Chapter 7 - The Test of Loyalty
Brenda placed the case on the dining table as though she owned it.
“You should choose better hiding places,” she said.
Rachel’s hand tightened around her phone.
“How did you open that?”
Brenda smiled.
“I didn’t.”
The lock had been forced along one edge.
Rachel looked at David.
“You brought her here.”
“I wanted us to talk.”
“You broke into my files.”
Brenda opened the damaged case.
Inside were Rachel’s copies of the authorization form, the acquisition plan, and several property records.
The original photograph was no longer there.
Rachel had placed it in Olivia’s safe.
Brenda searched the case, becoming increasingly irritated.
“What are you looking for?” Rachel asked.
Brenda closed the lid.
“Evidence of how far Natalie has manipulated you.”
“Why was my name written on a photograph twelve years ago?”
David looked at his mother.
Brenda’s expression did not change.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Rachel held up her phone.
“I photographed it.”
“Then show me.”
“No.”
Brenda stepped closer.
“You are making a terrible mistake.”
“Canceling the wedding?”
“Accusing people who intended to make you part of their family.”
“You intended to make my property part of your family.”
Brenda’s voice hardened.
“That land is wasted under your control.”
There it was.
Not denial.
Entitlement.
“It belongs to me.”
“Because an old woman placed sentiment above progress.”
“My grandmother protected it.”
“Your grandmother obstructed plans she could not understand.”
Rachel watched Brenda carefully.
“You knew her.”
Brenda hesitated for less than a second.
But Rachel saw it.
“Everyone involved in development knew Evelyn Morgan,” Brenda said. “She filed complaints against half the city.”
“Did you know Henry Vale?”
David turned sharply toward his mother.
Brenda’s calm finally cracked.
“Where did you hear that name?”
Rachel said nothing.
Brenda looked at David.
“You told her?”
“No.”
“Then Natalie has more than we thought.”
The room fell silent.
David realized what his mother had revealed.
“Mom.”
Brenda ignored him.
She returned her attention to Rachel.
“Listen carefully. Natalie is dangerous. Henry was worse. They created stories because they wanted money.”
“Henry disappeared.”
“Henry ran away after committing fraud.”
“My grandmother believed he was framed.”
“Your grandmother believed many things.”
Rachel lifted her phone higher.
“Leave my apartment.”
Brenda laughed.
“Do you understand how much debt David has because of this wedding?”
Rachel looked at him.
“What debt?”
David rubbed the back of his neck.
“We paid deposits.”
“You told me your family covered them.”
“We borrowed against expected assets.”
“Whose assets?”
No answer.
Rachel looked at the documents.
“My property.”
“It was temporary,” David said. “Once the development agreement was approved, everyone would benefit.”
“I never approved a development agreement.”
“You were going to.”
“You planned to use the marriage to pressure me.”
“I planned to convince you.”
Brenda stepped between them.
“We can still resolve this.”
“How?”
“You sign the emergency authorization. David repays the wedding loans. The property enters a family-managed holding structure, and you retain a forty percent interest.”
“In my own property.”
“You retain significant value while professionals manage the project.”
Rachel almost smiled at the audacity.
“No.”
Brenda’s expression became cold.
“Then David’s company collapses.”
“That isn’t my responsibility.”
“His employees lose their jobs.”
“Not my responsibility.”
“His brother loses his home.”
“Not my responsibility.”
“Our family is destroyed.”
Rachel looked directly at David.
“That began before I met him.”
David moved closer.
“Rachel, please. We can postpone the wedding. We can renegotiate everything.”
“There is no wedding.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“I do.”
He stared at her, searching for hesitation.
Rachel removed the engagement ring.
She placed it on the table.
Brenda’s eyes followed the ring rather than Rachel’s face.
For an instant, Rachel saw something strange in her expression.
Not disappointment.
Alarm.
Brenda reached for the ring.
Rachel picked it up first.
“Why do you want this?”
“It belongs to our family.”
“You said David bought it.”
“He did.”
“Then why are you frightened of me keeping it?”
David looked confused.
“Mom?”
Brenda extended her hand.
“Give it to me.”
Rachel examined the ring closely for the first time.
The diamond was mounted above a thick platinum band. Inside the band were the initials D.H. and R.M.
But beneath the initials, almost invisible, was a narrow rectangular seam.
Rachel pressed her fingernail against it.
A tiny compartment opened.
May you like
Something black and metallic fell onto the financial documents.
A micro-storage card.
