Chapter 1 - The Birthday Gift
Seven hours earlier, Claire Morgan had believed her marriage was merely unhappy.
She hadn't yet understood that it was dangerous.
Her thirty-fifth birthday dinner was being held at Bellamy House, one of the most expensive restaurants in downtown Chicago.
Julian had chosen it.
That should have meant something.
Claire simply hadn't recognized what.
Twenty members of the Morgan family and senior employees had gathered inside a private dining room overlooking the river.
Her mother had arranged flowers.
Her father had brought a bottle of wine from the year Claire was born.
Employees had signed a card.
Chloe had arrived forty minutes late wearing a champagne-colored dress and carrying no gift.
"Traffic," she'd said.
Claire had hugged her anyway.
That was what Claire always did.
She made excuses for Chloe.
Seven years separated them, and Claire had spent most of those years behaving more like a second mother than an older sister.
When Chloe wrecked Robert's Mercedes at nineteen, Claire handled the insurance.
When Chloe dropped out of graduate school, Claire convinced their father to stop criticizing her.
When Chloe wanted a position at Morgan Industrial despite having little relevant experience, Claire created a role in vendor relations.
Chloe eventually became good at it.
Or Claire had thought she did.
Julian arrived shortly after Chloe.
He kissed Claire's cheek.
"Happy birthday."
No flowers.
No gift.
He claimed the present was in his SUV.
Claire smiled because twenty people were watching.
For most of dinner, Julian and Chloe barely acknowledged each other.
That was what made the betrayal so extraordinary.
They were excellent actors.
At 9:17 p.m., Julian whispered that he needed to take a business call.
Four minutes later, Chloe announced she needed air.
Claire noticed.
She hated herself later for noticing.
Something instinctive pulled at her.
Perhaps it had been the way Chloe avoided Julian's eyes.
Perhaps it had been Julian checking his phone underneath the table.
Perhaps it had been every unanswered question of the previous year suddenly arranging itself into one terrible shape.
Claire waited three minutes.
Then she remembered Julian's gift.
She told Diane she was going downstairs to retrieve it.
The underground garage smelled faintly of concrete, exhaust, and rain.
Claire's heels clicked between rows of expensive cars.
She carried the blue gift bag she'd brought downstairs because she had intended to place the present inside it before returning.
She turned around a concrete pillar.
Then stopped.
Julian had Chloe pinned against his SUV.
His hands were around her waist.
Her arms were around his neck.
They were kissing with the familiarity of people who had done it many times.
The gift bag fell from Claire's fingers.
A small glass perfume bottle inside shattered.
The sound echoed.
Julian spun around.
Chloe looked past him.
For one second, the three Morgan women Claire had been existed simultaneously.
The wife.
The sister.
And the woman who had just discovered both identities meant absolutely nothing to the two people standing before her.
Then Chloe smiled.
"Oh, shit."
She didn't move away from Julian.
"Birthday girl found us."
Claire couldn't speak.
Julian stepped back.
"Claire."
She stared at him.
"How long?"
"Don't."
"How long?"
Julian's embarrassment turned rapidly into anger.
It was a pattern Claire knew well.
Whenever he felt cornered, he attacked.
"Don't start your bullshit."
Claire looked at Chloe.
Her sister slowly reached up and wiped a smear of lipstick from Julian's mouth with her thumb.
The gesture was deliberate.
Cruel.
"Don't ruin your own damn birthday," Chloe said.
Something inside Claire became very still.
She looked down at the broken perfume bottle.
Julian approached her.
"Let's talk upstairs."
Claire stepped backward.
"Don't touch me."
"You're being dramatic."
She laughed once.
Even Claire was surprised by the sound.
"I'm being dramatic?"
"We made a mistake."
Chloe snorted.
Claire looked at her.
"A mistake?"
Chloe crossed her arms.
"Your marriage has been dead for years."
"And you decided to perform CPR with your tongue?"
Chloe's smile vanished.
Julian lowered his voice.
"Enough."
Claire looked at him.
For twelve years, that tone had worked.
It didn't anymore.
"Go to hell."
She turned.
Julian grabbed her wrist.
Claire looked down at his hand.
Then back at him.
"Release me."
"Not until you calm down."
"Three seconds."
He tightened his grip.
"Claire."
"Two."
A security camera above them rotated slightly.
Claire saw it.
So did Julian.
His hand immediately released her.
Interesting.
Claire walked toward the elevator.
"You're going back upstairs?" Chloe asked.
Claire pressed the button.
"Yes."
"Why?"
The doors opened.
Claire stepped inside.
"Because there are twenty people waiting to watch me cut my birthday cake."
The doors began closing.
Julian stared at her.
"What are you going to tell them?"
Claire looked directly at him.
"Nothing."
For some reason, that frightened him more than screaming would have.
Twenty minutes later, Claire stood beneath crystal lights while her family sang Happy Birthday.
Julian's chair was empty.
Chloe's chair was empty.
Diane leaned toward her.
"Where's your husband?"
Claire held the cake knife.
"Taking care of my sister."
She drove the blade through the cake.
Across the table, Robert watched her carefully.
He knew his oldest daughter.
He knew something was wrong.
But Claire wasn't ready to speak.
Not yet.
Because she had spent twelve years believing emotion was Julian's favorite weapon.
Tonight she would give him none.
When the final guest left, Claire asked to speak with Bellamy House's manager.
"Level Three," she said. "Around nine twenty."
The manager hesitated.
"Is there a security issue?"
"Possibly."
Minutes later, they were standing before a wall of monitors.
The footage appeared.
Claire watched herself enter the garage.
Then Julian.
Then Chloe.
The kiss.
The confrontation.
Julian grabbing Claire's wrist.
Claire barely reacted.
"Can you go backward?"
The manager did.
"Earlier."
He moved through the footage.
Then stopped.
His eyebrows drew together.
"Wait."
Claire looked at him.
"What?"
"I've seen those two before."
He searched archived footage.
Six weeks earlier.
Julian's SUV entered.
Chloe arrived separately.
They met.
No kissing.
An envelope changed hands.
Claire's stomach tightened.
"Keep going."
Three months earlier.
Another meeting.
Another envelope.
Five months earlier.
Same thing.
The manager looked uncomfortable.
"Mrs. Morgan, should I call someone?"
Claire stared at the screen.
"Yes."
"Police?"
"No."
May you like
She pulled out her phone.
"My internal audit director."
