attorney.”
Natalie smiled faintly.
“Many times.”
I stared at the binder.
Derek had rehearsed me.
I was not his first performance.
I was simply the largest potential payout.
My phone vibrated.
Unknown number.
A message appeared.
I know where you are.
I showed Martin.
A second message arrived.
Your parents won't protect you forever.
Dad stood.
Martin held up one hand.
“Don't respond.”
A third message.
Bring back the cashier's check and marriage certificate.
My eyes narrowed.
Why would Derek care about the marriage certificate?
Martin answered before I asked.
“Because he may think you have the only original.”
Natalie looked confused.
“Why does that matter?”
Martin opened his laptop.
He searched the county marriage records.
Then frowned.
“That is strange.”
“What?”
He turned the screen toward us.
Our marriage had been recorded.
But a supplementary filing had been submitted at 8:03 that morning.
A document labeled:
POSTNUPTIAL PROPERTY ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
My name appeared beside it.
So did Derek's.
I had never signed a postnuptial agreement.
Martin stared at the screen.
“He forged another document.”
I should have been shocked.
Instead, I laughed.
Everyone looked at me.
“What?”
Dad asked.
I shook my head.
“He just made the biggest mistake of his life.”
Because Derek had finally stopped hiding his crimes inside private conversations.
He had filed one with the county.
May you like
And government records are very difficult to quietly erase.
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