Chapter 6 - The Family VoteSix days before the wedding, my mother asked everyone to meet at the family home.
She called it a chance to resolve the misunderstanding privately.
Naomi advised me not to attend alone.
I brought her with me.
When we arrived, my father was sitting at the head of the dining table. My mother sat beside him. Madison and Ethan were across from them.
A stack of papers had been placed at my usual seat.
My father looked at Naomi.
“This is a family discussion.”
“She is my attorney.”
His expression darkened.
“You brought a lawyer into your mother’s home?”
“You brought fraudulent contracts into my name.”
My mother closed her eyes.
“Please,” she said. “We are trying to find a peaceful solution.”
I sat down.
My father pushed the papers toward me.
“If you sign these, the company will assume responsibility for the accounts after the next development closes.”
Naomi picked up the first document.
“This does not transfer responsibility,” she said. “It confirms that Victoria authorized the original transactions.”
My father ignored her.
“Victoria, sign the documents.”
“No.”
Madison stood.
“Can you stop thinking about yourself for one day?”
“I have spent years thinking about everyone except myself.”
“You’re destroying my wedding.”
“Your wedding can continue.”
“With half the vendors canceled!”
“Ethan’s family offered another venue.”
“I’m not getting married in a church basement.”
Ethan looked down at the table.
My mother reached for my hand.
“Perhaps you can sign temporarily. After the wedding, we’ll straighten everything out.”
I pulled my hand away.
“Mom, there is no temporary version of admitting to fraud.”
My father rose from his chair.
“You will sign.”
“No.”
“I am your father.”
“That does not make my name your property.”
His face became red.
Then he did what he always did when he felt control slipping away.
He turned the discussion into a vote.
He looked at my mother.
“Elaine, tell her what this is doing to you.”
My mother’s eyes filled with tears.
“I can’t sleep. I’m terrified the family will fall apart.”
He looked at Madison.
“Tell your sister what you need.”
“I need her to stop punishing me for being happy.”
Then he looked at Ethan.
But Ethan did not say what my father expected.
“I think Victoria deserves to see the full company records.”
Madison stared at him.
“Whose side are you on?”
“I’m not choosing sides. I’m saying she shouldn’t be responsible for debts she didn’t approve.”
My father pointed toward the door.
“You can leave.”
Ethan remained seated.
“No.”
The room became silent.
That single word changed something.
My father could control people only while everyone believed they stood alone.
Naomi placed the papers back on the table.
“Mr. Hale, investigators already have copies of the altered documents.”
My mother looked at me.
“Investigators?”
“I filed an official report.”
Madison’s face went pale.
“You called the police?”
“I reported a crime.”
“You promised you wouldn’t ruin my wedding.”
“I never promised that.”
My father’s voice became dangerously quiet.
“You will regret humiliating this family.”
I reached into my bag and placed one photograph on the table.
It showed him embracing Sabrina at the Belmont Hotel.
My mother stopped breathing for a moment.
Madison stared at the image.
My father grabbed it.
“This proves nothing.”
“It proves you lied about where you were.”
“Sabrina is a business associate.”
“Then why did you buy her a condominium in my name?”
My mother stood so quickly that her chair fell backward.
“Richard?”
He looked at her.
For once, no explanation came.
I gathered the papers.
“The wedding is in six days,” I said. “You can tell the truth before then.”
“And if I don’t?” he asked.
May you like
I looked at the blue folder in Naomi’s hands.
“Then the evidence will.”
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