Chapter 5 - Twelve Pages
Vanessa entered Ryan’s office at nine in the evening carrying a bottle of champagne.
Hidden cameras recorded everything.
Ryan spread twelve documents across his desk.
“What are these?” Vanessa asked.
“Our future.”
He explained that he was establishing a private investment company called VCL Holdings.
The initials stood for Vanessa Cole Legacy.
Vanessa smiled.
“You named it after me?”
“I’m putting it in your name.”
“Why?”
“Because after Olivia is gone, people will examine everything connected to me. They won’t look at you.”
Vanessa’s smile faded slightly.
“After she’s gone?”
Ryan poured champagne.
“You know what I mean.”
“No, I want you to say it.”
He walked around the desk and took her hands.
“The yacht trip will solve everything.”
Vanessa studied him.
“What exactly are you planning?”
“Nothing you need to worry about.”
“Ryan.”
He lowered his voice.
“She has dizzy spells. She stands near railings. Accidents happen.”
Vanessa did not object.
Instead, she asked, “And the baby?”
Ryan looked away.
Vanessa waited.
Finally, he said, “We can’t control every consequence.”
Watching from Margaret’s office, Olivia felt as though the room had tilted.
Her hands instinctively covered her stomach.
Nathan reached toward the screen to stop the recording.
Olivia shook her head.
“Keep playing it.”
Ryan placed a pen in Vanessa’s hand.
“These papers make you the owner of VCL Holdings. After the investigation ends, I’ll move the clean assets to the company.”
“Why not put it in both our names?”
“Because I’m protecting us.”
Vanessa flipped through the pages without reading them.
“Do I need a lawyer?”
Ryan laughed.
“Do you trust me?”
She signed every page.
What Vanessa did not know was that the documents on Ryan’s desk had been replaced.
Nathan had entered the office earlier that afternoon.
The papers still created VCL Holdings, but the attached schedules disclosed every debt Ryan had attempted to hide inside shell companies.
By signing, Vanessa became the legal director of a corporation responsible for the questionable transactions.
However, Margaret had also inserted a cooperation clause.
If Vanessa proved she had been deceived and provided truthful evidence against Ryan, she could avoid personal liability.
It was a test.
Vanessa had participated in the conspiracy, but Ryan had concealed the financial crimes from her.
Olivia did not feel sympathy for the woman who had casually accepted the possibility of her death.
Still, she wanted justice, not blind revenge.
Vanessa would receive one opportunity to tell the truth.
If she refused, she would face the consequences alongside Ryan.
After the meeting, Ryan kissed Vanessa.
“Soon, we won’t have to hide.”
Vanessa raised her glass.
“To our new fortune.”
Olivia paused the recording.
“That’s what she’ll say on the yacht,” she said.
Margaret looked confused.
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“How can you know?”
“Because Ryan likes rehearsals. Every lie he tells is part of a performance.”
