Chapter 2 - The Signature They Needed
David returned home carrying flowers.
They were white lilies.
Valerie hated white lilies.
They had covered her father’s coffin.
David knew that.
He entered the bedroom as though nothing had happened, placed the flowers on the table, and kissed Valerie’s forehead.
“You look exhausted.”
Valerie studied him.
He was handsome in a polished, deliberate way. His dark hair was perfectly arranged. His shirt sleeves were rolled to the same height on both arms. Even after two sleepless nights, he looked prepared for a business portrait.
“Where were you?” she asked.
“Handling the pharmacy.”
“You were gone for six hours.”
“There was traffic.”
“Your mother was searching my drawers.”
David loosened his watch.
“She was looking for your medication.”
“She was trying to open the drawer containing my father’s trust documents.”
His hands stopped.
Only for a second.
Then he smiled.
“You misunderstood.”
“I heard her speaking to someone downstairs.”
“What did you hear?”
The question came too quickly.
Valerie looked down at Ethan.
“She said I hadn’t signed something.”
David sat beside her.
“Val.”
She hated when he used that tone. Soft, patient, and practiced. It was the same tone he used when convincing investors that a failing project was secure.
“You’ve been through a traumatic delivery,” he continued. “Your hormones are unstable. Lack of sleep can create paranoia.”
“I heard her mention the trust.”
“Of course she mentioned it. We’ve discussed the authorization as a family.”
“It isn’t a family decision.”
His smile faded.
“We’re married.”
“The trust belonged to my father.”
“And your father is dead.”
The words struck the room like broken glass.
David looked away immediately.
“That came out wrong.”
“No. It came out exactly as you meant it.”
Ethan stirred.
Valerie adjusted the blanket around him.
David stood and moved toward the window.
“Our finances are under pressure,” he said. “My company is expanding. We have obligations.”
“You told me the company was doing well.”
“It is.”
“Then why do you need control of my trust?”
“I don’t need control. I need flexibility.”
“That means control.”
David turned.
The patience left his face.
“You have sixty-eight million dollars sitting behind legal walls while I carry every responsibility in this house.”
“This house was purchased through my trust.”
His jaw tightened.
“That’s exactly the problem. Everything has your name on it.”
Valerie felt a coldness spread through her that had nothing to do with blood loss.
“Is that why you married me?”
David’s expression changed instantly.
He crossed the room, knelt beside her, and took her hand.
“Don’t say that.”
“Answer me.”
“I married you because I love you.”
“Then stop asking me to sign.”
He looked into her eyes for several seconds.
“Fine.”
The answer was too easy.
David reached for the flowers and began arranging them in the glass vase.
Valerie watched his reflection in the window.
He was smiling.
Not at her.
At something on his phone.
A message had arrived.
She could not see the sender’s name, but she saw the first sentence.
Flight confirmed.
David locked the screen.
“Who are you traveling with?” Valerie asked.
He glanced over his shoulder.
“What?”
“Your mother said you’re taking a vacation.”
He laughed.
“She was joking.”
“She didn’t sound like she was joking.”
“We talked about postponing our anniversary trip.”
“With a premature newborn?”
“Obviously we aren’t going now.”
Ethan coughed.
David looked at him with irritation rather than concern.
Valerie noticed.
“You haven’t held him today.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“He’s your son.”
“I know who he is.”
“Then hold him.”
David stood still.
Valerie lifted Ethan toward him.
David reluctantly extended his arms.
The moment Ethan touched his chest, he began to cry.
David frowned.
“He doesn’t like me.”
“He’s a newborn.”
“He never cries like that with you.”
“He knows my heartbeat.”
David returned Ethan too quickly.
The baby’s head tilted back until Valerie caught it.
“Careful!”
“I said I’m tired.”
“You almost dropped him.”
David’s face hardened.
“Don’t speak to me like I’m incompetent.”
“Then don’t act like your son is an inconvenience.”
He moved closer.
For the first time in their marriage, Valerie felt afraid of him.
Not uncomfortable.
Not hurt.
Afraid.
David lowered his voice.
“You will sign the authorization.”
“I already said no.”
“You don’t understand what is at stake.”
“My answer is still no.”
He leaned down until his face was inches from hers.
“Your father spent his life treating my family like criminals.”
“My father barely knew your family.”
“He knew enough to destroy my brother.”
Valerie blinked.
“Daniel?”
David stepped back.
The name had escaped before he could stop it.
Daniel Mercer had died eight years earlier in a boating accident. David rarely spoke about him. Theresa claimed Daniel had been reckless, unstable, and jealous.
“What did my father have to do with Daniel?” Valerie asked.
“Nothing.”
“You just said he destroyed him.”
“I was angry.”
“You said his name.”
David picked up the flowers.
“I need air.”
As he left, one white lily slipped from the arrangement and fell onto the floor.
Valerie stared at it.
Then she noticed something beneath the bedside table.
A folded document.
David must have dropped it.
Valerie bent carefully and picked it up.
It was a printed travel itinerary.
Two first-class tickets.
DAVID MERCER.
THERESA MERCER.
Departure: 6:40 p.m. the following day.
Destination: Saint Aurelia.
The trip was not postponed.
It had been planned weeks earlier.
Valerie turned the page.
A hotel reservation appeared beneath the flights.
One luxury suite.
Fourteen nights.
Paid with a credit card ending in the same four digits as Valerie’s platinum account.
At the bottom of the page was a handwritten note.
Get the signature before departure.
Valerie looked toward the open bedroom door.
Downstairs, David’s voice was low and urgent.
“She found out about the trip.”
May you like
Theresa answered.
“Then we move tonight.”
