Chapter 5 - The Woman Beside Him
Susan denied everything.
At least at first.
When Mara sent notice that we intended to subpoena the investigator’s records, Susan suddenly requested a private meeting.
She wanted no attorneys.
I refused.
She asked again.
I refused again.
Finally, she agreed to meet at Mara’s office.
Susan arrived wearing pearls.
That detail stayed with me.
She looked exactly as she always had at Christmas dinners and birthday parties.
Perfect hair.
Perfect posture.
Perfectly controlled expression.
She sat across from me.
“I never wanted to hurt you.”
I said nothing.
“I was protecting my son.”
“From what?”
She sighed.
“From a disastrous divorce.”
“He was the one having an affair.”
“I know.”
The words came too easily.
No surprise.
No hesitation.
“You knew.”
“Yes.”
“How long?”
“Since last summer.”
My body went cold.
Before I had found the messages.
Before Lily was born.
Before the investigator began following me.
“What exactly did Daniel tell you?”
“That he had reconnected with Chloe.”
“While I was pregnant.”
“Yes.”
“And you helped him.”
“I advised him.”
“You hired someone to follow me.”
Susan’s expression stiffened.
“I needed to know what condition you were in.”
“What condition?”
“You were emotional.”
“I was pregnant.”
“You cried frequently.”
“My baby had a medical scare.”
“You took time off work.”
“My doctor ordered it.”
“You depended heavily on your mother.”
“I had just given birth.”
Every answer made her look more irritated.
Finally, the mask slipped.
“You don’t understand how custody cases work.”
Mara leaned forward.
“I do.”
Susan ignored her.
“Daniel was terrified you would take Lily away.”
“So you started building a case against me before I even knew he was cheating?”
“We were preparing.”
“For what?”
“For every possibility.”
I stared at her.
Then I understood something else.
“You thought Chloe’s baby was Daniel’s.”
Susan’s silence confirmed it.
“You wanted the boy.”
Her eyes flashed.
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“You wanted a grandson.”
“I love Lily.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
Susan stood.
“This is becoming insulting.”
“Sit down.”
She stared at me.
For once, she obeyed.
“Did Daniel tell you he planned to use Lily’s trust?”
Susan’s expression changed.
Not much.
But enough.
Mara saw it too.
“You knew about that.”
Susan reached for her purse.
“This meeting is over.”
Mara placed a document on the table.
“No, Mrs. Reed.”
Susan froze.
“This is a copy of the home-equity application containing Jennifer’s forged signature.”
Susan looked at it.
“We will obtain every email, text, and financial record tied to DSR Consulting.”
For the first time, Susan looked nervous.
“If you were involved, we will know.”
“I never forged anything.”
“Then you should have no objection to the records.”
Susan looked at me.
Her anger disappeared.
Something colder replaced it.
“You need to think carefully about what you are doing.”
“I have.”
“Daniel is still Lily’s father.”
“I know.”
“You cannot erase him.”
“I’m not trying to.”
“You are destroying his career.”
“He did that.”
“You are turning Robert against him.”
“He did that.”
“You are tearing this family apart.”
I almost laughed.
“No, Susan.”
I leaned closer.
“I’m the person who finally stopped holding the pieces together.”
She left without another word.
That evening Robert called.
“Susan packed a bag.”
“Where did she go?”
“I don’t know.”
Then he asked a strange question.
“Did Mara find an account ending in 4417?”
I searched through the copies.
“Yes.”
It was the unidentified account that had received twenty thousand dollars from the home-equity loan.
“Why?”
Robert went silent.
“Robert?”
“That account belongs to Susan.”
My heart began pounding.
Daniel had not only forged my signature.
He had borrowed against our house.
Then transferred twenty thousand dollars directly to his mother.
“Why would Daniel pay Susan?”
“I don’t know.”
Robert sounded devastated.
“But I found something else.”
“What?”
“A check.”
“How much?”
“Forty thousand.”
“From who?”
“DSR Consulting.”
“To Susan?”
“No.”
I waited.
Robert’s next words changed the direction of everything.
“It was made payable to a family-law attorney.”
“Daniel’s attorney?”
“No.”
“Then whose?”
“A lawyer Susan hired three months before Lily was born.”
“For herself?”
“I called the office.”
His voice dropped.
“The file wasn’t opened under Susan’s name.”
My fingers tightened around the phone.
May you like
“Whose name?”
“Yours.”
